Woody

Woody has been on my radar since November when we had several sessions get rescheduled due to rain. As excited as I was to photograph him, I totally understood when his dad decided to wait until the Spring to try our shoot for the ump-teenth time. As sad as we were to have missed the last of the Fall colors, this Spring session exploded with vibrancy! It was perfect! Woody's dad wanted a cool, urban vibe and NoDa was the place to be! Woody was a rockstar as he posed throughout the area (as well as attracting a ton of attention)...

Because what cool guy doesn't pose on a keg??Woody's dad loves fish so we were stoked to find this cool mural!This was when I discovered the power of the tennis ball. It's Woody's kryptonite.Hehe...I love that the dog in the mural is checking us out...Woody got a little overstimulated with all of the action going on around NoDa so we snuck away to a secret little place I had scouted earlier. It's in the process of being demo'ed but it lasted long enough to serve as the perfect background for this chill guy.Skateboarders have taken over this abandoned area and have created their own little skate park. It's complete with pipes, ledges, ramps, and, of course, graffiti. (Sorry if I didn't get the skateboard lingo correct.) ;)Isn't it funny how something so "ugly" can be so perfect?!I just had to include this last image because it gave me a good chuckle. :)

Thanks, Woody, for being such a fabulous model and for making my vision a reality! You are seriously one of the coolest dogs out there! :)

Exciting Personal and Business Update

It's been a little quiet over here for a couple reasons and I wanted to explain why and what's going on. Great things are in the works both personally and professionally and I figured I should share. :) I don't know if I've even ever written a personal post but here it goes! For those that don't know, we sold our house in Cornelius a little over a month ago. Not sure of our next step (and because we sold it faster than expected), we moved into an apartment close by. We had been searching for a new home in Uptown Charlotte but most places were out of our price range, in a condo or high-rise building (wouldn't work with our pups), or were not the style we desired for our new urban digs. Well, lo and behold, about four weeks after signing our year lease at our apartment, we found a cute little townhouse in the First Ward district. We jumped on it!

Although very small square footage wise, our new home will be filled with cool windows, natural light, high ceilings, modern edginess, and is in the center of it all. It even has a private, fenced-in backyard area for the dogs. We had to give up space and a garage (sorry Brian!) but I think we will love it!

That being said, the last few months have been filled with going through stuff, garage sales, piles of paperwork, moving, etc. And now we get to do it all over. Fingers crossed we get settled and get some renovating done before the huge Fall rush (we close September 27th).

So what does that mean for the future of McGraw Photography? Well, hopefully some super exciting stuff!!! Eventually, I plan on moving my office from Cornelius to probably the NoDa area. It will be a few minutes from our new place and more central to all of my clients. Also, because NoDa is the arts district, there are more opportunities to find a space that I could set up a studio. Yep, studio work!!! Not sure when it will all happen but it will be in the works over the next few months. :)

Shew! I told you I have a lot going on! So thank you for your patience if my Facebook page or blog go quiet for a while or if I'm a little slow replying to emails.

Thank you all for your support!!!

Here's the entrance to our soon-to-be home and the view from our neighborhood. :)

Sophie - The Modern Maltese

What's a great and unique wedding present for the fabulous bride with killer style? Well, when she has a super-adorable Maltese named Sophie, it would have to be a doggy photo shoot! This top-secret session was arranged by the bride's good friend and business partner who wanted to give her something modern and unexpected but something that would be meaningful and memorable. We decided to photograph Sophie in the arts district of Charlotte, also known as NoDa. With funky and colorful walls and super-fun doggy graffiti, the vibe of the shoot certainly matches the trendy stylings of Sophie's parents.

Sophie was an absolute dream to work with and, even though she's mostly an indoor pup, she wasn't taken aback by all of the hustle and bustle going on around us on that gorgeous day. She seriously looks like a little stuffed animal in her images! What a cutie!

Sophie had the head tilt down pat by the middle of the session!And what Maltese is complete without some clothes? Sophie insisted on showing off her favorite dress!FIRE!!!!

I hope Sophie's parents enjoy their gift and have an absolutely wonderful marriage with Sophie by their sides!

Bark For Life - Charlotte

Wow! Sunday's crowd was HUGE for the first Bark For Life walk held in NoDa! The Dog Bar was kind enough to host the event and even fenced in their parking lot so the dogs could roam off-leash. The crowds literally lined the street to get in to this doggy hotspot and to do what they could to aid in the fight against cancer. Despite the midday sun and the steamy temperatures, the participants rallied and raised almost $22,000! Woohoo! Before the walk, the pups got to hang out, go swimming, visit vendor booths and meet other 4-legged walkers. And, of course, pose for the camera!Any public place is cool in my book if a dog can be found in Superman pose on the floor!The walkers rest-up right before the 1-mile stroll...This year's Bark For Life walk was lead by Natalie, a 5-year-old Great Dane available for adoption from the Great Dane Friends of Ruff Love.And tons of cute pooches followed!Doggy contests followed the walk including the newest addition to the lineup...a pie licking contest!Whose face was licked cleanest?!?After a wonderful day in the sun, there's nothing like soaking your feet in the pool!If your pup isn’t featured here, it’s not because he isn’t photogenic! Find more adorable 4-leggers here: http://mcgrawphotography.zenfolio.com. A portion of the proceeds from sales of prints will go to the American Cancer Society.

Thank you to everyone that came out to support the fight against cancer! I can't wait to see you again next year!