Jack - Angel Session

Jack's life began in a rough fashion. He was found on a road in Chicago and was very sickly with bugs and parasites. He couldn't gain weight and the vet said he wouldn't grow bigger than 40 pounds. Fortunately, after a couple of years, he bounced out of the illnesses and shot up to 85 pounds. He spent the next few years traveling with his mom and getting all the love in the world. Unfortunately, back in March at only 8 years old, Jack developed a small tumor under his skin. It quickly grew and, despite removal, more and more began to appear and spread throughout his body. It was almost his time to say goodbye to the beautiful life he had lived.

Jack, his mom, and I spent a lovely evening together photographing Jack in his favorite spots around his yard. As Jack hung out, we got to reminisce about his puppyhood, his travels, and his current love for Vienna Sausages. I'm so glad we got to honor Jack with a very special photo shoot before he had to say his final goodbyes two days later. Rest in peace, sweet boy. You will be missed.

I love Jack's eyes. He is so inquisitive and I love how he still showed some puppy-ness in there.It was uncomfortable for Jack to lay down so he spent most of the session standing up. He took advantage of a quick massage to relax his muscles...Jack also got to hang out with his kitty friend!Oh so happy!!!I hope Jack's mom will treasure her images for years to come. May they bring some peace in this difficult time.

Jack's session was booked and shot on the same day. I will do whatever I can to photograph an emergency session as soon as possible. If you are ever in this situation and time is of the essence, you and your dog will be my top priority.

Lucy - The Youngest 12-Year-Old

I want to start this blog post by saying that I want to be adopted by Lucy's human family! Not just her parents, but her entire family tree. This is the third session I've had within their family and each and every one was a complete joy and pleasure. I seriously love these dog lovers!!! :) Another side note...this session really got me thinking about my start in photography. I traveled up to Chapel Hill, NC for the photo shoot and one of the locations we shot at was UNC. Now, why does that matter? Well, way back in 7th grade during my first photography class, my teacher, Mr. Corbin, took some time to educate us on the NCAA basketball tournament (I know, I know, haha!). At the time of this little off-topic conversation, the tournament was already down to the Final Four. Mr. Corbin was a huge Kentucky fan and he was so stoked on their chance of winning the whole thing. To make things interesting, he asked who we were pulling for and wrote it down on the chalkboard - don't worry, there wasn't any gambling involved! I honestly had NO idea about the NCAA so I randomly picked UNC to win. Well, yay, they ended up winning!!!! Totally cool for me! So...ever since then, I have been a big UNC fan. Long story short, it was cool to actually be photographing on the campus of UNC - a place I've been a fan of for so many years only because of my first photography class.

Anyway, now onto the good stuff!

As I mentioned, I traveled up to Chapel Hill for Lucy's session. We got to spend a gorgeous - but hot - evening photographing her at her home and at a field at UNC. This spunky girl had me fooled because she moves like a 2-year-old but is actually 12! I would have never guessed! She can run after squirrels and tennis balls like nobody's business! Here, she is chasing a S...Q...I...

She also does a great job of looking after her 2-legged brother and sister...And they thank her for it! :)Her favorite toy in the whole world!!!Eeeeeekkkkk! I love her!!!Lucy likes to show off her catching moves...

Thanks to Lucy's family for such a wonderful session! I hope you enjoy the sneak peek and there will be more to come (including ones with her brother and sister)! XOXO!

Ruby and Leo - Family Time

During our recent trip to New York, I was lucky enough to spend some quality time with my 4-legged niece, Ruby, and 2-legged nephew, Leo. We had a nice little photo shoot and tried our best to get some images of the two of them together. However, they both seemed to have other plans! Lol! When I was photographing one, the other would be across the field. Most of what I was able to capture were the brief moments they crossed paths or when Leo would give Ruby a treat. I think we still got some cute images and I seriously love these two! I love how Leo is so curious about Ruby. Children at this age always are so interested in what their furry brothers and sisters are doing.Isn't my little nephew adorable?!?Ruby isn't too shabby either! BTW, I loved all the "cotton" that was falling down from the Cottonwood trees...

I can't wait to see how big Leo has gotten next time we go up to New York. Hopefully I can get even more pictures of the two of them together!

Eva & Sadie - A NY State of Mind

A couple weekends ago, we made the long trek to upstate New York to spend some time with my husband's family. We decided to bring along the dogs thinking they would have a blast running around with their 4-legged cousins, checking out the horses (and hopefully not rolling in poop), and running around in the big fields. Unfortunately, the trip didn't start out so great for Eva and Sadie. About 5 minutes after arriving, poor Eva got caught in the electric fence and it scared us to death! That pretty much assured us that she wouldn't be going anywhere near the fenced-in horses (and their oh-so-attractive poop). That same day, Sadie was struck with a bout of nasty diarrhea and had several accidents in the house (including one in my husband's suitcase - gross). The following day, Sadie's diarrhea continued and Eva ran into some concrete landscape edging and scratched up her face. Ugh. The poor dogs!!!

On our last day in New York, we figured they needed to have a vacation from their vacation. We decided to scope out a park with some gorgeous shoreline along Lake Ontario and allow the pups to go swimming. Eva LOVES to swim and she would fetch sticks all day if we let her. Sadie, on the other hand, had never been swimming in a large body of water so this was going to be an experiment (and hopefully not end up like the rest of their trip so far). Well, she didn't think twice about running in! She acted like she has swam all of her life. I'm so happy they got to finally have some "vacation" time! :)

The BFF's...Sadie had so much fun in the lake. The cool water was refreshing and she wouldn't stop running!But I managed to steal a quick pic during a brief moment of rest. Lol! Back at the house, Eva and Sadie got to do more of what they love and play in the gorgeous fields in the backyard. The sun was setting and the grasses just glowed! They had so much fun running around chasing the frisbee...and each other!All this swimming and running around made them super tired for the ride home. I think they slept for 4 days afterward!The end!

Linus - He's coming to get Boo

Linus. Really? I just don't know what to say about this ADORABLE little man that can't be told through pictures. This guy can bring a smile to anyone's face and he has already established quite a fan club on Facebook! At only one-and-a-half, he is sure to reach Boo's status before too long! Linus is crazy smart and knows more tricks than I do! I honestly couldn't even remember them all during our photo shoot. He is also a Canine Good Citizen, Certified Therapy Dog, works his cute side in fashion shows, and spends time with hospital patients. He has more of a social life than I do! :)

I hope you enjoy Linus' smiley face... This is "Dance"...Linus is so adventurous and eager to learn!This is "Place"...This is just "CUTE"!!!!What? You've never seen a dog push a grocery cart in the park?And his newest trick, "Feet"...

I hope you enjoyed this sneak peek from our afternoon together. When Linus is super famous, I can say, "I knew him when..." :)

Charlotte Today with Fez & Lucy

A few weeks ago, I was contacted by the awesome people at Charlotte Today about doing a segment on my photography. At first, I honestly thought it was a joke or someone trying to sell me something (I get spam phone calls all the time from "news" websites) but they were for real! I was super excited but totally nervous at the same time. I am NOT one to be in front of the camera - especially talking about myself! Fortunately I got to bring along a couple of my favorite doggy models to work it for the cameraman. You may remember Fez and Lucy from their session here. We had a great time and I'm so happy with the way the clip turned out. (Well, besides my nervous stuttering and fidgeting. Haha!) In fact, I was so nervous, I was just shooting away and not really paying attention to my camera settings. Fortunately, I got a couple cute shots from our afternoon together.

And here is the segment!

A huge thanks goes out to the Charlotte Today crew, Fez & Lucy, and Fez & Lucy's Mom and Dad (who was in a wreck right before he met with us)! You all made my year! :)

Kirby and Lucy - Double Trouble

Kirby and Lucy are BFFs and basically grew up together. Related through their 2-legged parents, this pair spends a ton of time together chasing balls and "ruff"housing in Kirby's backyard. Lucy is an adorable little black and white Havanese and Kirby is a rare, totally white Miniature Schnauzer. Together, they are double trouble! ;) Kirby loves to play fetch and is super fast on his feet!Lucy might not fetch the ball but it doesn't stop her from trying to get it from Kirby. They wipe themselves right out by playing this game!Best buddies...Kirby was such a ham for the camera. I didn't mind one bit!Lucy made sure she had her time in the spotlight too! Kirby found something nice and stinky to roll in...Lucy and Kirby (and their super awesome family) trekked across a field so we could get some pretty shots with the evening sun. I'd say it was worth the journey! Back home, Kirby was exhausted and wasn't afraid to let me know. Lol!Thanks for such a fun session and I can't wait for your family to see the other shots!

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!