Zappa - Super Service Pup

When I have photo shoots for Lake Norman Currents Magazine, I always get to meet fabulous people and hear all about their wonderful stories. In this particular case, this one really struck a chord. As you may know, I have a sweet spot for any type of service animal. So when I met Zappa, a diabetic service dog, my heart melted. Zappa assists his mom, Alden, who has been dealing with diabetes the majority of her life. This special boy can smell when her glucose levels are off and let her know that action needs to be taken. What a special boy. I'm so glad I got to spend some time with this adorable pair.

To read their special story in its entirety, please check out the article on page 22 of Lake Norman Currents Magazine. You can view the online version here: http://lncurrents.com/pages/epub.html

Lake Norman Currents did a fabulous job with the layout of the story and Alden's mom told me she cried when she saw it for the first time. Many thanks to Lake Norman Currents magazine for writing this story and raising awareness for service dogs everywhere!

Andora & Achilles - Boxer Buddies

In my opinion, Boxers are some of the most expressive and fun dogs to be around. I'm sure you can imagine my delight when I found out I would be photographing not one, but two of them during this session! Not surprisingly, Andora and Achilles didn't disappoint! We met on a gorgeous evening with some of the nicest weather we've had in a while. It was immediately obvious how different Andora and Achilles' looks and personalities were. However, despite their endearing differences, they make an adorable family don't they?!?

Andora is the more "mature" of the fur-kids and she shows her age so gracefully. She's definitely the calmer of the two and prefers to hang out and kinda watch the action take place.Achilles, on the other hand, is still very puppy-like even at 4 years old. He's go-go-go and loves to chase his toys and give huge, slobbery kisses. Such a cutie-pie!I was so excited to have some lovely evening light to show off these pups in all their fabulousness!And the whole family...Andora happily accepts some human kisses...I think Achilles wanted to look serious for this picture. Do you think he pulled it off? ;)And here is Achilles doing what he loves most...playing!Andora just sat back and watched everyone at the park. She's such a sweetheart!And one last one of Achilles being Achilles...

I hope these pups enjoy their sneak peek! I can't wait to see them again so I can cuddle with Andora and get kisses from Achilles. :)

Ruby - Flower Power

Ruby. Just the names triggers visions of beautiful, sparkling gems and a crimson wave of jewels. It was all too fitting to find a location just as awe-inspiring as Ruby's name and Ruby's unusual look. We were very lucky to stumble upon a gorgeous field of wildflowers just outside of Emerald Isle. The evening light was simply breathtaking and the flowers were dancing in the air like pink butterflies. Ruby, a rare white Boxer, was born to be photographed in such a stunning location.

I wanted to post this today because Ruby's mom is recovering from surgery. I hope this brings a little brightness into her day!Of course we had to have some play time mixed in with all that posing. Plus, what do you expect a dog to do in the fresh, cool sand?!?Ruby fell in LOVE with my little squeaky ball. I understand she stole it and is still playing with it regularly!The end.

Thank you, Ruby, for such a beautiful session. Take really good care of your mom over the next few weeks!

Ollie and Otto - Morkie Overload!

***WARNING!!! CUTENESS MORKIE OVERLOAD!*** Seriously. You may not want to continue on if you are in a place where you can't giggle and say "aaaawwww"!

These two Morkies (Maltese/Yorkie mix) take the cake when it comes to cuteness! Ollie and Otto, a brother-sister pair who are not even half a year old yet, are the two smallest, fluffiest dogs I have ever photographed. To give you an idea of how small they are, Ollie just hit a big milestone of reaching 2 whole pounds!

We started off their photo shoot in their totally awesome Uptown condo where they got to know me and the camera. This is Otto, the brother and the fluffier of the pair...

And this is the sister, Ollie...Time to pack up and head out to one of Uptown Charlotte's prettiest parks! I love how these two fit right in their mom's bag.Once out in the park, these two went CRAZY!!! I fortunately took a ton of pics because 1) they are so adorable when they run, and 2) when you can't see their faces, these guys tend to look like the unrecognizable fuzzy balls of fur that float out from under my couch (but WAY cuter and MUCH faster)! Ok, maybe not at all but you know what I mean! Haha! We had so much fun!!!I love Otto's dive for his ball here!Between the running, ball throwing, and searching for dead birds, we managed to grab Ollie and Otto's attention for 3-second intervals for some quick "posing". Gotta love puppies!!! :)

And back to playing!Bum-in-the-air alert!!! Before we called it a night, I took a quick picture of Ollie and Otto's new bling. Their collars are SO small and I love the name tags their mom found on Etsy (obviously I blurred out the phone #).

The pups were all packed up and ready to rest up for another day of high-energy play. Seriously love these two...

I hope you enjoyed these two Morkies' sneak peak. They were a blast to photograph and I really CAN. NOT. wait to see them again! :)

Manchester - A Golden Boy

Manchester is one of the fluffiest orange boys I have ever seen! This handsome fellow is a Chow/Golden Retriever mix with some hair to spare. :) He is certainly one to cuddle up with on a cold winter night. This gorgeous pup has been by his mom's side for everything - moving, vet school and so much more. However, this past year has been a very trying year on Manchester (and his mom). At the end of December, he was unfortunately diagnosed with cancer. He went through chemo and certainly didn't feel like himself. He lost his precious sparkle but managed to come out cancer-free in the end. He remained cancer-free for 8 months. When the cancer recently made it's ugly return, he was put back on chemo. This time, Manchester is having oral treatments instead of IV. Fortunately, the oral route has left him feeling much more like himself and he is even smiling again! This is such great news because he has such a fabulous smile!!!

I don't know if I love this image because of the light or Manchester's smile or a combination of the two. I think the golden light of the sun symbolizes the gorgeous light that is still shining within Manchester. He doesn't want his mom to worry about him. I know that's what he's thinking right here as he glances back at her...Manchester's mom was worried he wouldn't be too active for his pictures. Well, he must have been saving his energy because he had quite a lot of spunk! This is Manchester's impression of a fluffy orange bear!Manchester's mom joined in for a few images. I was thrilled to capture these two together. Evidently, so was Manchester... :)The epitome of love...In the image on the left, Manchester is sporting his bandana from Upstate Veterinary Specialists. Everyone that worked with Manchester during his treatment signed it and wrote him well wishes.

Of course Manchester gets lots of goodies since dealing with his cancer. One treat his has always loved is licking out a finished jar of peanut butter. Don't judge...it's reduced fat...Yum!Back home, Manchester has a couple feline friends to keep him company. First there is Winston...and also Madison... They are just as gorgeous as Manchester!

Best of luck to Manchester and his mom during his battle. I hope his spirits stay up and he keeps that golden light in his eyes and a huge smile on his face! {{hugs!}}

Cliff, Molly & Linus - Basset Besties

Eeeeek! I've been having so much fun editing this session and I'm so excited to share a sneak peek! Cliff, Molly and Linus (shown below from left to right) are your typical Basset clan but with some fun and unique personalities! They had me (and some on-lookers) giggling the entire session and they impressed me with their fabulous modeling!

These three typically spend most days at doggy daycare doing what they love most - lounging around and sniffing hound-style. When they get home in the evening, they are ready for the most important thing...sleep! Haha! The day of our photo shoot was no different. They were pretty tired after daycare which made them very cooperative subjects. How else can you get three dogs to pose for the camera at the same time?

Miss Molly is the youngest of the pack at only 8 months old. She still has her baby puppy-dog face and it just kills me! :)Cliff, who is named after the Cheers character, was probably my favorite (am I allowed to say that?). If he was a person, I could totally see him going into a bar like Cheers, grabbing a beer and telling jokes. He is such a funny boy! Can't you tell?!?Last but not least, there is Linus. He is ALL Basset with his nose to the ground and some huge, floppy, adorable ears! Such a cutie-pie!Don't you just love their little stubby legs and paws?Um, does anyone have a napkin for Cliff?It was such a pleasure watching these guys do what they do as they explored the park. Near the end of the session, the sun popped out over the lake. The pups were more than happy to pose in front of the warm, sparkly light.And Molly was ready for a puppy nap...The end! :)

Disney - Angel Session

I am so in LOVE with this session. Disney's mom contacted me because this sweet little Cocker Spaniel is dealing with an unfortunate case of renal failure. Diagnosed back in January, she has been taking fluids almost daily to keep her energy up and keep her cravings going strong for her special boiled chicken meals. Disney had been having her good and bad days so we scheduled a session as quickly as possible in hopes of catching her feeling a little perky. Not only did we get a "good day", we got a great one!

We got to meet on a gorgeous Saturday morning - a morning that Disney felt especially well. She was bright-eyed and bushy-tailed (well, Cockers only have a stub, but you know what I mean) and she totally rocked it for the camera. Our morning was full of laughing, singing ("Little Disney woo wee, special little woo wee, Disney Little woo wee..."), and just enjoying Disney's company. Even with failing health, Disney is surrounded by happiness, positivity, and endless love.

Isn't she a beautiful and happy little pup?!?

Disney had so much energy during her session! I think she saved it up just so her mom could get some great images of her happy baby.The gorgeous girls together...

Again, more energy! Disney was more than willing to chase her beloved ball for some yummy chicken snacks! We even got to fit in a car ride! I actually love that you can see her shaved leg. Despite the IVs and medications, she still has a smile on her face.Other than great parents, Disney also has a wonderful feline companion named Tiger. They are best buds... Tiger has quite the personality. He, too, has a special song and sound effects - Lil' tig tige...Lil tig tige...Happy cat...And I'll finish off the blog post with a couple more images of Disney, the star. I love these images of her cozying up to her parents. :)

This session is a testament to the power of positive energy and the effect laughter and smiles can have. Please send Disney and her family all of the positive thoughts and prayers you can as they continue to comfort Disney in her battle. I am so glad we got to spend this wonderful morning together and I hope Disney's family treasures her images for a lifetime.

Trinity and Tater - Opposites Attract

Trinity is a gorgeous, shiny, blue Great Dane full of grace and style. Tater, on the other hand, is a short, scruffy, little Terrier-mix shaped, well, like a potato. As opposite as they are, they are equally as cute and are best buds! These two love hanging out together in the backyard as well as the boat launch area in their neighborhood. We were lucky enough to dodge the rain and spent an evening together doing what they love most! Don't these two make quite the pair? I'd say they were related. Lol!

I love Tater's scruffy fur and happy little face! :)Trinity is so beautiful and regal. Great Dane's just pull at my heart strings!"So...that black box gives out treats?"Trinity's ears just scream her personality. Love them!Tater ventures onto the rocks while channeling his inner chameleon...Trinity is able to perfect her gallop in the open field.BFFs...