It was definitely the coldest morning of the Fall season and I was struggling through a terrible flu/double ear infection/cough-thing, but I couldn't let this four-pack of poodles down. Their session had already been rained out once, so this brisk November morning was going to happen. And I'm so glad it did! With some delicious tea from their fur-mom, we powered through the cold. Woohoo! First to get photographed...
Escher, Petey and Odin are a trio of amazing rescued pups with a mom that has a heart of gold. Her love for dogs, friends, and family runs deep. So much so, in fact, a special someone (or someones?) gifted her with a session for her three babies...(I will never tell!). Just their special way of saying thanks for being such a wonderful person and furmom. :) We spent a lovely evening in and around their Mount Holly neighborhood. The leaves were just past prime but we still succeeded in finding some wonderful color and a gorgeous field (that I fell in love with).
I introduce Petey, the shy but so, so sweet white Boxer/Hound/Bulldog mix; Odin, the little Chi/Jack Russell mix that loves his big brothers; and Escher, the goofy big Dane/Lab/Boxer guy that was our comic relief. :)
This could possibly be one of my favorite kissy picture. We were under high-tension power-lines with houses in the background, but at the right angle, these two look like the only ones around for miles. Love, love, love.
Thanks for being such a wonderful mom and friend, Jen!!!
Gorgeous young pups + a fantastic waterfront yard + perfect weather = this session! Seriously, Charlie and Cooper rocked this one out!
Cooper is a 4-month-old Golden with the most beautiful white fur and goofy long legs. Any puppy will steal your heart but Cooper is really, really good at it. Watching this clumsy sweetheart bounce around his yard was way too much for my dog-loving heart to handle. Yeah, I wanted to steal him.
Not to be outdone, Charlie, a one-year-old Yorkie-mix, worked his cute little face for the camera. This momma's boy happily showed me around his incredible backyard while keeping me on my toes.
What a lucky, lucky family these two have!!!
Sunset on the dock simply was too magical to comprehend. Love...
These two. My heart is like butter. It was a pleasure working with you...
It's a horrible feeling thinking something is going to happen to your beloved pet. Trust me...I just went through a scare with my cat, Teton. Over Thanksgiving weekend, I was pretty sure he was heading down the road to Rainbow Bridge. Thankfully, with the help of the AMAZING staff at Independence Veterinary Clinic, Teton was better and back to his old self by Monday. Wow. It was a really long and tear-filled weekend. That same relief is, I'm sure, what Brutus' mom felt after he got the all-clear from his liver shunt surgery. You see, Brutus was born with a congenital birth defect which allows some blood coming from his stomach to bypass the liver. Those nasty toxins go straight into his bloodstream which is a recipe for disaster. This condition is very rare in cats and it manifested itself as blindness after Brutus was neutered (the blindness thankfully went away).
Brutus had surgery on August 26th. It was very risky with not a ton of success in cats. We, of course, immediately scheduled a session should the unthinkable occur. Brutus also had his Abyssinian brother, Caesar, join in.
Thankfully, after much observation and many tests, Brutus has gotten the all-clear and the liver shunt has been corrected. I couldn't be more happy for this seriously sweet and wonderful family. What a huge sigh of relief we all felt. With the good news, they even added on a third kitten after our original session! The little guy is named Diesel and we decided to have a fun little session with him in the studio!
I hope you enjoy some of the images from these kitty sessions. Virtual hugs to this entire family!!!!
Because these guys are hard to tell apart, I'll start off with the main focus of the shoot...Brutus! I'm head over heals about these kitties on this animal print goodness!!!
This curious guy is Caesar. He definitely did his best to steal the spotlight. He kinda did. ;)
Love between mom and Brutus...
On to the crazy boy Diesel!!! I mean, he's an adorable kitten let loose in a studio full of toys. This is awesomeness!
His jig...
The absolute favorite pastime of Diesel's is to attack the cowhide rug. So of course we had to include that!
OMG!
Thanks again to this fab kitty family. I'm so glad everyone is happy and healthy! I hope you enjoy your wall art and album for years and years!!!! :)
I couldn't be more excited to share some of the fun images we got during a commercial shoot for Serta Pet Beds! Their new and jazzy website is now live! I for one know just how great these beds look and feel. I spent hours and hours stuffing them, setting them up, photographing them, and yes, lying down in them (they are super-comfy...I'd rather sleep in them than my bed!). Without further ado, here are the stunning models showing off their favorite beds...
I really love the True Timber line. Camo is so hot right now!
And a few screen shots from the new site. Go and check it out for yourself! www.brandedpetbeds.com
And of course I had to include this last screen shot. See that little black paw down there? Yep, that's my little Sadie's paw. She was so patient while we got her leg at just the right angle. I'm so proud! :)
If your pup has what it takes for commercial work (VERY well-trained, fit, etc), stay tuned to my Facebook page because I have model calls on a regular basis. :)
Puppy mills are a huge problem in North Carolina and Svennie was one of the many, many dogs that have to suffer the consequences of our lack of laws and punishments. A year ago, Svennie was rescued during a puppy mill raid. She was only 6 months old but she was already left with the everlasting health effects...including meningitis. Her parents gave her all the medical care, love, and feeling of home that she was denied for the first part of her life. Despite all of their efforts, the balancing act between Svennie's prednisone and meningitis became too much for her delicate body to handle. Sadly, we scheduled her Angel Session as she was being weaned off her last round of meds.
Willow, Svennie's sister, joined in on the session too. She provided some comic relief for what was a very heartbreaking session.
Some of my favorite images were of Svennie with her mom. Although they only got to share 1 year together, their love was like no other.
Rest in peace, sweet Svennie. We will do all we can in your honor to make this puppy mill problem a thing of the past.
Back in the day, I learned photography with black-and-white film. I developed my own negatives, printed my own prints, and even made a make-shift darkroom in the laundry room of one of my apartments while in college. Needless to say, black-and-white images hold a near and dear place in my heart. However, typically with pet photography, the gorgeous sunlight and outdoor locations really scream for color. I typically only convert images to black-and-white when people are included in the shots. This allows the emotion and connection between subjects to shine through. Strangely, when I was editing Simone's gallery, something just begged for black-and-white conversions. I don't know if it was the indoor location, the beautiful "eyeliner" around her eyes, or the dynamics of a kitty-cat's life. I grinned from ear to ear when I saw how lovely this feline subject became in a monochromatic image. Therefore, I've dedicated this entire post to Simone in black-and-white. :)
As a side note, I really approached this session as a day-in-the-life of a cat. I, of course, threw in some portraits, etc, but I really wanted to focus on capturing the essence of this little rescue kitty subject. So, naturally, we start off by sunbathing in the warm morning sunlight...
Then it is playtime.
A.D.D....is that a bird? or just a leaf falling?
Just hanging out on her throne.
This has to be one of my favorites. It's so quintessential cat overlooking her kingdom...
Nothing like a good chin rub and some exploring.
And the most adorable series of a kitty I've seen! ;)
After all the adventures, it's time for a nap in the sunroom...
I hope you enjoyed this black-and-white day-in-the-life of Simone. :) I can't wait to see this story come together in her Coffee Table Album! Meow!
Some days are just made for the perfect photo shoot. The day I met Fergie, the sun was out, there was a slightly cool breeze, and the colors of fall were starting to appear. We met in an abandoned field that was filled with gorgeous yellow flowers which complimented Fergie's wavy fur. Her spunky personality was on full display as she bounced around, explored, and chewed on sticks.
Even though Fergie had a busy day of traveling (she'd been visiting rescues looking for a fur-buddy), she could keep going and going. Every once in a while her eyes would get a little heavy, but then the breeze would bring in a new smell and her face would perk right up again.
Man, I just love this happy little girl! Meet Fergie, the 10-month-old Cockapoo...
Fergie's beautiful parents even joined in for some pics. Isn't that a lovely family?!?
This session had definitely made me ready for the fall season! The colors throughout this shoot are going to be phenomenal in Fergie's Coffee Table Album! Can't wait!!!
