May 17, 2012
Here are this week’s little furry faces – and this week they are all fine felines! You can meet each of these little guys at Toronto Animal Services (North Region). And, as always, they are being featured on the Posh Pets facebook page, so you can check them out there too with a little more information about them. Posh Pets really would appreciate you sharing their lovely images so that they can find their forever homes. Here we go….!
See you next week!
May 14, 2012
Happy Monday! And…I just realized that I did not post these from last week – the adoptables available at Toronto Animal Services (North Region)! For those who do not know, Posh Pets heads to the shelter each week and photographs the lovely furry faces awaiting their forever homes. It is truly wonderful to return the next week and find out who has found their new families!
We are heading off again this morning, so there will be a whole new group to look at later! See you then!
May 4, 2012
This is a chance to go behind the scenes at the Posh Pets studio to see some of the post-processing that goes into every Posh Pets image.
It used to be that a photo could be taken as evidence, even in a court room, simply because what was displayed in the image could not be altered. These days, however, with the vast array of tools at our disposal, images can be changed to such an extent that what is portrayed can be complete fiction. My style of pet photography is such that I like as much realism as possible and so, like a lot of photographers, I aim to get as much of it right “in camera” rather than relying on fixing it afterwards in photoshop. But there are certain things and situations that call for a little more manipulation. So, I let my clients know that, for example, while their dogs are always on leash during our session, leashes will be cloned out later on.
Every week, I volunteer my time to photograph the adoptables at Toronto Animal Services. In that environment, animals can be a little unsure of themselves and some do not necessarily want to meet the new person with the big black box (my camera) in hand, no matter what treats I offer. That was the case this week with this little guy, Bailey. Sure, he would take the treats and the little pats on his head, but turn the camera on him…and he took off. He really was the cutest thing though! So, I gave him his space and took out my 70-200 zoom lens. That way I could sit back and take images across the room. However, I couldn’t get close enough, so this is what I ended up with.
Bailey really is very cute in this image, but you wouldn’t know it because he is so small in the picture and his is surrounded by beige! So, it was off to a software program called Lightroom for a few tweaks. The first order of business was to check Bailey’s eyes by magnifying them. They have to be sharp or I essentially ignore the image. In rare instances, where I was purposely throwing the eyes out of focus (maybe focusing on the nose or a paw), then I am happy to see out-of-focus eyes. Otherwise, for my style of pet photography, the eyes are where it is at and they have to be in focus.
Second, I fixed the grey haze that all digital images seem to have. Truthfully, I never noticed it when I first started in photography until someone pointed it out to me. Now, I see it everywhere.
Third, I croped and straightened. Now, in this image, I cropped in a lot. In this situation, I felt confident to do so because I knew where this image would end up – as a very small picture on the web. I also photograph with a camera that has a large number of megapixels, so it can handle being cropped in quite a bit. However, please understand that I purposely used this image because it is rather extreme example of cropping and it demonstrates what is possible. But, I wouldn’t recommend that anyone routinely take images this far back and try to crop them in afterwards. In any case, it is amazing what a little crop and straighten will do for any image!
Lastly, I throw a little light on my cute subject. And, because I like the backgrounds a little darker, I often choose to do a little vignette. Not always, but quite often.
Then the image gets transferred into Photoshop where I will do any other heavy duty post-processing. This is where I will remove leashes on dogs, remove dandruff and fly away hairs if necessary. I might also choose to convert an image to black and white if I think it works.
After that, for every image, I look at the eyes and give them a slight pop (again, this is my style and not everyone will want to do that). Finally, every image gets sharpened and prepared for output depending on how it will be displayed.
Whew! Here is Bailey’s final image…what do you think?
So, that is about it for the Posh Pets workflow! I don’t use a lot of textures or actions (although I do like to experiment with my personal work) because I like to keep it as real and simple as possible. Hope you have enjoyed this sneak peak at the work done long after a Posh Pets Session has ended!
Next in the blog circle is San Diego Pet Photographer, Terran Bayer of Westway Studio. Please check out her work and the rest of the Beautiful Beasties gang this week. And please leave comments – everyone loves to receive feedback. Have a great weekend!
Apr 23, 2012
Here is this week’s edition of the TAS Adoptables…and we have quite a group this time! Many of these lovely furry faces are featured throughout the week on the Posh Pets Facebook page with some additional information (including IDs) about them. But to make arrangements to visit them, please contact Toronto Animal Services (North Region) directly at (416) 338-8723. Thanks for sharing them!
Apr 20, 2012
Our Project 52 challenge this week was entitled “from the ground up”. In other words, try a new perspective and angle by photographing animals from the ground and aiming your lens UP at them. It sounded like fun, until you realize that I have two cats. Two senior cats who spend their days sleeping and lounging with the occasional water and food snack. Ever tried to get under a cat and photograph them? When they are laying down? Well, that is what Ripley and Lady Jane had to contend with this week and I probably need some kind of chiropractic assistance after all of the positions I contorted my body into!
This first image is Ripley looking down on me from the bed. I knew the image I wanted – just his little face with lots of negative space. The lens flare was just a bonus!
And then there is Lady Jane who lazes around all day. Literally. I’ve watched her for the past week like a hawk trying to see her in some kind of action and she really just has a chill, zen feeling about her. So, this is her shot. I am on the ground. My camera is on the ground. But then, so is Lady Jane…
Now, please take a look at what California Pet Photographer, Karla Ogilvie as she looked UP this week!
Apr 19, 2012
I am really happy to announce that Posh Pets was recently granted membership in an organization called HeARTs Speak. What is that? Well, it is a group of pet artists (photographers included!) who provide their services to rescues and shelters to “foster the importance of animal adoptions, (and) dispel the notion that shelter animals are inferior or damaged…” It is something close to my heart as both of our two cats, Ripley and Lady Jane, originally came from a shelter and, more than 16 years later, are still the most wonderful pets!
The HeARTs Speak group has recently embarked upon “52 HeARTs” which is aimed at producing images each week centred around a common theme. For this week, the theme was friendship. I hope you enjoy the images below!
Meet Luna. Luna is a 7 year old black Lab, so she is by no means a puppy anymore. An older lady, she is a little overweight, walks a little slower, and doesn’t jump and down like a unmannerly dog…rather she looks intently at you, wags her tail and patiently waits. She was recently transferred to the Toronto Animal Services from Ohio as part of a group of 3 black Labs. For some reason, black animals can sometimes have difficulty finding homes and, given her age, she did not have much hope of finding a home in Ohio before a heartbreaking decision would have to be made. The good thing is that Toronto shelters don’t seem to experience the same issue as their US counterparts – lots and lots of black coloured animals are adopted. I am not sure that I can pinpoint a reason for the difference – I can only say that I am happy that TAS had the room and were willing to receive Luna and her friends.
I met Luna as we were preparing to take her adoption photo. She came into the little courtyard, and immediately greeted me. The soft muzzle of an older dog is a wonderful thing. You never know the background of the individual dogs, so you try a few things to see if they know even basic commands or can take direction. Happily, when Luna was asked to sit, she did.
And then Luna did something magical…without being prompted, she held out her paw to the staff member who was with me. Who, of course, took her paw. In a moment, friendship, graciously offered and accepted. From a shelter animal. One that someone didn’t want anymore.
All those that meet her know that Luna will make a wonderful pet for a loving family. We sincerely hope she will find her forever home soon. Surrounded by love, belly rubs and a warm bed.
And because we are all about equality, I have another image (this time of cats) from a few weeks ago at the same shelter. The cats at the TAS have a pretty nice place to hang out, a lovely “cat pod” that has an entire bank of windows on one wall, tons of toys and the ability to interact with each other. (For those who prefer to spend limited time with others, there are lots of places to snuggle in and sleep and other private rooms.) Each week, I enter the pod to see who is new and needs their photograph taken. Then begins the process of isolating them from the others and coaxing them into a cute, little pose…
I was photographing the brown guy on the right who was lounging up on his cat tree where I could get a photo of him. At this point, I was pretty sure I had the image I wanted, when the orange boy, jumped up and settled in as well. Now, this cat bowl/perch was really not big enough for the two of them. In fact, you can see the big orange guy hanging off the edge in this image. In some circumstances, this could have resulted in a bit of a cat fight. But, not these two. They were obviously friends and they figured out a way to get the both of them on there and then began grooming each other. Proving that, friendship can blossom just about anywhere…
Apr 13, 2012
Back with another edition of Project 52 with the Beautiful Beasties group! And this week’s theme was to photograph the “favourite things” of our pets. Truthfully, it wasn’t hard to identify those with our two senior kitties. At 17 and 15 years of age, Ripley and Lady Jane are not very much interested in any toys that they might have collected through the years. And they are quite different from one another in their tastes – Lady Jane likes treats; Ripley not so much. Ripley loves to be picked up and cuddled; Lady Jane lets out a plaintive cry if we carry her anywhere. But the one thing they can both agree on is how much they love the bed.
As in, OUR bed.
Sleeping and lounging these days is a full-day affair, and our bed seems to be the favourite venue. I have often joked with my husband that Ripley and Lady Jane allow us to sleep in THEIR bed, not the other way around. Even now, as I am typing this, my husband is attempting to change the sheets on the bed and Ripley is “helping” by staking his claim and refusing to move.
So, here is Ripley, looking cute as ever, hanging out on our bed…(All this sleeping must help…I think he looks much younger than his 17+ years!)
Next is Fort McMurray Pet Photography, KLAD Photography – it will be fun to to see some of her dogs’ favourite things! And then please click all the way around the blog ring until you wind up back here. Ripley will still be lounging when you make your way back…
Apr 11, 2012
After just realizing that Posh Pets did not post last week, here are two week’s worth of cuddly, furry adoptables! They are available from the Toronto Animal Services (North Region), so if you are looking to find out a little more, please contact them directly. They will be happy to give you the information you need. These guys and girls will also be featured on the Posh Pets Facebook page if you are looking to see more of them.
From this week…
And here is last week’s large gang! Most are still available for adoption!
Thanks for visiting and please share these images around – you never know where a forever home may be found!
Apr 3, 2012
It can be very rewarding to see your images in the hands of an awesome graphic designer – especially when it supports adopting homeless pets! So, we at Posh Pets were thrilled to see this latest ad on just how rewarding it is to adopt a kitty from the Toronto Animal Services. Take a look!
Mar 30, 2012
Here are the lovely adoptables we photographed this week! If you would like to inquire about any individual pet, please contact Toronto Animal Services – North Region and they will be happy to answer your questions. Also, be sure to visit the Posh Pets Facebook page, where you can gather a little more information, including ID numbers, so you can be sure who you are interested in. Thanks to all who share their pictures!
Mar 27, 2012
It feels good to be home! The Posh Pets family just returned from visiting Jordan (yes, the country in amongst Israel, Syria, Iraq, Iran in case you were wondering…) and while travelling is a lot of fun, there is nothing quite like sleeping in your own bed. One of the highlights was the opportunity to walk through the famed Petra, now a “Wonder of the World”. It was truly incredible!
However, as a pet photographer, I am always drawn to photographing the animals I meet in my travels. Some are working animals owned by their employer, some are pets, and some are strays, but the place animals hold within a people does give you insight into a country and its culture. I believe it was Gandhi who said, “The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated”, and in my personal experience that is true.
I am happy to say that Jordan does not have nearly as many strays as other countries I have had the pleasure to visit. Those that were, were generally cats who did not look thin and emaciated like so many other animals who live on the street. So, kudos to Jordan!
There is a funny thing about the cats that live in Petra and, for the most part, the rest of Jordan – they are all orange tabbies! In Petra, you can see that they could potentially all be related, but everywhere in the country? We did meet the occasional brown tabby (3, I think), but the rest were all orange. Even stranger is that I have heard that orange tabbies are predominantly male, so who is the busy mom of this brood? I don’t think we will ever know…
The good thing is that in Petra, I believe they are all taken care of by the tourists. They are friendly, used to strangers and have come to learn that these visiting humans cannot resist a cute face and give them food. One orange guy we met walking around a castle ruin in the middle of the wilderness is fed by the staff who work there. So, it seems that the Jordanian kitties have found their place in the tourism industry.
We did meet these two adorable puppies in Petra. I nearly took this little guy home – he literally sat in my arms like this for 10 minutes and looked into my eyes as I talked to him. It was soooo hard to put him down and walk away.
I was somewhat comforted by the fact that he had this little friend to spend his days with. And the fact that the Bedouin who work there seemed to know them and petted them nicely when they approached.
Well, that is it for this instalment! Stay tuned as I will post some images of working animals in Part 2.
Mar 21, 2012
I am very excited to write Part Two of the crazy cartoon spotlight as this time we are featuring the felines! If you want to see the Part One about the doggies on the Posh Pets blog, please check out this link.
A bit of background…my friend and fellow creative, Daniela Easter, teaches students how to cartoon. It really does sound like a lot of fun! In February, Daniela had asked me for some of my kitty images so that her students would be able to have a base to work off of. I wish I had a group of student drawings to showcase, but unfortunately, it was graduation day and there was no time to scan the artwork before the students took them home. Sigh. But, I thought you might find it cool to see what the teacher is able to produce. So, here is Daniela’s work.
Here is the original image:
And Daniela’s cartoon:
Another original image:
And the cartoon version:
Again, if you have a young artist who would want to participate, Daniela conducts various classes in Brampton. These include 6 week curriculums and intensives for the March and Summer school breaks. Find all of the details about the art school – Progressive Art for Progressive Kids – here.
