Oct 22, 2015
I love these two gorgeous golden retriever boys! Jake and Mack are an uncle-nephew dog duo who make their home in Toronto. Mack is a 4 year old bundle of excitement who loves his family, loves to get to know you and find out what you are doing, and loves his treats (he’s the slightly more portly of the two). So, when I showed up with treats in hand, needless to say, I was a hit. Jake is the more quiet and serious one. At 7 years of age, he has definitely calmed down, and now, he is facing some serious health issues. Which is why his family called Pets Photography – they wanted some lovely images of their boys while they were still together.
This gorgeous portrait of them on their family’s front porch was lots of fun to create. One of the first things clients will often tell me is that their dog is not reliable must remain on leash. I always assure them that is perfectly fine. It was the same with Jake and Mack. We were quite obviously at the front of their house without any fencing or other barriers to keep them safe. It necessitated using their leashes and those leashes needed to be held by Mom and Dad. In fact, the humans are actually hiding in the alcove to either side of that front door. The magic of post-editing removed any trace of them and the leashes in the final image. Which leaves everyone to stare and admire the amazing smiles on the *obedient* doggies.
There’s something wonderful about a dog’s smile, usually shown by them opening their mouth and letting their tongue come out. But, Mack’s tongue is epic. It certainly suits his goofy, fun-loving personality.
Every Posh Pets‘ session is a relaxed, fun affair and, if the dogs enjoy it, some running around and playing. It is wonderful to have images of your dog’s unbridled enthusiasm for a ball and the feeling of the grass between their paws. Capturing these two boys larking about with each other in their backyard was such a joy for me and them!
There is also plenty of time for quiet, reflective portraits. The kind of artwork that you will want to display proudly on your wall.
We often end a session with an image that is a ‘slice of life’. Here, Jake, after a session of playing, posing, sitting, eating treats and just generally being gorgeous, relaxes in his front hallway on the cool floor. Where he has so many times before.
Jake and Mack, thank you for welcoming me into your lives for those few short hours. It was quite honestly a joy to meet you and photograph you. In my memory, you will always be together, romping around and spreading happiness wherever you go.
Aug 20, 2015
I love it when I get calls from people looking for the perfect gift for a dog lover and they have decided on a Posh Pets Gift Certificate. It’s a double-dose of awesomeness. Firstly, the givers are invariably incredible people who have really searched for a personal, completely customized gift for their family member or friend. And then, I have the opportunity to meet the dog or cat lover themselves and their adorable pet. What more could I ask for! It is in this way that I came to know Dougie (an obvious fan of the Maple Leafs), and one of the cutest, full-of-personality boston terriers I have ever met. His mom is pretty cool too and she loves Dougie dearly.
After some discussion, his mom picked Dougie’s favourite park on an early week-day morning for his session. It’s where he goes rambling almost every day, and given the fact that practically every single person we met during our session knew Dougie by name, I’d say he’s a bit of a celebrity.
Dougie was careful to be out in front showing us the way around. But, as the ever careful leader, he never got too far ahead. If we lagged a little too much, he would stop, turn around and patiently wait for us to catch up.
Often, we saw the back of him. Which gave him an opportunity to show off his great terrier derrière. (Hey, it rhymes!)
Dougie was more than happy to introduce me to ‘his’ lookout. And then he flashed his beautiful smile!
Dougie is a trooper too. Always up for fun, he was willing to stand in grasses that clearly came way, way, way over his head! And produce a head-tilt, no less!
The fence post – the entrance to many awesome smells and trails to explore. Come on guys – what are we waiting for?
We ended the session with some amazing portraits of this beautiful boy in a bed of red needles. This image hangs large in a place of honour in Dougie’s home.
It was such a pleasure photographing this little guy and creating an amazing folio box filled with fine-art matted prints. You can see more of the products Dougie has in his home on the Posh Pets Instagram page (@dogphotographer). I know that I smile whenever I see his charming face.
Has this post got you wanting to design a custom session for your pet? If so, the place to start is here.
Mar 18, 2015
I have to be honest, I let out a little squeal after Moses’ mom booked his Posh Pets session. Not only did it sound like he was a superstar, but his mom was more than happy to get up early (and I mean really early) for our session so as to catch the early morning light. On a Sunday, no less. Sometimes, you just know that a session is going to be epic.
Moses, a gorgeous border collie, makes his home in Whitby along the water. We decided during his pre-session design consultation that we would photograph him in his favourite park and beach. It took some doing, but we figured out where we had to be and at what time to take advantage of the first rays of the sun above the horizon. And when we got there, as I had been promised, Moses knew how to pose like a star.
We then headed down to Moses’ beach. The early morning sun along with the spectacular colours of fall made for a stunning backdrop.
Border collies are a high-energy breed, so Moses just had to show me he knew how to run.
At the end of the beach, these maple trees were putting on a full display. (This hangs as a large art piece on his mom’s wall now.)
Now, this is where I have to tell you an intersting little story…like a lot of pets in the world, Moses has a nickname. His proper name may be Moses, but over time he has acquired the nickname Momo. The thing is, you may have heard of another, more famous, border collie named Momo. Also known as “the hiding border collie”, he is an internet sensation and the muse of photographer Andrew Knapp who runs a blog called Find Momo that is – you guessed it – filled with awesome images of his Momo. The twist is that Momo is “hiding” in the photographs and it is your job to see if you can spot him. I can say from personal experience, it can sometimes take a great deal of time to find him! Well, here I was with a border collie named Momo on a glorious morning…we couldn’t let the opportunity pass. So here is our own tribute to Moses’ more famous namesake. Can you find him? Hope we make the real Momo proud!
Back in his park, Moses posed for another set of portraits showing off his winning smile!
After getting up early for a full morning of running, posing and fun, that afternoon I was sent a picture of a sleeping Moses. Apparently he passed out soon after getting home – I guess modelling is hard work. But, the images were worth it…
You know, I would love to meet your furry face in the wee hours of the morning! If that sounds like your kind of session, contact me here. Of course, if you would rather sleep in and book an afternoon session, that is fine too 🙂
Mar 4, 2015
In case you haven’t heard, let me tell you: it has been COLD in Posh Pets land! For most of this year, I have watched heavily-bundled people and lot of bundled up dogs too, go for their daily walk. You can always tell the dogs who would rather be sitting at home, cuddled up on a couch – the slow gait, combined with the frequent stopping and looking up at their human tell me that they are only going for a walk because they think their people need it. However, they are dogs that simply love the snow and cold and cannot wait to get out and have some fun! And, my furry little client, Chubusz (pronounced Chub-oosh), is such a dog.
During our Pre-Session Consultation, Chubusz’ mom shared with me how much he loved the snow and cooler weather. In fact, Summer, with its accompanying heat, rendered Chubusz and almost exclusively indoor dog. So, it made absolute sense that we plan a Winter session.
We started our time together at his gorgeous home where Chubusz showed me all of his favourite ‘spots’. He loves the couch, but where he looks most regal is right here – on the rug in front of the fire place.
After posing like a model (and receiving lots of treats as payment), we all headed outside into the snow! This boy showed me how much he loved to run. And run. And run. Finding a stick to run with, was just the icing on the cake.
We ended up with a snow-covered muzzle and lots of smiles.
Finally, once the humans were cold, we ended up back home where Chubusz settled in for a nice, long sleep…
Chubusz was such a gentleman and an absolute joy to photograph. The weather was perfect, the snow clean and white and the images we created…beautiful! Chubusz’ family now has gorgeous art work to treasure forever.
Are you looking to capture the joy of Winter with your furry face? Contact me here.
