Mar 8, 2012
Introducing this week’s group of furry faces! There was great diversity in shapes, sizes and colours…but all are wonderful future pets! Please check these images out and if you are interested in adopting, contact the Toronto Animal Services – North Region for more details. They will also be featured on the Posh Pets Facebook Page throughout the week, where you can find out some additional information on each of them.
We’ll see you next week!
Mar 2, 2012
This week’s challenge was to keep the words to a minimum and tell a story through an image(s). Photojournalists have mastered the art of letting an image speak for itself, and there exist iconic images that changed the course of world events. Now, I don’t think for one moment that that is the level of storytelling presented here, but I think you will enjoy this funny little series nonetheless.
The Wolf Within Sleeps (The Cost of Domestication)
I am Dog. Master of my own domain. At one with the Great Outdoors.
Though once my fun is done, I like nothing better than to be warm and dry inside.
But, do not fear! I am not conquered! I have learned the power of “puppy dog eyes”. How it makes humans bend to my will.
Open…the…door…
…please?
The next in the blog roll is Tiffany Haulton of Haulton Photography. Please check out what story she has to tell this week! And then click all around the blog roll until you wind up back here. You won’t be disappointed!
Feb 29, 2012
Here are the adoptables for this week! If there is a furry face here that you would like to get to know better, please contact Toronto Animal Services – North Region directly. The Posh Pets Photography Facebook Page will be also featuring their images over the next couple of days. We will be sure to post a little information about each one along with their image.
First are the kitties!
And now the dogs!
Please pass these images on to those who may be looking to adopt and we’ll see you next week!
Feb 25, 2012
Today, I am really excited to feature something that is a little different for the Posh Pets blog – crazy cartoons! Let me explain…
Daniela Easter is an award winning artist and personal friend of mine. Apart from her private commissions, she founded and, for the past 8 years has run, Progressive Art for Progressive Kids in Brampton. This is an art school that helps young people develop their skills and exposes them to the various mediums and forms of art. For the past few weeks, her students, ages 8-12, have been learning how to cartoon!
Daniela approached me to see if I could lend a hand by providing some images of animals, which of course, I was only too happy to do. The students were encouraged to analyze the image and determine the dog’s personality. They could then determine how to draw him in such a way that their cartoon would come to life. And, here are the awesome results:
The original image:
And the cartoon renditions! This one is by Kaitlin:
And this one is by Hemel:
Another original image:
And some awesome cartoon versions of this guy too. (I think he became the antagonist of the story…look at those teeth!)
From Sesa:
And from Nicole:
The students loved the original photos (apparently there were lots of “awwws”) and had a ball turning them into their own creations. I hear that in the next week or so, they will be tackling the kitty photos I sent and I will certainly feature those in a future blog post as well.
Impressed? Well, 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 here.
Feb 24, 2012
First off, if you follow the Project 52 series each week, I am happy to report that Patches and April were adopted a few days ago! Not together, which would have been just about perfect, but I am so happy that these older pets found lovely families to spend the rest of their lives with. If you missed their story, you can read it here.
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This week’s theme was chosen by Posh Pets to see what we could do with mirrors or any other reflective surface. I cannot wait to see what the group came up with!
Here is Ripley. The one thing that people always comment on are his gorgeous eyes. After all these years, they are still as large and bright as they ever were and these images really show them off. He’s looking adoringly at himself in my compact mirror.
And then, there is Lady Jane – her tail, that is. I really like this image because it just has the hint of a cat. What you do not see is the furry, loveable 15 lb. body attached to it!
Next up in the blog circle is Kelly Kennedy Coyle of Sweet Silver Photo. Please check her work out as well as the rest of the artists in our group – we love it when we get feedback!
Feb 13, 2012
Today, is a special day in our house for it marks the moment, 16 years ago, when Ripley came into our lives. Originally from the Toronto Humane Society, the “Ripley Years” have just flown by. However, in other ways, it seems like forever for we cannot remember life before his arrival. The day he popped his little head out of his carrier, made himself comfortable on our bed, and took up residence in our hearts.
So, happy adoption day to our big orange tabby. May there be many more years of relaxing on our bed to come…
Feb 3, 2012
Posh Pets’ Project 52 theme for this week was simply “bridges”.
I love this image because it reminds me that the beautiful warm sun still exists – even though we haven’t seen much of it for the past few weeks in cloudy Toronto. Along with blue sky and green trees. And, oh yeah, it has a bridge! So, even though this technically was taken last summer, I think you will all forgive me if I bent the rules a bit.
Now, please check out Peggy Mundell of DogBreedz and see what bridges she found in sunny California! Over to you, Peggy!
Jan 27, 2012
This week’s theme made me smile as I knew exactly the image I wanted to capture. While cats are known for their ability to jump, they tend to have the reputation for being independent and aloof. In other words, not cuddly. Well, Ripley is a bit of a contradiction in terms for a cat. At 17 years of age, he is not so much into jumping anymore, but he is an absolute suck when it comes to getting cuddles from my husband. I just knew that this was what I wanted to photograph. And so, I present Ripley, nestled into Dean’s shoulder for his daily morning cuddle.
We always can tell how relaxed Ripley is by his paws. I love how he crosses his little paws, one over the other, when he is relaxed and really enjoying his hug. When he does this, we know it will be a long one!
Now, please check out fellow Canadian photographer, Ann Kearns to see if her crew was jumping or cuddling…or both! And then follow the blog circle all the way back here. Have a great Friday and weekend!
Jan 13, 2012
The theme we were given to shoot around this week was simply “new”. Given that most people take a moment at the beginning of a new year or a new month to think about some goals they might have, I thought I would share one of mine. This will definitely be new for me.
I want to learn to shoot film…properly.
There was a time that I had a film camera and I happily put rolls of film in it, set it to auto and hoped for the best. At the time, I had no idea of how to compose a photograph, let alone how to determine “correct’ exposure or how to rate film. This time, I am going to learn.
Given my goal, I am so thankful to my mom for lending me her old Minolta x-700. At the time when it was released, this was a state-of-the-art camera system – the flagship of the Minolta line. It is lovely! Completely manual, without the aid of an LCD screen, this camera will force me to slow down and think before I release the shutter. It will also force me to become friends with my light meter again.
Second item on my list was, of course, film! I have chosen to shoot Kodak Portra 400 VC for my first few rolls. And here is the very first one, fresh out of his cannister with its old familiar smell. This will bring its own set of challenges, the most interesting of which will be finding a lab that I like that can process C-41 colour film. I have been given a couple of recommendations which I will try out, but I am excited to discover a part of the Toronto photography scene that I know little about.
So, there you have it – my new (to me!) camera, my new film and my new goal! With a manual focus camera, it might be a little while until you see Posh Pets portraits from me taken on film, but I think working with this new medium will make me a better photographer. It will be just for me. No pressure. No chance of public failure. But, with a lot of time and practice, I hope to bring you images of cats and dogs, shot on film.
As this is a blog circle, please check out Cynthia Wood of Georgian Bay Studios and see what is new in her life this week! Have a happy Friday!
Dec 31, 2011
- As of December 2011, the Posh Pets Blog is officially one year old! Hard to believe that this was begun on December 19, 2010 with one small post that said we had gone live. At the time, I had no idea what I would find to write about for the whole year, but it really has come together for me. I find that sometimes I simply cannot get all the ideas I have written quickly enough!
- Posh Pets joined the Beautiful Beasties Project 52 in March 2011. That has been an awesome project that allows me to shoot images just for me. For an artist, it is vitally important that we get an opportunity to stretch and push ourselves to try different things and also to explore ideas and concepts that we would not otherwise do. I really have enjoyed seeing how each member interprets one theme – I hope you have too!
- Posh Pets was featured in the Toronto Star on November 12, 2011 alongside one of my mentors, the very talented Teresa Berg. That was something that I could not have even dreamed of at the beginning of 2011. It was a complete surprise to be recognized for my work.
- Posh Pets began photographing the Toronto Animal Services Adoptables on November 2, 2011. I began with Greta, a beautiful brown tabby and ended the year with Pete, a gorgeous husky. In between, there were a total of 76 animals who posed for my lens – that is a lot of furry faces in just 2 months! I am so happy to report that Greta has since found her forever home along with 57 of her fellow adoptables and I hope Pete and his friends are not far behind.
Of course, I know that I could not have done this all by myself. So, I want to take a few lines to thank all of the people who have helped me during 2011.
♥ Thank you to all of my clients who trusted me to capture the beauty and grace of their beloved pets for I could not be working at something I absolutely love without you! I have enjoyed meeting you, snuggling with your furry family members and presenting you with final images you can treasure for years to come.
♥ Thank you to Kathy and her staff at Toronto Animal Services – North Region. Every week I go in to meet the newest group of adoptables, I am amazed by the hard work and dedication they display towards these animals who have no home, no protection and no voice. They really do care!
♥ Thank you to my family who have shown me such support during this last year. My Mom and Dad and sister have always been there, encouraging me to do what they know is a dream for me. I hope you know how much I love you guys!
♥ It would be hard to have missed the many stories on the blog of the kitties my husband and I share our home with. Ripley and Lady Jane are the best models, patiently putting up with my never ending requests for photography time. Ripley is now 17 years old and Lady Jane is 15, so they have many long hours of napping in between, but I would be remiss not to thank them too!
♥ Last, but certainly not least, I want to thank my dear husband. Dean has always believed in me, even when I did not believe in myself. He is honest to a fault and I can always count on him to tell me the truth about any of my ideas, business or my photography. At the same time, he knows exactly what to say and do when I am feeling frustrated or down. I truly do love you honey!
I will leave you with an image of one of our success stories from 2011 – this is Hank, who found his forever home last week. I do hope you will all stick around for all the Posh Pets’ excitement in 2012!
Dec 28, 2011
Introducing the new gang of adoptables at Toronto Animal Services – North Region for this week! As always, if you want to find out more information about these beautiful pets, you can contact TAS or check out the Posh Pets Facebook page. Such lovely, furry faces to feature this week – I think you will really enjoy them!
And now the kitties…
See you all next year (can you believe it will be 2012?)!
Dec 23, 2011
It is hard to believe that we have almost reached the end of Project 52 for 2011, but here we are! Given the balmy weather we are enjoying today, no one would think that this is the end of December. But I, for one, will not complain about the lack of icy conditions and awful commutes. I am sure they are coming.
For this week, we were given the theme “silhouette” and the Posh Pets studio decided to do some still life imagery which I actually love. This beautiful guy hails from South Africa and was a gift from a dear friend of mine who had the opportunity to travel there at the beginning of the year. Usually he sits on my dresser where, interestingly, he has never been thrown onto the floor by one of our acrobatic cats. (Not that they ever admit to moving anything.) I guess he has a quiet resolve about him that even they know it would be wrong to mistreat him so horribly. And so, he stands and carefully watches over the comings and goings that is our life.
Today, however, he was the star of his own photo session and provided a striking silhouette as he marches across the African Savanna…
Hope you enjoyed your visit here today. However, this is a blog circle which means more amazing imagery is just a click away. To start with, please check out the talented Dana Cubbage! Her work is always stunning.
