Dogs on black

Cue Johnny Cash…

♫ Because they’re mine, they walk the line ♫

Okay, so that probably sounded better in my head…

Anyway, today’s post feature my grrrls on black velvet.  The black velvet background is probably my favorite seamless to work with but I reserve it almost exclusively for my own dogs.  I love the way the dogs seem to pop out of the frame against the black and the fantastic mood that can be created when using it with a hard light source.  Today’s photos mostly are an exploration of the silly and goofy.  I hope you enjoy!

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Puppies at the Benton-Franklin Humane Society

I was an unusual session at the Benton-Franklin Humane Society yesterday – no cats.    Well, I guess that’s not quite true -  Thomas did make an appearance.  It wouldn’t be a humane society session without having him test my carrying cases for the best possible napping spot.

As we’ve been doing the last couple of months, Judy and I traded off shooting responsibilities between animals.   This week she photographed one that I wanted to make a special mention of but I’ll have to refer you to the BFHS website to see his photos.  John Doe was originally adopted from the Benton-Franklin Humane Society back in 2004.  A petite white terrier-ish pup, he presumably lived happily with his family until he somehow got away.   He’s since gone deaf and is heading towards blindness.  The sad thing is that his family never updated his microchip so the only contact information animal control had on record for him was the humane society.  His family has since moved from the address on record and now the staff at BFHS have no way to get him home.  Now John is looking for a new home.   The good folks at the humane society say he’d prefer a quiet home but I have a hunch he wouldn’t mind a noisy one either.

So then…

Puppies!  They are cute!  They are loud!  They have puppy breath!

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Benton-Franklin Humane Society Building Campaign

It’s no secret that I spend a lot of my time helping the animals at the Benton-Franklin Humane Society find their forever homes.  What I don’t often share is the other work that I do to support the humane society’s mission.  I mentioned a few weeks back about photographing Roger and Molly for their building campaign fund raising brochure.  I’ve done another session since then with two more models  featuring adoptable animals for the campaign.  The session was a lot of fun and I’m pleased to share that the new brochures look great.  Like Roger, Sheridan and Paxton are both animal lovers and they were only too happy to cuddle up to some of the adoptable animals at BFHS.  Here are a few of my favorite photos from the session:

I’m happy to report that there has been progress!  The land was officially purchased on Friday, March 5, 2010 but of course that’s just the first step.  We are hopeful that the new shelter can be built entirely without any bank financing and are actively soliciting donations for the building campaign.  For more information on the campaign or to donate, please visit the Benton-Franklin Humane Society or their website.

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Silken Windhounds

Yesterday afternoon I had the joy of working with nine Silken Windhounds.

I met Alison and was introduced to the beauty of the Silkens last April when I photographed a litter of her puppies before they left to live at their forever homes.  I’d never heard of the breed but was immediately drawn to their long, elegant forms and their sweet natures so I was very excited when Alison contacted me asking if I was available this Spring for another session.  I couldn’t have asked for a better group of models and got more than a little carried away making over 650 photographs in the brief hour they were here.  To put that in perspective, in a typical two hour humane society session with about 15 animals,  I take around 250 images.

Anyway, I know you are not visiting my site to read about how beautiful my subjects are so I’ll stop typing now.

Enjoy!

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Posted in Animals. Tags: , . No Comments »

The many faces of Dueger

First off, it’s been a crazy week.  So much going on that I want to share with you all but just haven’t had the time!   So much seems to be coming together at once but don’t worry, it’s all good.

Today I want to introduce you to Dueger.  This handsome five month old Shar Pei (really???) mix has got just about one of the most expressive faces I’ve ever seen!    Thinking about adding a new dog to your home?  Dueger says he’d love to have a family with kids.  Already have a dog?  No problem!  Dueger loves other dogs and can’t wait to meet his new bestest buddy!

Dueger is a high energy pup looking for adventure.  And maybe someone patient who can explain to him one more time about the benefits of being “fully” house trained.  Want to learn more?  He’s currently living at the Benton-Franklin Humane Society.  Check out his Petfinder bio here to learn how you can take him home today.

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My boy Lyle

It’s hard to believe, but Lyle turned eight this month.  It’s been a very good eight years.

Here are four photos of Lyle on the last day of his birthday month.   Keep up the good work Mr. L!

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Posted in Animals. Tags: , , . 1 Comment »

Toby the Pomeranian

As someone that cuts his own hair, I can really appreciate how these things might happen.  A little slip here.  A bit too far there and before I know it I’m practically bald.  (Well, fair enough – genetics plays a role there too.)   Worse, I’ve gone more than a couple of days before I realized that I missed a small spot but that’s the price I pay for being too impatient to wait for help and too cheap to think that even $14 is too much to pay for a two minute buzz job.

But I don’t think that was Toby’s problem at all.  Since he lacks opposable thumbs I have no choice but to believe that someone did this to him.  Looking at Toby, I can almost hear Frankie Avalon singing Grooming School Dropout.

Judging by his expression here, I can only imagine that he might be feeling a bit embarrassed about his new furdo.   After all Pomeranians are supposed to have lovely long coats.  Poor Toby.

So then.  As I’m sure you already know, Toby is looking for a new groomer.  More importantly, he is looking for his forever home.   If you are interested in learning more about this sweet boy, please visit the Benton-Franklin Humane Society or their website at http://bfhs.com.

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The closet studio

Today I had a mini session with Spring in my closet studio with a guest appearance by Maebe.   I’ve not had much time recently to even work there so it was nice to have such a willing subject tonight when I finally had a few minutes to spare.  I’m including a couple photos of the closet studio itself for those of you that might be curious.  For this session, I used a white muslin backdrop and two low powered strobes (150 w/s each) – one diffused and one bounced off of the ceiling.  It’s definitely not a full featured studio but it serves its purpose quiet well.

I hope you enjoy the photos as much as Spring and I enjoyed making them!

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Posted in Animals. Tags: , , . No Comments »

Kitten season is starting early this year

We’ve had a fantastically mild winter here in the Tri-Cities which seems to mean an early start to kitten season.  The last few sessions at the Benton Franklin Humane Society we’ve photographed several big litters and their numbers are solidly into the double digits.  While many find homes quickly, it seems that the black and mostly black kittens tend to find themselves left behind week after week to grow up in their cages.   If you have been thinking about adopting a kitten (or three!), beat the Spring rush and come visit the resident kittens at the Benton-Franklin Humane Society today!

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Chip and Dale

Meet 6 month old (ish) Chip and Dale!  These handsome terriers found themselves at the Benton-Franklin Humane Society after their previous owners realized that these pups needed more care than they could provide.  It might be a bit of a stretch to say that Dale is the confident one in the relationship because he is definitely a bit unsure of himself in his new surroundings but it is clear that Chip looks up to him for support and comfort.

Chip and Dale would love nothing more than to find a forever home that they can share together.

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