About

Archive: April, 2015



Oscar, the San Diego Wheaten Terrier!

Tuesday, April 21st, 2015

Oh boy – I am so excited to tell you about this adorable San Diego wheaten terrier, Oscar! I was thrilled to meet him a few weeks ago at the Navy Woof Walk, a super-fun local event, where he & his parents found my booth. Honestly, I did a double-take when I first saw him, because the Wheaten terrier breed is rather uncommon… and also because it’s the same breed as my childhood dog!! The very first dog my family owned was a Wheaten terrier, and I named him Sparky (because I was especially creative as a 9-year-old, ha). So I feel a special affinity toward Wheatens whenever I see them… and as luck would have it, Oscar’s mom won the drawing that day for a $100 gift certificate! I couldn’t have been more thrilled to learn that she was the lucky winner, and seeing Oscar again was absolutely delightful! He has a constant smile on his face that’s positively infectious… this is one happy (and treat-motivated) dog! He actually has a rather busy schedule these days: Oscar is a therapy dog! He visits local schools on a regular basis to interact with kids, and his mom told me all about the good work he does around the San Diego & Rancho Bernardo communities. So don’t be surprised if you see his cute face around town! :)

 

This is Oscar! Can you stand how cute he is?! (I cannot.)

san diego wheaten terrier

 

He strikes a lovely profile in black & white, too.

san diego wheaten terrier black white

 

I’m pretty sure this moment occurred right before he leaped up to get the treats in my hand! Haha!

san diego wheaten terrier dog

 

Okay, fine, one more photo… this one’s a little blooper! :)

san diego wheaten

 

 

Thank you, Luanne & Alan, for introducing me to your handsome boy! I had a great time with all three of you! :)

 

Daisy the Beagle/Bulldog Puppy, in Presidio Park

Sunday, April 12th, 2015

It’s time for a PUPPY!!! :)

Daisy is simply the most adorable bulldog/beagle mix you have ever met. Yep, ever. I can guarantee it. This little girl is only four months old, and she’s half bulldog, half beagle. Personally, I think you can see the beagle in her appearance – and the bulldog in her stubborn little personality, haha! She definitely has a mind of her own, but she’s already learned the perfect “sit” command! And I know she’s working with a trainer these days, too, so she’s learning more every day. I learned that Daisy’s favorite thing in the world is… drumroll please… sticks! She walked around with her nose to the ground, looking for sticks, twigs and branches of any kind she could possibly fit in her mouth. (We even joked that she was a horticulturist in a past life, the way she went from stick to stick, trying out each one she could find, seeing how they all tasted! Haha!) So of course, I was so happy to work with Daisy – it’s not too often that I get puppy snuggles during a photo session! I hope you enjoy these photos as much as I enjoyed my time with Daisy & her parents.

 

With a puppy named Daisy, we simply had to find some flowers to pose with! I scoped out Presidio Park a few days beforehand to make sure they were in bloom… and we weren’t disappointed!

beagle puppy san diego

 

Wiggly puppy.

beagle puppy in park

 

Oh, Daisy, you kill me in black & white.

beagle puppy mix

 

 

Kelli & Grayson, thank you so much for introducing me to your beautiful girl! I’m so glad we were able to get together on short notice and during your vacation – I’m looking forward to seeing you again soon! :)

 

Mindy, the Yorkie from La Mesa

Friday, April 10th, 2015

I am so pleased to introduce you to this distinguished little lady, Mindy! She’s a lovely little Yorkie who lives in La Mesa with her mom Andrea, and together, they share an incredibly close relationship. You see, Mindy has an incredible past: she’s the dog that Andrea picked out for her parents to own, in addition to the Yorkie that her mother picked out. So Mindy and her sister lived out in the country together… until the heartbreaking day when a coyote ended Mindy’s sister’s life. They were only 9 months old at the time… I can’t imagine the fear that Mindy must have felt once she realized her sister was gone. But don’t worry: despite the rough start, Mindy’s story has a happy ending: she eventually came to live with Andrea, instead of out in the country with Andrea’s parents, and these two ladies have happily spent their lives together ever since! They’re so incredibly bonded; it was truly beautiful to see how much these two mean to each other. To have the privilege of photographing their relationship and documenting that bond they share… well, I couldn’t ask for anything more! And although Mindy is less mobile/active than most of the dogs I work with (she turns 15 next week!), that meant we got to share a wonderfully relaxed photo session – and I’m loving our images! :)

 

This is Miss Mindy! Her favorite thing to do is roll around the nearby senior retirement center. From her perch in her stroller, she can see everything, and everyone can see her, too – she gets ooh-ed and aah-ed over on a regular basis!

yorkie in stroller

 

 

 What gorgeous flowers for a gorgeous old girl.

yorkie in flowers

 

 

 Matching bows? Yes please. I just love these two.

yorkie dog photo

 

 

Andrea, thank you for introducing me to your adorable little girl. (And thanks, Sally & Linda, for introducing us!) I’m excited to see you again soon!

 

Smooshy-Faced Pets Tito & Fizgig

Thursday, April 9th, 2015

In the contact form on my website, I ask my prospective clients to describe their pet(s) in 3 words. I think it’s a fun way to get to know my clients right from the start, and I usually receive sweet adjectives like “loving”, “adorable” and “perfect”… but this time, the first word that Tito & Fizgig’s mom used was “smooshy-faced”! Haha! I knew from the start this would be a fun session, and little did I know how accurate that adjective really was! Tito is a smooshy-faced pug, an adorable little guy with an irresistible urge to pee on nearly everything, and Fizgig is an exotic shorthair cat with a total lack of a side profile because his face is so very smooshed! Haha – these two pets are totally outgoing and attention-seeking, so they were an absolute blast to work with!

 

But I have to be honest with you: this session posed a unique challenge for me, because it took place at Sorrento Valley Pet Cemetery. Tito & Fizgig’s mom Natalie works in the front office, and somewhat surprisingly, the quiet grounds with gorgeous green grass & foliage turned out to be a beautiful setting for photos… and it was actually my very first time stepping foot into a pet cemetery. Having the career that I have, and knowing what I know about the relationships people have with their pets, let’s be real: I pretty much started to cry as soon as I saw the first gravesite. I read a few gravestones, took in the memorials that owners had left for their pets (whose photos were often engraved on the stones) and nearly broke down crying right there before we even started the session… gah! It was a really emotional place to be. But instead of thinking about what all these pets meant to their owners, I just had to concentrate on the fluffy ball of life right in front of my eyes, Tito! Luckily, he was running around and acting like a little goofball (as pugs are so talented at doing) so our session began right after I wiped my eyes… and you know what? Even though we were in a sad place, where so many people had to say goodbye to their 4-legged family members, I’d like to think that photographing Tito & his infectious, happy spirit as he ran around the cemetery was a celebration of life. And no matter how long or short our lives may be, it was a lovely afternoon celebrating the relationship Tito & Fizgig have with their mom, which is just as meaningful as the past relationships the peacefully-buried pets in the cemetery once had with their owners, too. It was really an interesting day, and it gave me a bit of new perspective.

 

 Anyways! Whew! On to the photos! This adorable little mug is Tito!

smooshy-faced pug dog

 

 

He even posed with the flowers for us… although admittedly, it took a bit of convincing. :)

smooshy-faced pug

 

 

And this is Tito’s brother, Fizgig! He’s one of the most outgoing, active cats I’ve ever met – and look at that smooshy face!!

smooshy-faced cat

 

 

Natalie, thank you for an entirely unique photo session. I can’t wait to show you the rest of our photos soon! :)

 

San Diego Pets Buster, Fae, Leyland & Nyx

Wednesday, April 8th, 2015

I’m so excited to share this family’s photos with you – because I’ve been waiting so long to do it! You see, this family’s session began one day… and continued on another day… and finished up several days later! Usually sessions happen all in one afternoon: we go from one location to the next with (usually) no issues. But, if you can believe it, bad weather forced us to reschedule so many times I lost count. (Of course, here in San Diego, “bad weather” means “cloudy” – but when you’re going to the beach, too many clouds can make or break the scenery! Have you ever been to the beach on a gray, overcast day? It’s nothing like a pretty, sunny, blue-skies day – and that’s why we weren’t going to settle for anything less!)

 

So this family gets huge kudos in my book, for being willing to wait until the weather cooperated with us (and my picky tendencies). I think they’ll be glad they did, too: the resulting images were well worth the wait! :)  This session featured four different animals: first, there’s Buster, an Australian shepherd mix, who’s the oldest & biggest of the bunch. He’s a consistently happy guy, maybe a bit slower than his siblings, but a very handsome boy! I also met Fae, a corgi mix with a permanent smile on her face! This girl is full of life and I loved photographing her happy spirit! Next is Leyland, a black & white long-haired cat. He only has one eye, but that’s okay – he gets around just fine. (And he even came with us to the studio – pretty impressive, for a cat!) Last but certainly not least is Nyx, a new puppy that just joined the family! I met her literally just a few days after her parents adopted her, and with the delay in getting together for the second half of our session, I feel like I’ve gotten to see her grow up a little, haha! So fun!

 

This is Buster and his mom, Patrisha. They love each other – as you can tell.

Australian shepherd mix studio

 

This is Fae! (She’s cute from any angle, haha!)

corgi mix dog

 

This little troublemaker is Nyx – ready to pounce!

puppy studio photo

 

And this is Leyland! I love his little pink nose & ears.

studio cat photo

 

We visited their house, where Fae did her best impression of a teddy bear…

dog with teddy bears

 

And finally, we hit the beach! You should have seen Buster light up & run around the coastline!

Aussie mix Coronado Beach

 

Nyx, on the other hand, wasn’t so sure. (This was actually her very first trip to the beach!) She preferred to stay within the safety of mom’s feet… just in case.

puppy's first trip to beach

 

 

Patrisha & Scott, thank you, again, for being so willing to wait for the best lighting conditions. I know for sure that it paid off! :)  I’m excited to see you both again soon!

 

 

All Images Copyright | Blog Theme Created by LJP & SLR Lounge