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Elvis, Henrietta, and Oats – a lovely pet photography session in Del Mar, CA

Friday, May 6th, 2022

I always enjoy doing photo sessions with multiple pets, but something special happens when I get to work with multiple species of pets at one session! (It keeps me on my toes, that’s for sure!) From a photographer’s perspective, it’s fun to go back and forth between a cat’s mentality and a dog’s mentality. They are very different from each other, but I like a challenge! :) Elvis, Henrietta, and Oats were simply lovely to work with at our recent photo session in Del Mar.

We started out by photographing the cats at home. Their mom informed me ahead of time that Henrietta is a total ham for the camera, and I enjoyed seeing that side of her personality – but like all cats, she made me “work for it” a bit too! She is 3 years old and certainly has a mind of her own: there were times during our session when she was willing to be photographed, and times when she declined. She was a great reminder that sometimes it’s necessary to take it slow and go with the flow… and all my cat parents can understand that. ;)

Her brother, Oats, was somewhat of a literal “scaredy cat” – and I was warned about that too! At the beginning of our session he was nowhere to be found. I was nervous that I wasn’t going to be able to photograph him at all – but after working with Henrietta for about 20 minutes he cautiously decided to join us. To my delight, he actually picked a very photogenic location to sit and pose for the camera for about 3 minutes… and then he was gone again. Ha! I would have loved to spend more time with Oats because he’s gorgeous, but he was not in the mood (nor is he ever really in the mood) to have his photo taken or be near strangers. And that’s okay – it certainly didn’t make sense to force it or stress him out to ask for anything more.

After photographing the cats I finally got to work with Elvis! He is the dog of the family, a handsome shepherd-boxer mutt adopted from Helen Woodward Animal Center. And while he’s a little slow to warm up to new people, he is absolutely crazy about his parents! He’s his mother’s bodyguard (especially from scary intruders like the hot tub maintenance man) and simply adores her. And it was clear to see that Elvis really respects his dad, who has done a great job training him. I loved seeing how they’ve bonded through training – and I was impressed at how his dad even takes him to fun locations (like the dog beach) to train, so he can get accustomed to overcoming distractions while listening to commands. That’s SUCH a great way to train a dog! Kudos to his dad! (And Elvis knows that whenever he needs some snuggles he can come right back to his mom!)

After photographing Elvis at his house for a bit, we headed about 5 minutes away to San Dieguito Park. It’s one of my favorite parks in town, and the light couldn’t have been any more perfect, filtering through the trees that afternoon. Elvis had plenty of room to run for action photos, and of course we mixed in some family portraits as well. It was a lot of fun to watch Elvis simply be happy, hanging out with his two favorite people in the world! So… how about a “sneak peek” of our images?

     

Henrietta has a few favorite places to relax in her house, and she gave me a tour of most of them. (I hear the best ones are by the window, to watch for birds.)

cat in del mar ca
     

Oats, I only wish we could have spent more time together. What a handsome boy!

fluffy cat from del mar
     

Elvis enjoyed playing fetch with his dad during our session – and he can really move!

del mar dog action photo
     

A happy dog in a beautiful park, in perfect light… these are the photo sessions I LOVE!

happy dog in del mar, ca
     

Rebecca & Tom, thank you so much for introducing me to your sweet animals! I can’t wait to share the rest of our images with you soon. (And thank you for introducing us, Kathy!)

     

A Trio of Maine Coon Cats from San Diego

Thursday, March 7th, 2019

I’m so excited to introduce you to three of the most stunning Maine Coon cats I’ve ever met! Say hello to Bella, Rockie & Casi! This photo session, quite honestly, was a breeze – especially compared to other photo sessions I’ve done with cats before (sorry kitties, but you don’t always make yourselves the easiest subjects to photograph!). Not only did we have a ridiculous amount of fun, but all 3 cats were b-e-a-utiful! I happen to think all pets are beautiful, quite honestly – but every once in a while those extra-photogenic subjects make my job that much easier. And what’s even more special is that this photo session was generously gifted to this family by their dear friend, Mary. She was even able to join in on the fun with us! Thank you, Mary, for introducing me to this lovely family – and I’m so glad you were able to be there for the big day! (Side note: did you know I offer gift certificates?)

The oldest & wisest of the bunch is Bella. Oh Bella… She really wasn’t into the whole photo session idea at first, and wasn’t afraid to express it. But she slowly warmed up enough to show off her toy, and she eventually became so relaxed as time went on that she started kneading it right there in front of me! That was a big deal for this 13-year-old girl! I was thrilled to see that despite the weird stranger following her around with a big black camera (me), she had gotten that comfortable, which in return allowed for some gorgeous images.

On the other hand, Bella’s two younger siblings had no problem showing their enthusiasm for our photo session! When I arrived to their house, Rockie was literally waiting for me at the door! I felt like a welcomed guest and knew right off the bat that we were going to have a great afternoon. And to my surprise, only minutes after I’d made it into their house, Rockie managed to find the decorative tassel on my camera bag – and he decided that it would look better if it had a few less strings attached to it, haha! (I didn’t even realize it could be considered a toy! That’s what I get for not owning a cat myself, haha!) Let’s just say it made the perfect toy for him. :) I loved his outgoing and playful personality!

Casi, which is short for Cassiopeia (inspired by the star on her nose), is Rockie’s litter mate! She’s very social and her personality is similar to Rockie too. She has also been deemed “the sous chef” by her dad: whenever he’s in the kitchen, she’s right there beside him wondering what he’s cooking up and politely asking if she can taste test! Isn’t that adorable?


Bella is most definitely the queen of the house and lets everyone know it. #lioness

maine coon cat


These confident one year old siblings didn’t hold back on posing for me! Aren’t they gorgeous?! (And just look at alllllllll that fluffy Maine coon fur!)

maine coon cat


Can you see the “star” on Casi’s nose?

maine coon on stairs


As I was packing up my gear, I joked with my clients about how this gallery was going to give them “good problems” – because there are going to be SO many fabulous photos to choose from! As I’m looking through their images, I can confirm my suspicions: we were right! :) Wendy & Tom (and Mary), I cannot wait to meet with you all again soon for your ordering session!

 

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