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Rocket the Havapoo Puppy

Saturday, February 29th, 2020

Rocket the havapoo is a dog who lives up to his name! He is 18 months old and simply a bundle of energy! We spent the first half of his photo session in his backyard, where he enjoyed generally bouncing around, energizer-bunny-style. This spot was specifically requested by his mom, and I’m glad she saw its potential – it turned out to be an awesome location providing plenty of nice greenery! And it’s completely fenced in, which makes it safe for a quick little guy like Rocket. In the backyard, he really loved playing with his toys. He’s mostly toy-motivated, not treat-motivated – which is relatively rare, as it turns out. And I would also describe him as affection-motivated – because he is head over heels in love with his mom! I loved seeing their bond and how he would bounce around the yard but always check back in with her, to make sure she was still there and (therefore) that everything was all right. And although treats come in third on the totem pole for this boy, one of his favorite edible rewards are peanuts. You heard that right – not peanut butter, just peanuts! That was a first for me to see, and I found it so adorable! I’m all for whatever makes your pup happy, and peanuts it was for Rocket! :)

For the second half of our photo session we headed to the local park in Encinitas where he was able to explore the fascinating walking trail with all its nooks, crannies and other walkers. Like I mentioned earlier, Rocket lives up to his name – he is quick as a flash, and in addition to that he’s ready to experience the world. I bet if he could choose any pastime, he would be a world traveler. Many dogs thrive off of routine and being home with familiar places – not Rocket. He likes those things, but I think he’d rather be out and about, discovering everything he can possibly get his paws on. (Such as children – besides toys and his mom, his other favorite thing to do is meet and play with little kids. Which made the park a very exciting place to be!) His mom definitely has her hands full, but she has done an amazing job training him – no small task with this energetic boy. But I have no doubt that he’s in the best possible hands, since they’re an adorable pair.


This is Rocket – can you even resist that face?!

havapoo dog


Rocket is a rocket. No joke.

havapoo action photo


But boy, is he a cutie or what? (Not pictured, just outside the frame: the object of his relentless affection, his mom.)

havapoo photo


Thanks for such a fun photo session, Rocket! Jessica, I’ll see you soon! :)

Harley and Molly – A Mid-Year Update of their Puppy Plans!

Tuesday, October 8th, 2019

You guys… I can’t get enough of these Puppy Plan sessions!! I wanted to give an update on Molly and Harley since they’ve both have had their second round of photo sessions now. Which means they are officially more than halfway through the year and growing so fast! It’s been so much fun working with them so far. I can’t wait for you to see how much they’ve changed already! I’m definitely looking forward to their 3rd session as fully grown dogs, and we’ll do that when they are a year old. For the meantime, here are some cute photos of the first two portrait sessions where you can already see some major changes happening. The best part? I love that their parents will be able to look back and remember all of the fluffy cuteness from the beginning!

First up is little miss Molly! She’s an adorable mixed breed dog who lives in the Olivenhain neighborhood of Encinitas. I love that we were able to do both photo sessions in her backyard as it keeps the environment consistent and the only thing that changes is Molly. You can really see how she grows because of that!




Just a few months later…





Rest assured, she’s keeping that killer head tilt! :)



Okay, ready for more? This is Harley, a Saint Bernard puppy. I’m so glad I got to meet her when she was just about 10 weeks old. She was so tiny and fluffy! As you can see, she was an absolute doll in the studio. :)






… and this is big, huge Harley at 7 months old! (I know she’s a St. Bernard, but still! She’s sooooo much bigger!) I can’t believe she still has more growing left to do, haha! We visited a totally different location for her second session, and I know her family loved having a new setting to change things up as she grows.






Aren’t these girls gorgeous?! Stay tuned, and I’ll be sharing photos of both Molly and Harley from their next Puppy Plan photo session when they’re each 1 year old!

Molly, the Rescue Puppy from Olivenhain!

Tuesday, March 26th, 2019

I’m so excited to introduce you to Molly! Not only because she’s one of the most adorable pups around, but she is also one of my first official “Puppy Plan” participants! Molly is a 2 month old Great Pyrenees, labrador, and (supposedly) Bassett hound mix who gives the cutest little head tilts for the camera. She is definitely in the puppy phase where everything needs to go in her mouth. Toys, food, leashes, collars, pant legs, shoes, my camera bag… nothing is safe from those puppy teeth!

We held her photo session at her parents’ gorgeous home in the Olivenhain neighborhood of Encinitas/Rancho Santa Fe. Her mom and dad have a beautiful setup in their backyard where we were able to get amazing portraits with plenty of natural light coming through the trees. A photographer’s dream! Molly had a lot of energy, so I think she had a pretty great time playing and posing for me. And get this: whenever she needed to take a break from all of her running around, she decided to quench her thirst by drinking the dew off of the grass! She reminded me of a little lawnmower as she cruised around, head down & searching out the wettest blades of grass, haha! She was too cute!

I’ll be seeing Molly and her parents again when she’s about 6-7 months old for the next stage of her Puppy Plan. I cannot wait to see how much she has changed by then! I bet she’ll have grown by leaps and bounds (especially if that Great Pyrenees in her heritage has any say in the matter). Which means even then, and for the rest of Molly’s life, these photos from when she’s only 2 months old will be awww-inspiring keepsakes. :)


Don’t be fooled by that cute head tilt. There’s a silly, rambunctious, mischievous puppy behind that innocent face!

rescue puppy


Ohhh that early morning light… I love it! And can you see the dew on Molly’s face that came from drinking the water off the grass?!

rescue puppy photo


Marilyn & Stan, I am so excited to capture Molly’s first year as a puppy with you! I look forward to seeing you again soon! :)

Mister Mister, the Shepherd Mix from Encinitas

Sunday, October 15th, 2017

Okay, I know I’m not supposed to have “favorites” – but can I be honest? Awesome, wonderful repeat clients with silly, happy dogs are totally my favorites. And that means I simply could not have been more excited for my photo session with Mister Mister and his mom & dad!!

That’s right, his name is Mister Mister. He’s a handsome shepherd mix who lives in Encinitas with his family, and if you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you might remember their previous photo session. This time, we decided to let Mister have the spotlight all for himself! He holds a special place in his parents’ hearts, and they wanted a photo session all about him & his sweet personality. (Doesn’t every dog deserve to be the undisputed center of attention once in a while?) So we met at the beach in Del Mar, with plans to photograph the rest of his family (including his new foster-fail sister!!) at some point in the future. But today, it’s all about Mister! :)

 

We started our session with goofiness, smiles and wiggles – I think Mister was delightfully surprised at the prospect of having a beach day all to himself! We ran around a bit and let him acclimate to the spotlight. (Never going too close to the water, of course – this boy is a shepherd mix, not a labrador mix. He’s scared of the ocean. We stayed pretty darn dry for the afternoon – in fact, I think I got wetter than Mister ever did!)

funny shepherd mix dog

 

This photo makes me smile: only Mister would be in such a stately pose in gorgeous, epic surroundings, and yet be making the biggest cheeseball-goofy-smiley face!

shepherd mix at beach

 

Such a handsome boy. He deserves alllllll the beach days.

shepherd mix dog photo

 

Misha and Justin – I had a blast with you, as usual! Can’t wait to see you (and your other two troublemakers) in a few weeks!

 

Chester the Encinitas Shih Tzu! (Photos)

Friday, March 17th, 2017

I’m so thrilled to introduce you to Chester! This handsome Encinitas shih tzu is a very happy, content boy. He’s not the type to get in your face and whine because he’s bored, he won’t beg for food, and honestly, he’s happy to simply be with his mom. You could say that he’s quite polite! And I saw his easygoing attitude from the first moment I met him, at my studio for our Pre-Session Consultation: he strolled right in, said hello to me, sniffed around a bit, and laid right down to relax while his mom & I chatted. He’s such a good boy!!

I wish everything is Chester’s life could be as even-keel as his happy attitude. He & his mom have been fighting against the c-word, and various treatments haven’t been successful… so our photo session definitely had a bittersweet tone. But leave it up to Chester to keep us laughing throughout the afternoon as he would run (well, trot) from place to place, and then get tired and plop down to catch his breath! He would look at us at certain times – clearly asking us “why did you put me on this big rock?” or saying “oooh that water is cold!” He’s an expressive dog, and incredibly devoted to his mom… so I loved working with them both, and Chester had a great afternoon in the process! :)

 

This is Chester’s sweet face! Don’t you love his soft, warm coloring?!

shih tzu photo

 

This moment came right before one of those “why am I on this rock?” looks – and then he jumped down to prove his point!

shih tzu encinitas

 

Despite the clouds’ best effort, we finished our photo session at the beach underneath a spectacular sky. Chester hadn’t been to the beach in a while, so he was pretty thrilled to run through the sand and wade through the surf again. And I don’t think this will be the last time Chester goes to the beach – but something tells me that if it is, it was time well spent.

encinitas shih tzu

 

Teri, thank you so much for introducing me to your sweet boy. I’ll talk to you again soon! :)

 

 

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