Tag Archives: Photo

Happy Independence Day America!

July 4, 2008 – 7:02 am

I tried my best to find a dog photo suitably American for this Independence Day post. Alas, this was the best I could come up with. This photo was taken last week at the Surf Dog Competition at Imperial Beach, south of San Diego. Americans seem to love nothing more than heading to the beach for their vacation, so this picture seemed fitting.

Today I don’t intend to be travelling too far. I live on Coronado Island which seems to be one of those places that people flock to on their holidays. I have been warned that getting on and off the island on the 4th of July is next to impossible, so I’ll be enjoying the local festivities for my first Independence Day in the USA.

Here’s a fun video which proves that dogs and fireworks do not mix. Do not try this at home.

By admin | Posted in Dachshund, French Bulldog | Also tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments (0)

Family Portrait

July 3, 2008 – 8:10 am

I know I have a few people hanging out to see some more of Max and his family’s photo session, and who am I to keep them waiting!

I nearly fell over when I was going through the photos of the day and this one popped up. I knew at the time it was going to be a good one, but I was surprised how the finished product came out. It almost looks like it was taken in a studio, but I can assure you that this was taken in Balboa Park using only natural light.

I had Rebecca and Pat stand a few metres away from the wall and just out of direct sunlight so there is plenty of lovely diffuse light on their faces, but the background is dark and has been thrown out of focus. The thing I love about on location photoshoots is the opportunity to find these great spots. Studio photography just does not challenge me in the same way.

And don’t they all smile so pretty? I usually try to be reasonably candid, but this is one family who loves the camera…. or does the camera love them? Maybe a bit of both.

By admin | Posted in Pug, beagle | Also tagged , , , , , , , | Comments (6)

Don’t Mess with Max

June 30, 2008 – 9:52 am

On Saturday afternoon I had an awesome time photographing my good friend Rebecca, her husband Pat and their new Puggle puppy, Max. It was a stunning afternoon so we headed to Balboa Park for a good mix of beautiful gardens and interesting architecture. 

Max is only four months old, but he took his photography session so seriously. Whenever the camera was pointed in his direction he would stare at it with such fierce concentration. I’ve never seen a puppy with such an attention span, but it certainly made my job easier.

This is my first client session in about 10 months. I was worried it wouldn’t all come back to me, but it’s just like riding a bike (but more fun). Thanks to Rebecca for giving me the opportunity to get creative again and try new things.

By admin | Posted in Pug, USA, beagle | Also tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments (11)

Slumber

June 29, 2008 – 8:18 am

Yesterday I had a fabulous day. It was a day truly dedicated to dog photography.

First up, I went down to check out the Surf Dog Competition at Imperial Beach. What a blast! Expect some photos to make it onto A Dog A Day later this week.

In the afternoon I had the distinct pleasure of photographing my good friend Rebecca with her husband and new Puggle puppy Max. I can’t wait to show you some of these photos. This is one photogenic family.

Today is going to be spent doing some quality relaxing.

By admin | Posted in Cross-breed, India, Stray | Also tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments (2)

Painted Ladies of San Francisco

June 28, 2008 – 7:46 am

I am always so stoked when I manage to get a photo of a dog in front of a famous icon.

<Insert very best Troy McClure voice from the Simpsons> You may remember such shots as:

One of my ‘must see’ spots in San Francisco was the Painted Ladies at Alamo Square. Also known as postcard row, this is one of those photos that is really representative of the city and when I pictured what San Francisco might be like, this shot is it.

After battling with tourists in downtown, we were pleasantly surprised how quiet and peaceful Alamo Square was. Locals were enjoying the day and it was only a matter of time before I had a dog walk along the path in front of the scene I was capturing. This boy was so old that he was travelling very slowly along behind his human. He walked with a pronounced limp and stopped regularly for a rest. He was still clearly enjoying his morning stroll though.

Because the morning sun wasn’t quite hitting the houses the way I had hoped, the colours were not as brilliant as I had seen in other photos. I considered converting this to black and white but decided on this old world look instead. Do you think it works on this image?

By admin | Posted in USA | Also tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments (2)

Buddy gets a hug

June 27, 2008 – 8:05 am

Buddy is a big Alaskan Malamute who I first photographed in Canberra soon after I had moved there in 2006. I had started a photographic arts course at the Australian National University (ANU) and had decided to photograph dogs for my first body of work (surprise, surprise). I put the word out around work that I was after volunteers who could offer up their dog for me to photograph. The first person to respond was Adriyana. She and her husband Mark are now two of my closest friends.

I happened to be going through my archives last week and came across this photo of Buddy with Adriyana’s niece. At the time, I pretty well scrapped this photo because we couldn’t see much of Buddy’s face. Now when I look at it I see a little girl enjoying cuddles with her dog and I can’t believe I ever passed it over.

Adriyana was a really good friend to me when I moved to Canberra. We became friends quickly and we planned a trip to India together within months of knowing each other. Adriyana is the dog wrangler behind many of my India Dog photos, especially Taj Dog. I just wanted to thank Adriyana for being my friend, because sometimes I get crazy busy and don’t keep in touch enough.

By admin | Posted in Alaskan Malamute | Also tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments (7)

Three little Doxie’s

June 26, 2008 – 8:00 am

Ok…here’s something a little lighter after yesterday. The Miniature Daschund is another photogenic breed of dog that I always love to photograph. I think I must be partial to small breeds with long hair and drooping ears. Why then, do I have a large German Shepherd in my life???

I photographed these little doggies on a white sheet draped over a sofa. It was a very primitive studio setup, but it worked for me in the early days before I had invested in any decent equipment.

Trying to capture multiple dogs like this is often difficult. They all want to look in different directions, or one of them inevitably decides to wander off stage left. You have to have well trained dogs and/or a lot of patience to do this successfully. Or, in the case of the Labrador puppies in this photo, give them a good feed, let them sleep and then photograph them as soon as they wake up, and you have a winner.

By admin | Posted in Dachshund, Lots of Dogs | Also tagged , , , , , , | Comments (5)