Dog Photography

About the love of an old dog

old dog with hat photo session

A few weeks ago, a beautiful human being emailed me to book a photo-shoot for herself and her dog. Her old, blind, cancer-ridden rescued dog. A dog that someone abandoned in his old age and that she rescued, to give him the most love possible in his last years of life. A gentle, quiet Boston Terrier named Lucky.

He meandered slowly and patiently through the studio, and allowed us to place him and dress him up with all the wisdom his age provided.

A photo session unlike any other I’ve ever done before.

Boston terrier photoshoot Boston terrier and human mom photoshoot Boston terrier photoshoot

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Summer Vacation in Cape Cod with your dog

A few weeks ago, we decided to make the best of the hot August weather and take a few days vacation in picturesque Cape Cod region, in the United States.

We stayed at a lovely pet friendly motel, in Provincetown (the very tip of Cape Cod) called Cape Colony Inn, within walking distance to the main street with most of the restaurants, boutiques and about 40 art galleries.

Here you can see some of the photos with or without our dog, who, I must say found the sand and ocean a bit odd at the beginning, although she took pretty fast to digging feverishly into the sand (clean beach towel, what is that??).

Several photos were taken in the Port of Provincetown, other by the sand dunes and marshland close to Long Point Beach.

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Weimaraner Braque dog photo shoot at home

A few weeks ago, I was hired to do a Father’s Day surprise photo session. The “baby” was a 3 year old Weimaraner Pointer who “matched the furniture”, to the delight of his human mom, hence the photo session was booked at his home.

Let me tell you; this dog did not like the camera, in fact I had to stalk him through the house (and the garden) to be able to get some good shots. Apparently the gods of pet photography were smiling upon us because we got some very good shots, including one that was printed large and framed to be delivered to Dad this very day.

Let’s hope he liked his surprise!

weimaraner photo session

weimaraner photo session

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Siberian Husky dog studio photo session

A few weeks ago I photographed  a wonderful blended family. Two of the kids had fluffy tails and perky ears. Get where I’m going with this? 😛

The “kids” were two 11 year old Siberian huskies. They are brothers and one of them is, sadly, dying of cancer. The dogs are loved and look great, honestly wouldn’t have guessed they were that old. Always a little difficult to do photo sessions like this; I know how their “dad” was feeling. Most of you reading this probably do as well.

I did my best to capture their bond and I think I did a fairly good job. They loved their photos at the the “reveal” meeting. 🙂

I can only hope that looking at their prints over the years, they will be able to better recall the memories and the moments that these two lovebugs brought into their lives.

huskies

husy or worf photo

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A furry family photo-shoot in our studio

Now I know that when someone mention “family photography” your first thought is taking you to the parents with their kids. Human kids, that is..

Well, as it turns out in my line of work, the ‘kids” are usually of the furry, four-pawed variety. Case in point, a recent photo session comprised of mom, dad and two fur-kids. I should say two adorable fur-kids. I will never deny that working with animals is hard but, at least for me, patience and a willingness to spend 2 hours crawling on my belly while making weird sounds, seem to appear out of thin air (I am generally not a patient person – LOL) when it comes to working with cats or dogs. Some session are also more rewarding than others. This one was particularly fun. Enjoy some of the pictures I took.

French bulldog playing

Family photoshoot with dogs in Montreal

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Print the photos you love – advice from a pro

I’ve always wondered how people see the value of getting 100 photos on a stick from the photographer, only to misplace the stick (and lose all their photos) or damage the stick (and lose all their photos) have you seen an USB stick? not the sturdiest things around…besides, are you ready to rummage through the junk drawer to get it if there is a house fire and you need to leave NOW??

Suffice it to say I am a staunch advocate of printing your photos. Latest case in point, this photo of my fur-baby taken in the park, this fall. I tried a new company too (Pictorem), very impressed with the quality of the canvas print and the customer service as well. 🙂

Canvas print

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Montreal Fall Photo-shoot with your pets

Fall is a wonderful season in Quebec, if you like taking photos outdoors. Today we tried bringing our dog outside for a mini photo-shoot. Did I mention she is a German Shepherd and Husky mix? Yeah, the energy levels are up there. Here is one of my favourites. She is looking at a squirrel so just the fact that she is laying down for a second is quite the feat, trust me…

Dog photography outdoors

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Fall in Montreal, autumn colours

Well, in spite of a warmer than usual September, Fall has in fact, arrived in Montreal. Scroll down for a few  of our pictures to inspire you. You can also book an outdoors photo session with us, we have a fantastic natural area close by the studio and if you shoot at this location there are no travel charges.

If you feel like hoofin’ it along with a nice thermos of hot cocoa, here is this year’s Quebec Fall Foliage Map.

Fall scenery photo with dog

apple picking in quebec red maple leaves Fall scenery in Quebec

apple picking in Quebec

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Prepare to Fall in love…

Prepare to Fall in love. With this adorable pooch, or the scenery, or both. Take advantage of the gorgeous Montreal colors right at your doorstep and bring your dog outside for a canvas-ready photoshoot.

You can follow Quebec’s changing colors with this neat little tracking tool: https://www.quebecoriginal.com/en/discover/seasons-in-quebec

Some cool places to see the colour also are:

Mont Royal Park

If you don’t get the chance to head outside of the city, don’t worry; there are many great places within Montreal to check out the fall colours. Mont Royal is a favorite due to its extensive trails and paths. For easy access, use the #11 Bus (east or westbound). You can also walk up from downtown, use the path from the Park Avenue Cartier Monument or try the escarpment trail on the eastern slope. Other areas within Montreal that are great for leaf watching include:

  • Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery
  • Mont Royal Cemetery
  • Parks Jean Drapeau, Maisonneuve and Angrignon

Mont St. Hilaire

Located just east of Montreal, Mont St. Hilaire is a perfect choice to take in the autumn season. Not only will you find breathtaking vistas, you’ll also discover numerous apple orchards and farmland that add to the country charm. Mont St. Hilaire is also a nature reserve, with the western part open to the public for hiking and cross-country skiing, for a small fee. To get there from Montreal, head to the south shore, take the 20 east, exit on Route 229 and head to Beloeil. Once you reach Beloeil you take Route 116 across the bridge, turn right on Fortier, then left on Chemin de la Montagne and head to Gault Nature Reserve. Enjoy!

Other similar areas just outside the city include:

  • Mont Tremblant (north)
  • Laurentians (north)
  • Mont St. Bruno, Mont Rougemont and Mont Saint-Gregoire (southeast)

Monteregie Cider Route

The province of Quebec has long been known for its amazing apples. Travel the scenic Cider Route and taste the best our orchards have to offer! Diverse and rich, the cider industry is alive and well, waiting for your taste buds to arrive. Take in the beautiful fall scenery while sampling delicious and unique local ciders and produce. To find out more take a look at the Cider Route map.

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Old dogs and the illusion of time

Initially I wanted to call this post: Old souls and the limitations of our perception. But that sounded too pretentious. This is Angeloup. She is 13 year old and has survived a heart attack. She is also deaf. Which means she no longer hides under the table when the rain thunders or the fireworks sound up. She is a stray that was brought to her human parents by their other dog (who has already crossed the Rainbow Bridge).

Angeloup likes to carry rocks around in her mouth and roll in the grass. She will be gone soon and these photos will be all that’s left of her, to help along with the memories, which will tragically fade as time goes by. This is one of the photoshoots I did where I did not direct the dog in any way, I just followed her around and let her show me whatever she wanted to show me because I did not want to stress her out. The photos came out exactly the way I wanted them. Thank you, Angeloup.

Old dog smiling

dog carrying rock dog rolling in the grass

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Sam…I am. This is Sam the dog.

This is Sam the dog. The basset hound, lab, german shepherd and love mix. He’s got the eyes and the sass and the softest fur ever! He loves his treats and his human parents. I had fun photographing Sam and his parents a while ago. Sam tried to lick me and he tried to lick the camera and argued with his dad when the session got too long for his taste. Sam made me smile. Sam is adopted. Sam is love.

photography basset hound dog photography basset hound dog photography basset hound dog

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Why should you photograph your pets professionally?

This post is going to be a little odd perhaps, a little off-kilter. “Why would I photograph my pets” someone asked me recently. I guess the underlying question would be “why hire a professional to photograph my dog/cat/ferret..etc..? ”

The blunt answer is: because they will (probably) die before you and all you will have to remember them is a dark, blurry, red-eyed photo of them. Or maybe not, maybe you got some decent shots of them with your phone playing outside, because the built-in camera metered nicely for a summer’s late afternoon. Maybe you were lucky that way. Maybe…

The truth is, however, most of your phone shots are just fleeting digital moments that will never see it to the light of print. The truth is, you love your pet like your child and yet your memory of them will fade slowly over time. I know because I’ve been there, like many of you reading this post. I know because I have 1000 amateur shots of my first dog and none of them is technically good enough to be printed bigger than a 4×6. If it were, I’d most probably have a nice 20 x 24 print on my wall. Because I shared 13 years of my life with that dog and he was my furry brother. Because I had crying fits for 2 years after he died. Because he shaped my life in ways I am still discovering. Because he made me love dogs and thus made me rescue my GSD baby in the nick of time (she was 5 minutes away from euthanasia).

Knowing all this, in retrospect, what is one hour of your time and a couple hundred dollars so you can have THE larger-than-life photo to print, frame and hang on your wall, to be able to look at the heart of your past, immortalized into image forever?

photo of old dog

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Advertising Campaign by the best Montreal pet photographer

There comes a time in every professional photographer’s career, when they see their work published in a major advertising campaign. Well for me, this is one of those moments. And it feels very, very, nice. 🙂

This particular project was commissioned by the (really nice) folks at Pets Plus Us insurance company – with campaign ads running in the winter edition of Modern Dog Magazine and Canadian Dogs Annual.

The lovely spotted gentleman in the middle is Jack, a very spirited and photogenic Jack Russell Terrier. The two humans are his very caring parents.

Now I know that some of you might wonder why so many people treat their pets as their “kids” even going as far as buying health insurance for them? Well, the truth is adding a pet to your family can have numerous health benefits, physical as well as mental. Here’s more about that from the folks at Positive Health Wellness Blog. Meanwhile, enjoy life with your four-legged friend! 🙂

Pets Plus Us - Published - 2 Canadian Dogs Annual_petsplusus_published

 

 

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The stray dogs of Moscow

So, you all have heard by now of the stray dogs of Sochi, in Russia. Well, this is the story of Petrovich, a stray dog from Moscow. That doesn’t make it any less interesting.

You can see him here posing by himself, a wise old gentleman as well as with his sisters. Literally his sisters, his actual littermates.

His story begins some 11 years ago. His human mom travels often because of her job and one of her many travels brought her to the far reaches of Europe, Moscow. There, a stray dog had given birth to her puppies a few months before somewhere on a construction site. As luck would have it, Petrovich’s future human mom couldn’t resist the bundles of fur and she went to great lengths to bring two of the three pups with her to Montreal, Canada. Petrovich was “adopted” by the construction crew so he stayed behind for three more years, period during which his future human mom passed to visit a few times and brought food and cuddles. In the end, the connection that formed between them was too strong so she decided to bring him back to Canada as well. He was successfully adopted and now lives with his two sisters in a beautiful house next to a park. He is loved and has domain over plush couches and comfy rugs. He has also beat cancer. If he remembers anything from his distant past, you couldn’t tell about it when he asks for belly rubs or comes to investigate the treat in your hand. Perhaps only his wise eyes hold a reminder of how far he’s come.

three dog brothers

 

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Meet the bulldog – the charm offensive

I had a very busy weekend, photographing dogs…and a gangster. Yes, you read me right. Right here in Montreal! Allow me to introduce Mik3y the gangster, ready to receive you in his “office”. This is the first time I had the opportunity to photograph such a charming and well-trained bulldog. He, very patiently, allowed me and his owner to dress him up (more photos to come later in the week – stay tuned).

Although I have had moments during this photo-shoot when I had to dodge a rapidly approaching pooch barrelling towards the camera (and me, by extension) as only a bulldog can; I will admit I enjoyed Mick3y very much. He gave us adorable piggy snorts and butt wiggles and generally made the afternoon a lot of fun!

The hobbies of Mik3y the English bulldog are: smoking cigars, drinking coffee and generally being dapper. His pictures will particularly demonstrate to what extent. I hope you enjoy them.

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A Christmas Photo-shoot at the Montreal SPCA Annex

This past Saturday, we did a pet photography session at the Montreal SPCA Annex animal shelter.

All the proceeds from the photo-shoot went to their fundraising effort and we got some great photos and many laughs!

Let me tell you, we got many proud pet parents and many unique rescued pooches.

It was a fun event for the whole family!  Especially now with the Holidays approaching, it’s  good reminder to adopt not shop!

Here are some of my favourites!

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Montreal SPCA Fundraising Photo Event!

What is it? It’s a fundraiser for the Annex of the Montreal SPCA. When is it? This Saturday November 9.

Come and get your pet photographed by Life in Focus Pet Photography. All the proceeds go to the animal shelter and you get some very nice photos of you and your pooch to send as Christmas cards.

The address is: 7314, rue Mountain Sights, Montréal. You also get free coffee and the pooch gets free treats! What’s not to like??

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