As we all know, 2020 has been wrought with challenge and we all have been adjusting to an ever-changing new normal.

One of the changes for me during these times of COVID is that I unfortunately have not had as many opportunities to work with Rescues. I was however, lucky enough to meet with and get some images of Buena (Ben).

Let’s say that you want to take a photograph of your pet or the animal you have in foster. What is one thing you should do to make better photos?

If you are familiar with T-Pain and have heard his song “Apple Bottom Jeans,” then you would have heard him sing “Shawty got low, low, low, low, low, low, low.”

I thought this week I might focus on the art of post-processing.

Sometimes you book an outdoor session, and everything lines up perfectly. Mother Nature cooperates to the fullest, the pups are raring to go, and no one is already camped out in the perfect backdrop. But nobody really wants to hear about those experiences.

In today’s blog, I thought I would talk about something that happened earlier this week.

On Tuesday, I decided to join a friend who walks an Australian Shepherd named Bogie.

A few weeks ago, I blogged about the latest lens added to the stable. This week, I want to talk about a lens that I have had for a while. I would like to talk a bit about my telephoto lens. It is an awesome action lens that I have used to shoot things like bull riding, barrel racing, golf, dock diving, lure coursing and flyball.

In an older blog, I wrote about a recent adoption photo session that went really well for me. I guess I spent far too much time dwelling on the experience. I had an adoption session this past weekend, and this time I was drop-kicked by Murphy and his law.

Earlier this week, I had the opportunity to meet Chili, who was one of the sweetest Yorkies I have ever met. After being in her company for a little while, I was surprised to learn that the veterinarian approximated her age at five years. I did not go to veterinary school, so I am not challenging him/her; I am simply saying that is one lively five-year-old.

In the continuing evolution of Inline Design Photo, there is a new toy in the toy box..

I have added an ultra-wide-angle lens specifically for pet photography. The ultra-wide lens is not a flattering choice for portraits of people. Yielding an overly large nose, smallish eyes and tiny ears. Not a good look for any man, woman or child. However, the result is completely different when the subject is a dog. The same distortion that looks garish on a person looks cute on a puppy.

Speaking of Dogs Rescue is an organization that I have worked with, where I have taken some of the adoption photos of their rescues. Photos that were put up on the website in the hope of helping each and every dog find their forever home. Not only did it allow me the opportunity to photograph dogs, which is something I think we all know I like doing. It also allowed me to spend some time with a dog that could use a little extra attention. Know that it wasn’t a one-way street; I needed attention every bit as much as the dog did.

It is not uncommon to find pawrents who are leery of photography sessions because they know their pet cannot be trusted off-leash. Or worry they might be too excitable or too easily distracted.

Earlier today, I was reminiscing about when I was a kid, and we had a delightful little Collie Terrier by the name of Natasha. Specifically, I started thinking about the year I got it into my head that my dog needed to believe in Santa Claus.

I am not kidding. Dogs really are. You might think that your dog is only interested in sleeping, barking and scarfing down treats, but you’d be mistaken. That is not to say that they don’t enjoy those things, but deep down, what your dog truly is is a frustrated supermodel.

Late October, an opportunity came along to combine a few of my favourite things. And by doing so, I could help raise some much-needed funds for the Peel Animal Rescue Society. They were looking for a photographer (favourite thing number one), to take pictures of all the pets (favourite thing number two), who would be at Sheridan Nurseries on November 24th to visit Santa Paws to tell him what they wanted for the holidays.

I recently got a call to take some adoption photos of a bonded pair that hadn’t been garnering the interest they deserved. If you have been around here for a while, you will know that I owe a lot to the photographer that I have become with my earlier work with rescues and adoption photos.

A lot of pet events and expos have a lure chase set up. This is a fun activity you can try with your dog. Granted, it isn’t free, but I would still recommend you give it a try.

I made it out to New’bark’et 2019, which is a dog festival held in Newmarket, Ontario. There was a variety of events scheduled for people and their fur kids to enjoy. There was a pool open for canine swimming, there was a lure course and tons of vendors with everything your dog could ever need. One of my favourite events on the day was the Aqua Dogs Dock Jumping Competition.

Dog adoption photos for a local rescue were my inroad into pet photography. I will admit I was always worried that I would finish the shoot with a car full of puppies. In fact, my brother met me at the front door after my first shoot to see if I brought home any souvenirs.