Click on the title of the blog post to view the entire entry.
i had a snorting good time yesterday with these two little nibblets.
this is big-little sister Carling …
… and super cute little brother Mackelin.
in spite of the cold and the wind, we had a zippedy-do great time.
and i have no doubt that these two slept like little snoring logs last night!
you’ll be seeing much more of these two monkeys as soon as we get caught up with the fall shoots, so stay tuned!
well, merrick’s been with us for nine months now. besides learning what the world is all about after six miserable years spent as a puppymill stud dog, understanding that people are good and not all abusive beasts, as well as learning the basics — boundaries, manners, and general world “skills” — he’s also picked up a few tricks.
more important than silly dog tricks, however, are useful tasks — fetching, carrying, bringing … general helping around the house as his big sister has done for me for years. and this little guy is learning quickly. he now willingly “fetches” almost any item — “fetch” means to hold and not release until asked — and will bring it and deliver to hand.
the following is a quick session with objects that were close at hand in the studio. this was shot with minimal light and no flash, so pardon the not-so-great quality of the images and the very shallow depth of field. i simply couldn’t manage the flash with everything else, and the focus here was on the training, not the photography.
although he’s no where near as finessed as matea, he’s gotten to the level where if i drop something like a pen, i can encourage him to ‘fetch it up’ and deliver it to my hand by getting up on my lap. he’s a star!
now if i could only teach him to wrap client canvases!
you’re gonna love this boy …
you saw his sneak peek here … and now, finally, i get to share the whole dog with you! this is Morleigh, the Nova Scotia Duck Toller …
… and one of the best models ever. his shoot is a Christmas present, so i’ve had to keep his images underwrap. and with a boy this handsome and a shoot this awesome, that was no easy feat!
now that i no longer have to keep it a secret … Merry Christmas, Heather! i really hope Brendan didn’t spill the beans early and that this truly is a surprise for you. and if he did keep it a surprise, well, kudos to him … i know he was champing at the bit to share!
Morleigh was the quintessential model. he’s still young but Brendan has put some field training into this boy, and he was a thrill to work with … so responsive, quick to learn, i had a blast with this boy. i so do love the hunting dogs … and this boy loves his birds.
and i’d be remiss if i didn’t mention his love for the autumn …
… and his unparalleled skill at catching falling leaves.
Brendan deferred to my choice of a location, and — as you can see from the tunnel of trees earlier — we headed to my favorite spot. the reason i love this area is because of the vast variety of colours, setting, and textures …
… with room to run!
this shot (below) was one of the first taken at the location — after i’d already worked with Morleigh some back at his house — and from this early shot i knew Morleigh was going to be a dream to work with. such a poser … with awesome ‘wait’ and ‘stay’ commands.
new clients often express their concern over the fact that their dog doesn’t have any obedience training, worried that i won’t be able to capture any images of their crazy dog. well, i do it all the time with great success. however, when presented with such a responsive, biddable, quick-to-learn, and already well-trained boy, the sky truly is the limit as far as the kinds and numbers of images that can be captured. as a result, Brendan and Heather have an extra big gallery of finished images to go through, and this blog entry — just a small sampling of the variety we shot that afternoon — is a little longer than most.
of course, the beach was a must for Morleigh. no NSDT should be without water. and Morleigh definitely made the most of our time on the beach.
how gorgeous is this boy? i mean, really?
i have to admit, i was shooting even after the sun went down … i couldn’t get enough of Morleigh. of course, those of you who are regular followers of the scruffy dog blog are more than familiar with my old man Morley whom we lost this past spring. i’ll admit, it felt odd calling another dog by that name, and countless times i actually called him Merrick … a force of habit since whenever i start to say “morley” around here, i’m always having to correct myself with “merrick”.
at home, Morleigh was a dream as well. of course, knowing where we were headed for our outdoor location(s), and knowing Morleigh would be wet and possibly a little dirty, we shot the home images first. and when i saw this big treat jar, i knew i had to feature it. when Brendan removed the lid, he assured me that Morleigh only ever takes ones biscuit … still, i bet if you left that heavy glass lid off for any period of time, you’d come home to find it pretty empty. 
and as with any “first-dog”, young Morleigh owns the house. although there are rules, and he’s such a well-behaved boy, you can tell that he’s got Brendan and Heather pretty firmly wrapped around his dew-claw … and, as such, has a lot of freedom. from the couch …
… to the master bed.
… and even his favorite chair.
thank you, Brendan, for sharing your fabulous boy with me. thank you, Morleigh, for being such an amazing model and hunting boy. and again, Merry Christmas, Heather. and you really should know how hard it was for Brendan to keep mum about all this! hope to meet you at a studio consult.
meet my absolute shyest client yet …
this is Karmen … and she hates the camera.
in fact, she’s so shy and hated the camera so much that she never left her mom’s ankles …
ever! so you’re probably wondering how i got shots like this one?
with each super-sensitive or shy dog, i have to approach them as individuals … reading their body language, feeling their energy, gauging how far i can go with them … just far enough to build their confidence, but not too far to push them past that point of tolerance and they become shut-off to the experience of the shoot. often i’m having to come up with new game plans with each dog, depending on their levels of shyness, exuberance or energy. And in Karmen’s case, clinging to mom Donna’s ankles and vigilant in her determination to keep her mom between herself and the camera, i had to be extra creative.
i almost wish i’d had a second shooter so they could have captured the crazy lengths to which i had to resort to even get Karmen in frame … but basically, these shots were taken with me crouched behind Karmen’s mom Donna, snugged up against her legs, and balancing the camera between her ankles as i instructed her to gradually bring her feet apart.
yes, Donna’s boots are just on either side of most of these frames.
and trust me, initially i tried the telephoto to give Karmen the distance i figured she’d need, but this little girl was mighty skilled at keeping mom between her and the lens no matter how far away it was.
gradually, Karmen warmed up to the idea, but not by much. i still had to spend most of the shoot either at a great distance, or snugged up to Donna.
again, shot between Donna’s ankles …
thanks, Donna, for trusting me with your girl’s photoshoot. and thank you, Karmen, for the fantastic challenge. i love dogs who force me to think outside the box and remind me that i’m doing exactly what i should be doing. i hope this is a fabulous and magical holiday season for you all.
you already met the first five dogs of this fabulous pack of rescue dogs whom i had the distinct pleasure of shooting earlier this fall. now, bringing up the tail of the pack, we have Luna the greyhound …
due to a back injury, Luna is bound to a wheelchair. but like most dogs with disabilities, she gets around just fine …
and then there’s old man Keno …
Keno was a ham … couldn’t get enough of me and the cameras … well, and the treats, of course. in fact, we finally had to put him away when his turn was up or else i might not have been able to capture shots of any of the other dogs.
and last but not least, not just camera-shy, but camera-terrified Cricket …
i just kept my distance from the poor boy, and when all else failed, i used my duck sounds.
thanks so much, Geoff, for introducing me to your amazing pack. i hope this is a fabulous Christmas for you and Joanne and your entire pack. i’m sure she’ll love the gallery of photos you arranged for her.
