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Internationally-renowned, award-winning animal photographer Illona Haus created scruffy dog photography inc. as the province's premier pet photography business which continues to serve clients across Ontario, the US and the world. Based in Kitchener, Ontario and photographing exclusively animals for fifteen years - both commercially and for private clients - Illona is considered one of the world's leading and most influential pet photographers.

 

To learn more about the scruffy dog photography, its creator and history, and the scruffy dog experience, feel free to browse through the menu above, and scroll through over a decade's worth of blog entries below!

 

Please drop me a line! I'd love the opportunity to capture stunning, creative, one-of-a-kind photographic memories of your 4-legged loved ones to treasure in artwork for a lifetime, and show you just what makes the scruffy dog experience second to none.

athena

another past shoot … so behind … but i thought i’d share this girl with you.

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it took a while to warm athena up as she can be something of a fear-nipper.  this is the kind of dog that i’ll spend a good half hour or more with before even bringing the camera bags out of the car … and this is where i’m thankful for my years of experience with dogs, able to read their body language and ease their fears and anxiety, no matter what level.  with a little patience, athena was a doll.

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… and we had fun indoors and out …

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i enjoyed shooting this regal girl … and her shadow, of course …

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and loved her expressions …

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and – as with most of my clients – i like to leave ’em good and tired at the end of a shoot.  athena was no exception.

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thanks, john and jacquie for a lovely afternoon.  i hope you enjoy athena’s photos for years to come.

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  • Amandathank you so much for the kind words, they mean a lot from a photographer who’s work i greatly admire. it was a bit intimidating to make the leap for sure, but it feels great to be giving it a shot.ReplyCancel

  • Clairegreat set.
    and you bring up such an important point about having experience with dog behavior. as i’ve gotten more and more involved in dog photography, i’ve done more and more research into dog behavior–which is something i don’t feel like enough photographers really embrace, so it’s good to hear you approach it in a good way!ReplyCancel

  • AndreaWhat a beautiful dog! You captured her wonderfully….as always! 🙂 Such soulful eyes!ReplyCancel

  • nickShe’s a real beauty 🙂 Nicely captured!ReplyCancel

special zoey

as usual, i’m hopelessly behind with my blog entries.  this girl is from a shoot i did in late february and meant to post to the blog weeks ago.  in the throes of house-hunting, some days it feels like i’m barely keeping my head above water … while the poor scruffies only dream of being out on the trails chasing bunnies.

but without further ado (and excuse-making), here is another lovely i wanted to share with you from the client-pool … darling Zoey.zoey-328

how sweet is this old girl?!zoey-diptych

we had a great hike along the balmy trails with fresh snow underfoot and even ran across a pack of coyotes.  unfortunately, i had the absolutely wrong lens on the camera for the encounter … i was capturing this shot of Zoey’s eye at the time …

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… so I was using my macro lens … the completely wrong lens to be entertaining when confronting a startled pack of coyotes even at close range. so this was as good as i managed to capture.

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… and then back to Zoey.  of course, she had to get over her own uneasiness over the close-encounter.  these guys were much bigger than her.

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and sometimes i couldn’t help thinking Zoey looked a bit like a coyote herself in the landscape we walked through.

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but back home, it was clear who owned the front porch of the wonderful home she shared with mom Deb.

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… and of course, that gorgeous red door.

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thank you for an awesome shoot, Zoey and Deb … for a wonderful and most-eventful afternoon.

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  • adeleneCan’t wait to see new pics! Been checkin every other day for new posts. Pls pls post more of of the cuties.ReplyCancel

  • EmileeOh, wow, these are great! I can’t pick a favorite! 🙂 Zoey is so pretty. Beautiful shots!ReplyCancel

  • Tammy MueckeI love the last photo the most but I love all of them. I have a Weim and you know to love a dog, you have to love them unconditionally….Weims are one to prove that theory. =)ReplyCancel

  • nicka wonderful snow covered session 😀ReplyCancel

  • AndreaSimply wonderful shots…always look forward to your new blog entries. Your photos are so captivating. 🙂ReplyCancel

  • andreareally super love the closeup of zoeys face/eye. beautiful session!ReplyCancel

  • wendyI LOVE the headshot with the evergreens in the background. There is just something about it!ReplyCancel

sweet little jada

after another major overhaul on computer equipment and now in the throes of  house-hunting,  i’m hopelessly behind on blog posts, and no longer deluding myself into believing that i’ll manage to get every client sneak peek up on the blog these days.  still, i’m going to try to get at least a few of my clients’ shoots up on the blog to share.

one little girl in particular left a lasting impression … meet sweet Jada …

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i swear i wanted to snatch up this 11-year-old dollface and take her home for morley.

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and for 11, she sure is a firecracker …

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in fact, Jada’s owners were aiming for a strictly indoor shoot because it was that sloppy time of the spring where everything was melting, but i persisted.  and when i showed Jada’s mom this money-shot in the LCD i think she finally agreed that heading outdoors had probably been a pretty good idea after all.  🙂

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… along with a few classic poses, of course.

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and indoors, Jada was a consumate poser … putting even my two models at home to shame.

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.. and with mom and dad …

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but when this girl goes down for the count, she goes down.

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thank you for an awesome shoot, Jada.  and Jenny and Blair, hugs to your fantastic little girl.

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  • andyBeautiful shots. You really brought this dogs portraits to life. I really like the color.ReplyCancel

  • adeleneLove all the pictures. They are so beautiful. Wish I have your job LOL. Anyway what breed is this? Is it an American Cocker Spaniel?ReplyCancel

    • illonathanks, adelene. yes, a cocker, although i’m not sure which kind. probably American.ReplyCancel

  • nickI love the second shot 🙂 Good thing you convinced them about the outdoor one too 😀ReplyCancel

  • AndreaSimply excellent shots!!! Love the outdoors ones…so glad you convinced them! 🙂ReplyCancel

  • LyndaThese are spectacular shots, illona! Jada is a gorgeous, wonderful girl, and her parents aren’t bad-looking, either. 😉

    That group shot is a treasure – really needs to be framed and displayed on their wall.ReplyCancel

  • Allison F.OH, and the nose licking, side-profile. Freaking awesome.ReplyCancel

  • Allison F.Oh these are SO good. The one of Jada on the lap of the couple is FANTASTIC. I love that one. She’s a lovely looking dog too. Hard to believe she’s 11!ReplyCancel

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