One of our biggest requests is a portrait featuring a dog owner with their dog or dogs. How does this work? Well first off we ask that you connect with us for a free pre-session consultation. This is where we get to meet your dog(s) and have them see and get used to the studio. Even if we are doing this on location it helps to sit down and discuss briefly what your vision is for the portrait session.
Read MoreThe Joy of Puppies
Puppies are fun to photograph. They’re awfully cute and most every pose looks great with them. Difficulties come in to play based on the age of the dog. Really young pups-those between 6 and 10 weeks—are pretty easy. They’re like photographing newborns. They sleep a lot! Very little activity while awake makes them want to go to sleep again. So prepping them for a photograph is just a matter of waking them up for a time.
The challenge comes when the pups grow a little older. Just like toddlers they are ready to race around from hereto there and back again. We had a young Golden Retriever in 4 or 5 years ago that could just not hold still. He dashed around wanting to eat everything in sight —whether or not it was food was a moot point for him! He just could seem to stay in one place more than a second or two. Working very fast is a must in these circumstances. Sometimes you just need to work with the dog enough to wear them out and then they’ll slow down a bit. Sometimes you need to have the “parents” leave the room to get them to focus on you for a moment or two to get the shot.
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When To Photograph Your Puppy
Puppies are fun to photograph. They’re awfully cute and most every pose looks great with them. Difficulties come in to play based on the age of the dog as well as the breed. Really young pups(6 to 8 weeks old) are pretty easy if you can keep them awake. They do want to sleep a lot! They’re like photographing newborns. They sleep a lot! We’ve actually had to prop some pups up as they keep slumping down wanting to go to sleep. Very little activity while awake makes them want to go to sleep again.
The challenge comes when the pups grow a little older. Just like toddlers they are ready to race around from hereto there and back again. We had a young Golden Retriever in 4 or 5 years ago that could just not hold still. He dashed around wanting to eat everything in sight —whether or not it was food was a moot point for him! He just could not seem to stay in one place more than a second or two. Working very fast is a must in these circumstances.
Read MoreWhy Dogs Like Some People But Not Others
Dogs have a distinct personality- a lot like people. We respond in different ways to various people we meet so it shouldn’t be too surprising that your dog might do this as well. There are times when you meet someone that rubs you the wrong way —maybe just at first but you pick up on a certain vibe about a person. So it’s not all that surprising that dog react similar to humans and “like” certain people while not others.
Dogs are pretty sensitive to the emotions we exhibit. For example if I’m in a bad mood my dog picks up on this—If I get upset with myself over something I’ve done my big 70 pound dog slinks away to the other room thinking I’m mad at her. They’re just sensitive to how we act and react.
Read MoreTeaching Your Dog How To Be Alone
By Linda Brennen, CPDT Certified Professional Dog Trainer and owner of Your Canine Coach, Inc
Once upon a time, dogs spent their days outside as their people went to work (many times they were actually working side-by-side with their people on farms, ranches, etc.). These days, most of our dogs spend their days in the house, alone and waiting for you to come back. Often they’re bored and lonely. Sometimes you come home to find their boredom and loneliness has translated to inappropriate behavior, such as chewing on furniture or barking excessively. Fortunately, you can teach your dog to make the time pass more quickly and be more comfortable when left home alone.
Read More2015 Year in Review
Another year has flown by! Springs Pet Portraits continued to grow and participate in some fun events in 2015. Our year always gets a great start in February with PawPrints—our Annual Fundraiser for All Breed Rescue & Training. This was the second year we did the calendar and had a blast with the creativity of the participants. The 2016 Calendar is available for purchase still —it’s only $15 and all proceeds go to ABRT. You can pick one up at Our Family Vet, Bon Pet Supply, All Breed Rescue and of course here at the studio. The next fundraiser is coming up soon so stay tuned for details. If you’re not on our email list click the banner at the top of this website and sign up! You’ll be in the loop for all the fun adventures of Springs Pet Portraits.
Read More2016 Calendars Are Here
The 2016 calendars from the Paw Prints fundraiser for All Breed Rescue are here! Last Spring during our annual Paws fundraiser we added on a contest for a 2016 calendar to benefit ABRT.
Each contestant had to come up with a theme for a particular month. Our wonderful sponsors (Republic of Paws, Bon Pet Supply and Canine Coach) were the judges for this event. According to our judges it was a difficult choice but “Waldo” won grand prize and a spot on the calendar cover. The calendar months feature the other contest winners.
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