Fox and Hound! I wanted to capture the classic hunting look of this magazine. We planned to shoot Oscar and Lucy at home in Shaker Heights and at the CWRU farm in the Hunting Valley. Hunting Valley is renowned for its beauty, open fields and equestrian sports, including fox hunting. I wanted to capture the open valley, pastel colors and peacefulness of the farm. I also wanted to capture each dog’s distinct personality.

Oscar is in charge! He is older, slightly larger and very stoich. His intense stare coveys an air of grandeur. Lucy is young and tall for a weimaraner. She sleek and energetic. Lucy is also a complete goof, which Oscar accepts when he is in the mood. Meet the dogs below, Lucy on the left and Oscar on the right.

We spent some time in the early afternoon shooting at Phil and Tammy’s home, and what a beauty home they have! As you can see, Lucy drools over Oscar.

After shooting around the home, we were off to the hunting valley. The area is amazing! It looks like the classic rolling hills of Virginia. Close your eyes and you can imagine men in red coats mounted on horseback chasing the fox and hounds across the valley. With the winter sun at a low angle, softer color tones of pale blue, yellow and rust reds come alive.

Of course the day would not be complete without a healthy amount of play, and weimaraners need a lot of play. Phil and Tammy chose the photo below for this year’s Christmas card.

Below left is my absolute favorite photo from the day. The photo contains the whole family and is not just another happy portrait. Both owners and pets are alerted to something in the distance. Whatever has grabbed the dogs attention certainly has Phil and Tammy’s attention too. Of course the dogs are thinking “SQUIRREL” and the owners are thinking “OH &%$#”!

Here you can really get a sense of Lucy’s playful personality. I used a really wide angle and crazy close focus (that’s a technical term) to bring out her playful side. I think I came away with slobber on the lens. Come to think about it, she might have licked it. Ahh, the hazards of pet photography – slobber and attachment.

So thats all the pet photography for now. It is amazing how my clients stick with me, both figuratively and literally (I came home covered in hair). Oscar and Lucy are so sweet and I really do miss them. Hopefully I will get a chance to see them next holiday season! As for this season, the overall results are the best on location pet photos I have ever taken. They are so different than my work with pets in the studio.

See y'all soon,
Hunter

Wilson was just a little nervous though. You can tell from the panting. If a dog pants and “smiles” a lot, then it means some nerves as they adjust to new people and places. After a while, Wilson settled down and we had a great pet portrait session. As it turns out, I really had some hidden gems in the stacks of photos.

What really matters is that Rachael and Mike are really happy with their pet portraits of Wilson. They even made the images their screen saver at work! Now that is saying something. Below are my favorites from the session in my Cleveland studio.

By the way, Wilson is a mutt and he is beautiful. I think he is a mix between Boxer and Shepherd, but I am not certain. I am a big supporter of adopting dogs from rescue organizations. My Doberman, Moxie, is a rescue and so is Wilson. Both are proof that you don’t need a breeder to get a great dog. Need a good pet in Cleveland? Try Second Hand Mutts. They are a great organization. Recently they did an amazing job of rescuing an abused Doberman named Scramble. He has a loving home now and is in great health.

Just thought I would throw that out there. Take care y’all!

See y'all soon,
Hunter

These photos were intended to be a Christmas gift for my wife (and sometimes photo assistant), Brooke. I knew she would love to have high-quality portraits of Moxie. However, through cunning womanly trickery, she talked me into spilling the beans on the pet portraits. In the end, I am glad I did. We had a great time taking photographs in the studio together with our doberman, Moxie.

If you ever need pet photography of your dearest canine companion, give us a call. We have lots of treats (homemade too)! Have a great Christmas everyone. I hope yours is merry and bright.

See y'all soon,
Hunter

You see, Samos belongs to a close friend and I would watch her from time to time. First rule of pet sitting – never take your eye off the Vizsla! They are rocket fast and really just don’t listen very well. At any rate, I was setting up some photo equipment to grab some quick self-portraits. Samos was just wandering around. And then, almost on que, Samos hops into the chair for a quick pet portrait. I could not believe it.

In the end, I got maybe five frames before Samos got bored and wandered off. This is my favorite -

See y'all soon,
Hunter