zola, bentley & salsa | urban ontario pet photography
As an on-location pet photographer, I’ve really learned to go with the flow when it comes to how a session will run – in fact, I usually go into each one with very few expectations. When I plan for something, chances are it won’t go the way I expect, but the spontaneity is one of the wonderful things about this type of photography. Being able to think on my feet and adapt is crucial when there are so many variables involved photographing animals outdoors.
This urban ontario pet photography session had lots of variables and hiccups to adjust for. First, I was dealing with three dogs — Zola, a five-year-old German shepard, Bentley, an eight- year-old yorkie and Salsa, an eight- year-old chihuahua. Second, it was raining. I usually don’t shoot in the rain for several reasons, but in this case we were on a tight timeline because the session was a surprise birthday gift. And last, two of the three dogs were not happy to be out in the rain. In fact, Salsa did not sit down the entire time we were together, but I don’t blame him – who wants a soggy bum?
So, I switched up our location. Rather than using a natural area, I recommended an urban setting that would provide overhangs and covered areas for shelter.
Zola was the easiest of the three to work with and was just fine in the rain — she is so well behaved and just stunning. I thought she perfectly suited our downtown location. I got some wonderfully simple portraits of her by finding a neutral-coloured building to shoot against. I love how the texture of the building adds a fine-art quality to these images.
The conditions for this session weren’t ideal – poor weather, tight timeline, three dogs – but it worked out well and I love the location in downtown Burlington. Sometimes things don’t go the way we plan, and it’s good to work outside of my comfort zone and push my abilities. We got a little wet, but it was totally worth it!
Wags,