A Chihuahua with a Smile, More Puppy Portraits

I can't begin to tell you how much I have been loving creating unique pet portraits with the dogs I've had in the studio lately. I don't know why I didn't think of this sooner. Its got everything I want in a portrait session. I get to be creative, use my favourite props, and spend time with adorable animals, this time with one of the smallest dogs I've ever seen. She is just so sweet.

The shot above came about when my client suggested getting the puppy to peer over the side of a box which I thought was a fantastic idea and it worked exactly as we had hoped. Because she was so small my usual newborn props worked brilliantly with her and suited just how baby like she is.

I just love how this sweet little puppy always looks like she is smiling, unlike so many animals that look either perpetually sad or miserable. She looks like a happy and inquisitive little darling you just can't help but smile back at.

These scales are fairly accurate and its reading that she currently weighs just 4 and a half pounds. Such a tiny little thing.

And course by the end the poor little girl couldn't keep her eyes open. She had worked hard and provided me with so much good material so at some point we just had to let her sleep.

One of the perks of this job is I got to sit back and relax with a good long cuddle with baby Minnie in my lap once we'd finished. She is just so awesome I find myself wanting one, not that my husband will ever let me get one. After our cats I've had a firm 'no more animals' rule imposed. For the most part I'm with him on that. But its times like these that I could be easily persuaded to change my mind.

These last two puppy shoots really have me thinking that this is an important time in their lives to capture. Puppies are puppies for such a short time so why not create some beautiful portraits so the memory will last a lifetime. And as you can probably imagine, some of these would make great wall portraits.

I'll be announcing a portrait promotion shortly so if you'd like to be informed of this please Like my Facebook page at www.facebook.com/christinalauderportraits. Or alternatively contact me by email at christina@christinalauderportraits and I'll be able to message you directly. I'm so looking forward to doing more of this work.

Comments

I am Still Me: A Story about a Transgender Boy

Meet Leo. Leo is 15 and currently going through an epic transformation that has momentarily turned the lives of himself and those around him upside down. A mum who once had the daughter she always longed for is now coping with the realisation that she will be living the rest of her life with a son instead. When your child is born you have certain expectations of the typical life they will lead but most of us know and accept that it won't necessarily end up the way we imagine. Not every person wants to marry, have kids or be involved with the opposite sex. Most of us have come to accept this and can adjust to whatever comes our way relatively easily. But few of us have expected to have to deal with a change in sex. Its not that we've hoped it won't happen, but just that it never occurred to us that it might. This is a new adjustment that we as a society are being presented with today, just like so many others that have come before. When I first heard that Phoebe

Teen Portraits - Prom Season is Just Around the Corner

If your child is heading to prom in the next couple of months I'd say there is probably no better time than now to have portraits created of your growing teen. With the purchase of a new (and probably expensive) outfit wouldn't it be nice to capture this milestone with a portrait created by a professional. Across the pond this is a hugely popular time to create portraits, and although I am not American (I'm Canadian) I wholeheartedly agree that this is a special moment to record. My prom was a key memory in my teen years and in fact I myself had professional portraits created also. I think I'll go dig them up if I can, though admittedly I think my mother has them back in Canada. I wonder if I can get her to scan one for me. My daughter is currently making plans for college and in the running is one that will move her away from home, as many others are probably experiencing for themselves, particularly those who are 18. This makes it all the more important to

London in Spring, Whats Not to Love?

Well I know there is still a lot not to love but I'm choosing to see the great things about London at the moment. I am having a ball this year visiting London as often as I can. Which is unusual for me since I usually prefer the comfort of my own home, in rural old Leicestershire. Staying home and avoiding people has always been the easy option. But this year, possibly due to the wonderful weather we keep having, has me longing for venturing out. Again, just like my last trip, I headed out with my good friend Panikos Hajistilly . Living in North London he finds it easy to meet up for our shoots. This time though I had more of an idea of the sights I wanted to use as the backdrops for my portraits. With it being spring I was in search of colour, preferably flowers. Admittedly. I didn't quite get what I was looking for. The white fronted terraced houses with pink magnolia trees we did not find unfortunately. But I did make it to Peggy Porchen's which was a must see on m

Never Work With Children or Animals

Or so the saying goes. But I have to say that working with dogs has been so lovely. They have been almost entirely a dream to work with. I say almost entirely because we have had a few moments where a dog has needed to settle. And one moment where the dog had settled but one of my cats decided to have a look through the glass door which, as you can imagine, rather quickly unsettled the dog. Still, that didn't stop us from creating incredible work. In fact it was during that shoot with the cat instance when I created two of my favourite pieces, shown below. (It was while sitting on the couch here when he noticed the cat peering through the curtain) I don't know if I've just been lucky or all dogs are just easy to work with. I photographed a french bull dog puppy and I thought that would be tough as he hadn't had time to be properly trained yet. But he did everything we wanted in no time at all. And this included the props we used here (below), which to me

My First London Fashion Shoot

Well I finally did it. I bit the bullet and faced my fears and headed to London with a good friend, Mr. Panikos Hajistilly to do my first location shoot. We chose our locations together and Panikos organised a model and brought so much of his gear which he kindly shared with me. And probably most importantly, he showed me how it's done. I was so surprised to see just how much wonderful light was there, just waiting to be used. I am a studio photographer and while I understand the use of studio flash very well, I am very much out of practice and out of my comfort zone with using available light. Its one thing to place lights and backdrops around my subject in the comfort of my studio. Its very different to find the right light and the right backdrop in unfamiliar territory and to place my subject in it. That may sound simple enough but honestly it is not, particularly on a day with no clouds in the sky. One of our planned locations just wasn't possible as a result of the

Christina Lauder Portraits

Search This Blog