Sophie + Rocket on the loose!

Yesterday we were joined at the studio by Sophie and Rocket - salt and pepper siblings on a mission to strut their respective small dog stuff.

S + R's parents specifically requested black and white images - which is a fun departure from our typical sittings and a welcomed solution to the "black and white dog side-by-side" lighting conundrum.


As you can see Rocket (who is a white schnoodle) and Sophie (a black Scottie) took right to their roles as models and hammed it up for me and their parents and anyone else who was willing to ooh, ahh, feed them treats, or reveal the whereabouts of that rascally squeaky toy that kept disappearing.

Their dad even joined them for a brief moment - clearly the pups were glad to share the spotlight with their papa. ( I just love those paws!! Their mom says she thinks they look like tiny little polar bear paws and I have to agree :)


If Sophie and Rocket were a Hollywood couple, their joint name would be Sprocket. I think it fits, don't you?

"It's not a mystery, it's a job. It's a good job, but it's job."

Annie Leibovitz lecture, Benaroya Hall, 11/19/08

Annie Leibovitz says that she doesn't really have a favorite photo, but that this one of her mother has really grown on her.

This comment defines what, in one short hour, I could surmise about Annie's take on things. She seems to be pragmatic and calm, simple and yet incredibly intelligent - humble given her immense fame and above all, she possesses that little sparkle that haunts every great photographer I have ever met - a little secret behind the eyes that exemplifies her distinct vision.

I first noticed this sparkle when I met Ebet Roberts when I was an official photographer for Farm Aid in 2004 - in a lot of ways I have always pictured Annie to be a lot like Ebet and now that feeling is somewhat confirmed. Both women started out with painting in mind and just fell into rock n' roll photography in the 70's - both women are tall and thin and unassuming - gentle and somewhat soft-spoken with a silver touch to their hair. By default my affection for Ebet has now been transferred to Annie.

Anyway back to her new book.

Listening to Annie read from her book "At Work" and explains some of her groundbreaking photographs was like listening to any photographer-USA talking shop, she's not particularly eloquent or charismatic but she is quite funny and very insightful. In some ways, she is so serious about her work and in others, she's still just an artist playing with blank canvas - she just happens to have access to a canvas with no boundaries.

When she speaks of her famous portrait of President Bush and six members of his administration she says, "I fear this will be the photo I am most remembered for," explaining that she opted not to shoot in the Oval Office because of the distracting technical difficulties presented by the wall of windows behind the desk and also "I don't like the way Bush has it (the oval office) decorated - too many Remingtons" - ha!


In stark contrast, Annie speaks glowingly of her experiences photographing Obama and his family - mentioning the optimism she felt (didn't we all!) She will be at the inauguration, of which she says with a smile, "I want to be in the back to capture the whole scene... I will be spending a lot time in Washington in January..."

In many ways, listening to her speak filled me with the same feelings of hope and pride that are inspired in me by our new President Elect. For a young photographer with big dreams and high expectations, she represents the ultimate promise of greatness.

* * *

In parting, one of my favorite quotes of the evening - Annie speaks of some of her photographs of Olympic athletes:

"They were very pretty... but so what? Sometimes pretty is not enough." -- Annie Leibovitz

------------ all images in this post are by Annie Leibovitz --------------

Starbucks: Holiday Event #1

Yesterday I had the pleasure of donating my day to the hilarious and hairy task of photographing the pets of Starbucks partners at corporate headquarters (otherwise known as "The Firm") here in Seattle.

This is the second year I have volunteered to spend the day raising money at this Starbucks event, but this year I had a say in which charities we supported. We chose the Doney Memorial Clinic and Old Dog Haven, both under-appreciated, incredibly caring organizations. I am excited to announce that we raised about $650 for each, which Starbucks will then match - making our total effort worth nearly $2,600 for local dog-gooders :) Yeah! A huge thank you to everyone who came out to join in the fun, which this year wasn't even limited to dogs and cats - that's right, we had our first ever fish and turtle join the photo party. Oh yes, I am serious.

We had our regulars like Selena, Bodine and Josephine...





...but we also had surprise visits from a Beta fish and a turtle!



As to be expected there was tea, coffee and spiced pumpkin steamed milk aplenty and lots of wagging, woofing and treat snarfing to boot! Hip hip hooray for the helpful PAWS (Partners for Animal Welfare) volunteers who make this whole production possible, as well as dane + dane studios' own Amelia, who was ready with feathers and jinlgly earrings and keys to help with attempted attention-grabbing of our feline subjects, and of course Carol and Ellen from the Doney Memorial clinic who helped wrangle critters and keep everyone smiling.

A logo: Hound and Hoof Photography

Well I thought I would share another logo project I've been working on.

I made a new friend in Kentucky this past month, her name is Beth. Beth is a pet photographer who recently attended one of my dear friend Jamie's (aka: cowbelly photography) pet photography workshops here in Seattle. Beth was in dire need of a name change for her business and of course, a logo.

Beth changed the name of her business to "Hound and Hoof Photography" which perfectly suits her location and her passions (she is proudly owned by two dogs and one horse). We set to work right away to find the perfect way to present her new business to the world.

Here's what we came up with: simple, classy and specific to her name, please welcome the new logo of Hound and Hoof Photography!!


And of course, no photographer's logo is complete without the perfect watermark for their photos -- See one of Beth's images below with her new custom logo watermark...

2009 CityDogs Calendar

Well we are getting VERY excited to see our 2009 CityDogs Calendar - we expect it back from the printer on Thursday - eeeee!

In the meantime I thought I would share some great news - the calendar has been picked up by the Made in Washington stores and will be available in their Westlake Center, Pike Place Market, Bellevue Square and Southcenter locations!

If you would be interested in selling this fabulous holiday gift item in YOUR store - just email me and we can provide you with all the details!

But now, I would like to share the entire calendar with you, from start to finish, inside and out! I had a ball photographing your dogs and designing this calendar - I hope you enjoy this collection of nearly 500 smiling doggo faces - and of course, if you haven't already: BUY IT NOW!!! :)

Seattle in the Fall

There are so many things I love about the Northwest that sometimes I find myself walking down whatever, street, path, beach, or sidewalk I happen to find myself on, unable to contain a big beaming smile. This place, this magical place is so incredible. I guess that's why I so thoroughly enjoy the travel writing/photography that I do for CityDog Magazine - I get to explore some of the most luxurious, gorgeous and memorable places this coast has to offer.

I found myself walking with one of these silly, over-sized grins the other day at the dog park here in West Seattle. The sky was blue, the leaves were orange and crimson and gold, the air was just crisp enough that Olivia and I could see our breath and as we trotted alone down an earthen path.

I am so glad I had my camera with me this day so I could share this moment with you: Fall in Seattle with dog.

Now the rain as come and the leaves are nearly gone, but the memorys of those few, flawless autumn days remain.

Yes we can.

I typically try to keep politics out of my business life, but the events of last night were so epic, so historic and so deliriously wonderful, that I had to at least mention them here.

We have a new President America, we spoke and we have been heard.

If this young, self-employed woman, who doesn't own a house or have a stock portfolio or even health insurance - who does make student loan payments and car payments and multiple rent payments while trying to live the "American Dream" in one of the highest taxed states in the country- if this young woman has hope, so my friend should you.

We are entering an exciting time in our history and I am honored to be along for the ride- more than that, for the first time in my life, I can say without hesitation that I am damn proud to be an American.

...and just in case you missed it - Mr. Obama is buying his girls a puppy when they move into the White house - he says they've earned it. What do you think - Golden Retriever? Labradoodle? Pound puppy?

Oh -- and just in case you haven't seen this yet: check out Sarah Palin as President - click around the oval office to kill yourself with laughter