So, what is a Microgreen?

• young vegetable greens that are approximately 1-3 inches in height (per a Google search) - ours were a bit taller when we did our first harvest
• are considered baby plants that fall between a sprout and baby green
• are also a great source of beneficial plant compounds like antioxidants

Kirk and Zach are "KIZA" and provided us with some great information and simple instructions on how to grow our own microgreens.  We happily paid for the class which provided us with all the supplies to give it a try.  The supplies we got are:

• 3 different black trays
• a special prepackaged blend of soil
• seeds of our choice to plant (broccoli, radish, pea, or sunflower)
• printed instructions 
• a business card to reach them

Our first batch of microgreens was broccoli and radish.  Here's my break down of the steps we took to grow these microgreens (please note these are based on the KIZA steps, but broken down into more steps).

Step 1 - get the 'short' tray with holes in the bottom and fill it with the prepackaged soil.  Put the other short tray without holes, underneath the tray with the soil (you'll need it later in this process).

Step 2 - spread the soil out evenly in the tray

Step 3 - lightly press the soil down to ensure it is even with the top of the tray

Step 4 - spread you 'weighed' seeds across the tray.

Step 5 - gently press the soil and seeds down so that it is firm  
 

Step 6 - water (spray) the seeds to ensure they will be moist for sprouting

Step 7 - put the taller of the trays on top of all the seeds

Step 8 - move (if necessary) your tray to where you are planning to grow your microgreens

Step 9 - place 3 bricks in the top tray

Step 10 - leave the plants for about 3 days, we checked on ours every 24 hours (roughly) to ensure they were sprouting. Once you reach the 3 days, you will start a 'black out' period of 24 hours.  Remove the bricks and flip the tray over your plants to put them in darkness for 24 hours.  This forces the plants to stretch and grow taller (searching for light).

Step 11 - Uncover your plants!  The plants are a little 'yellow' as they haven't been exposed to light yet.  They have spent 4 days sprouting and then living in the dark.  Don't worry, they will green up fast (less than 24 hours for us).

Step 12 - give them light - whether that is window light, a grow light, some form of light (but keep them out of areas where rain can get to them).  You want them in a protected area.  In our case, since we already have a grow light setup, we placed them under a grow light (purchased from Grace's).

Step 13 - It's time to start watering.  This is why you have 2 short trays.  Lift up the tray your seedlings are planted in and pour water into the bottom tray.  The water will be absorbed from the lower tray into the top tray through the holes in the top tray.

Step 15 - Check the water levels for your plants daily.  Water each day if needed (we watered each day).  Ensure that the corners are getting water by touching the soil.  After 24 hours, you can see how much greener the broccoli plants on the right are.

Broccoli

Radish with a few broccoli mixed in (oops!).  The purple color plants are radish.

Harvest time!  They are getting a little leggy.  We planted these on a Wednesday mid-day.  Then 10 days later we have salad greens for the next week or so.

After the 10 days of watching our little seeds turn into little plants, we harvested a lot of microgreens.  (tired of that word yet???).  We are eating salad daily that is made with this and a few other ingredients.  The best part of this for us is:

1) We are getting some great nutrients by eating these

2) We know they are organic

3) We now have a way to grow some ingredients for salad during the summer months here in Florida!

4) It grows fast!

A quick Google search shows the following information related to nutrients in these two microgreens.

Broccoli microgreens provide:

• vitamins A, B, C, E and K
• large amounts of calcium, magnesium and phosphorus
• small amounts of iron, copper and zinc

Radish microgreens provide:

• high levels of vitamin A, B
• calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, copper, iron and manganese minerals

As we continue to explore growing microgreens, a few additional points to keep in mind.

1) You will need a large quantity of seeds in order to grow a lot of microgreens.  They sell packages of seeds at Graces to grow some microgreens.  I have also found a few places online that I will be trying.

2) When you group different types of seeds on the same tray, be aware of the number of days needed for the seeds to germinate.  Our second round of microgreens is a combination of broccoli and peas - guess what? Broccoli sprouts much faster than peas - so we are doing a little 'improvising' on how we are growing this batch.

There is a lot of information on the internet about growing microgreens and the benefits of eating these small plants.  After learning about them from KIZA, I started doing a lot more reading online at various sites to see how this all works.  If you'd like more information, and prefer to talk to a real human being, I definitely suggest heading over to Grace's Garden center and asking for Kirk or Zach.   I believe the microgreen world is primarily there adventure although all the staff at Grace's are wonderful and have been helping us grow our vegetable gardens for the last 10 years. 

KIZA

Located in Dover, Florida - they are Microgreens Grower Consulting.

Phone: 813 355 9757

Email: [email protected]

Here's the contact information for Grace's:

Grace's Hydro Organic Garden Center

Located at 8739 Temple Terrace Highway, Temple Terrace, Florida 33637

Phone: 813 - 514 - 9376

First, as you travel down the main road (Kelly's Creek Road), you'll eventually have to decide which fork in the road to take.

Here's your clue.  The right side goes up to "private property" as that's a subdivision called Chestnut Mountain Estates.  The left side looked a lot like it was a driveway to someone's house with the mailbox posted and a building almost out of view.  Take the left side!  It's actually a road and you can take it on past the house and continue onward.

I think Mark said it correctly "to a confusing fork with three roads" although we saw two and were confused.  You'll drive over Darnell Creek on a bridge in about .1 miles.  I am betting this area is stunning when the fall colors come...

So now we are sitting here - yet another fork in the road - which way?  Well, this was our Google map.

This doesn't show a fork in the road and we could hear water running, so we decided to park and explore.

This is a bad picture (hand held and the shutter speed was in the gutter).  But, I think you can get the idea that this sign is nailed to a tree, this is where we parked.

This is the road that we saw - after walking down this a short path, we realized that there is a small parking area at the end for a few cars.  But hey, the dogs were ready to get out of the car, so we parked and headed down this path.

Yes, that's Jim with the dogs out front, Rue, Abby and Ollie.  This is a short walk down to the Lower Darnell Creek waterfall - we were there during the week and not another soul was around - we had it all to ourselves.

So, now we have gotten to the actual parking lot, oh well - it was definitely less than a half mile to get to this point.  If you park here, then you probably only have a few hundred yards to the waterfall.

This is the lower Darnell Creek waterfall.  A huge log in front of it - well, thankfully it was an easy fix using Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop to remove that log (much easier than getting in the water and attempting to move it!).  However, this is what the waterfall looked like when we arrived (for the other photograph click on the link at the bottom of this post). This has an excellent swimming hole should you want to take a dip in this cool water.

As we started taking photographs, Abby, our big black dog was fine and then in distress over something with one of her paws.  We checked everywhere to see if there was anything that could have bit her and finally determined that she most likely was stung by a wasp, hornet - her paw bothered her for a little bit but did not swell up.  Thankfully she was fine within 15 minutes - but that cut this hike short.

We didn't know about the upper Darnell Creek falls which apparently was the other fork in the road to the left - so that will wait for us on another day.

A visit to the Rabun County visitor center gave us a bit more information on what this trail was all about as well as the book I mentioned in the previous post which has lots of wonderful information on waterfalls in this area.

To view all of the photographs from this hike, click here - Darnell Creek Falls, Rabun County, Georgia

Once we got situated and our friends arrived, we started the hike to Mud Creek Falls. At the beginning of this trail you are walking next to the main road separated by the guard rail (this soon changes).  It's approximately a mile each way (in and out trail). If you're using Alltrails.com, it looks like this particular trail is listed as "Mud Creek Trail from GA 246".  Alltrails lists this as being an elevation gain of 239 feet and a length of 2.3 miles.
 

For those that might not be able to do the hike, you can drive just about to this waterfall - with just a short walk down to the waterfall.  Interesting comment that one of our friends noticed is eventually you find that you are hiking uphill to get to a waterfall.  Seems most of the time you hike downhill to get to a waterfall.

The trail is dog friendly, we had 4 people and 4 dogs hiking on this particular hike. You will see the remains of a wooden bridge near the beginning of the hike as well.  When we visited at the end of July 2024, a good portion of the ground was washed out and while you can get to this bridge, you will need to scramble a bit to get there.

This hike is not difficult, but there is a slight incline along the way.  Lots of rain had recently created some puddles and muddy spots along the way but not to bad.  There is a small bridge that goes over a water way. Course you have the options to walk through the water or step on the stones across the water way.

A large portion of the trail looks like this.  Not a hard trail and eventually towards the end I did see a few benches for the weary.

A short distance before you reach the waterfall is an access point that allows you to walk to the water and see this little waterfall.  A refreshing break if you or your dog(s) want to get wet.  Abby loves the water, so she is all in whenever she gets a chance.

Abby sitting by the creek while we take photographs.

Mud Creek Falls - this is what the hike was all about!  

This water fall is about 85 feet in height and faces Northwest.  We arrived at the waterfall about 11:30am and the sun was just starting to come over the top of the trees.

For more photographs from this hike, please visit https://www.vpshoots.com/MudCreekFalls

If you use the internet you will get several different links that will tell you about this particular waterfall located in Rabun County, Georgia.  We visited the Chamber of Commerce for Rabun County while we were in the area on a hike and found that it has a good amount of information.  One item they mentioned is that a local young man, Mark Oleg Ozboyd, recently published a book called "Waterfalls of Georgia - A comprehensive guide with over 700 waterfalls".  I went to a store called Wander in downtown Clayton, Georgia and purchased this book.  While I have only used the sections that are for East Clayton and West Clayton - I did find it very helpful.  The most notable thing, Mark took the time to tell you which way the waterfall is facing - that's so helpful for those of you that want to photograph the waterfall without sunlight on the water!  I wanted to give a little shout out to Mark for working over the last 7 years to compile the information in this book.  I also found this website https://www.hikingtheappalachians.com/ very helpful which Mark is associated with. Thank you Mark!  (No, I don't get anything for this, just think it's a great resource).

They are located at 81 Bennett Road, Franklin, North Carolina 28734.  We rented single kayaks (sit on top) and a double canoe.  They didn't have any double kayaks, hence the reason part of our group choose the double canoe.  This was the first time I have used a sit on top kayak and I think they are pretty nice (we have the sit inside kind).  Please note: You must pay in Cash or Check - they do not accept credit cards or other forms of payment at the time we visited (August 2024).  They are open from 9am till 4pm, 7 days a week, April 1st through November 1st.  The website is http://fishcamp.biz/  (please note this is not a secure website, aka http not https).

The building just outside this photograph on the right is where you will find the owners to get setup with your rentals.  They also rent tubes and do have a few double tubes as well.  The place has lots of beautiful landscaping, given enough time I would probably spend several hours taking photographs of plants, flowers, etc.

There are a few campsites for RVs or tents if you're interested, but I didn't get any details on them.  Lots of canoes, kayaks and tubes!!!  They also provided us with life jackets.

Once you arrive in your vehicle:
     1) Pay for your vessel of choice

     2) Driver of vehicle will follow their vehicle to the 'take out' point down river

     3) Drivers get a ride back to the launch point

This allows you to leave from the place you get out.  They request that you pull your vessel out of the water and call the phone number posted on the tree where you get out.  They will come get the vessels.

After getting our life jackets, we headed down to the launch point where our kayaks and canoe were waiting for us at the river's edge. Little bit of a walk down to the water's edge.  They assisted us in getting into our water vessel of choice.  (Note: This photograph was taken later in our vacation therefore there is not anything waiting at the water's edge).

The river is very scenic and we enjoyed our ride down the river.  We choose the approximately 1.5 hours of kayaking because the weather was expected to start raining in about 2 hours.

And we are ready to start....

The Little Tennessee River is a light brown color, assume that is because of the clay bottoms in this part of the country - but overall, in many places the river was pretty shallow.  At first, as this photo shows, it's smooth sailing....but what fun would that be?  Soon, it becomes more challenging and more fun!  Let's try to get through this without getting stuck - whether it's because the water was shallow (inches) or there are rocks - some visible and some just under the surface.

Well, I can say, that if you stop to take photographs like that above, you're going to most likely get stuck!  I highly recommend anything you want to take along you put in a dry bag (that big yellow thing is my dry bag with snacks, water, towels, keys).  We all had cell phone protectors as well - if you don't have one, they sell them at the shop where we rented the kayaks for a reasonable price.

I got stuck - so why not photograph everyone else trying to get through?  I suspect that this is much easier in a kayak than a double canoe.  The depth of the water where I am currently stuck is only inches, but the water is flowing through this area pretty fast which pinned me against a rock. Again, what fun would it have been if it was just floating down the river the entire time?

Eventually you will get past the rocks and the flow of the river is such that you could probably just steer and eventually get to the take out point.  Clouds are moving in....yes, I am already wet but do I want to be drenched? (No).

They told us that we are to be on the lookout for a couple of very nice wood houses on the right.  This is our clue that we are getting close to the take out point.  

Soon after the two nice wood houses (cabins), you should ensure you are on the right side of the river.  You will see a stop sign - this is where you exit the river.  Keep in mind that there is a good flow to this river, so paddling back up river if you miss this will definitely be harder.  This is a bit of a steep incline to get to these steps and get out - and pulling your vessel out can take some strength.  Kayaks are much easier than the double canoe.

Just as we managed to get to the take out point, it started to drizzle rain.  By the time our entire party got out of the water, it was starting to rain pretty hard!  They have a pavilion there to protect you from rain.  If you want to have a picnic or a bbq - there are grills.  You can stay in the river as long as you would like and enjoy the area for a picnic - next time we will be a little better prepared.

If you're curious, sure we would do this again.  It was a fun and cool way to spend the morning.

We have been to this park many times, but never stayed over night because until recently we didn't have a camper and the thought of trying to tent camp with 3 dogs which are very scent driven was definitely not appealing.  Our campsite of choice was in the River section of the campground, campsite #60.  Plenty of shade in this campsite and in most all of the campground.  Warning - there are a few sites that are sunny! And I wouldn't recommend that you have one of those sites if you want to relax outside in nature's sauna.  Actually, I kinda thought it was going to rain and we would experience that in the camper for the first time - but nope, we had great weather all 3 days.

Our particular campsite had 30amp and 50amp service along with 'traditional' water hookups. For the curious, this is the electric hookup. 

Most of the time the breakers are off when we arrive, so first those have to be turned on, then I plug in our little gadget to check and make sure the power is safe before plugging in our camper.
 

We also use a water filter on the water hookup.  Hopefully that keeps all the little stuff out of our camper's water system - at least that is the point. I'm not actually trying to advertise for any of these products.  The power hookup came from Amazon and the water filter came from Walmart.  Seems to be the places we end up getting a lot of the smaller things.

Once we got things set up - we were good to go.  A screen room is always a good idea if you want some relief from bugs.  Fortunately for us the mosquitos were not bad - very surprised.  Little gnats did get bothersome at times, but at least they don't bite.  The campground wasn't full, in fact I suspect that only about a third of the sites were rented when we were there.  We checked in on Sunday and checked out on Tuesday.  One thing that I really liked is the check out time is 1pm - actually gives you plenty of time to enjoy your morning. Check in is 3pm which thus far has been the same at all of the Florida state parks.

This is our campsite - pretty big - in fact a lot of them are nice sizes such that you don't have people right next to you.  Our two smaller dogs (Ollie and Rue) prefer to spend the majority of their time outside.  They are inside the screen room.  Abby, well so is all for sleeping in the A/C on a bed given a choice.

River Rapids Trail

Since we were local (about 30 minutes from home) we actually had a lot of friends and family coming out while we were there to spend time with us.  As each of them came to visit we would do a different trail in the park.  First up was the River Rapids trail - probably the most popular trail in the park.  The Hillsborough River actually has some small rapids that you can view but not get down to any longer.  It's all fenced off now - I guess after years of people climbing down to the river (myself included) they now have a viewing area along with benches to sit and relax.  If you see this sign, you are at the River Rapids trail.

The rapids are pretty nice - usually I see them in the early morning hours, but this time we did it in the evening about 7pm.  The lighting is different at this time of day. I used the fence they provided as a stable surface to allow for slowing down the shutter speed on my camera and providing some nice blur to the water.

Baynard Trail

The next morning another friend came and spent a good portion of the day with us.  This time we did the Baynard trail.  In order to get to this trail, you must cross the suspension bridge.

It's pretty and the entire park was quiet - not a lot of people.  The temperatures have been pretty warm, guessing that is why it wasn't crowded.  Ollie, one of our small dogs, doesn't particularly like this bridge because it moves.  Do you know what this is?  If not, you should.

Poison Ivy - and the trails have quite a bit of this, so if you are one to itch from it - beware.

Overall, we didn't see a lot of wildlife.  Perhaps they are being affected by the higher temperatures also.  Usually there are turtles out sunning (maybe to early for them) and then the occasional gator.  I don't see a lot of water birds here - there are birds in the trees that you will hear but often don't see them.

We did see a good amount of mushrooms of various types.

And a golden orb spider....

We went back to the campsite for a while and the dogs laid around in the dirt.

All dogs are supposed to be restrained in some way - I see a lot of people that have little fences to keep their dogs in - we haven't yet invested in one of those.  We use a basic tie down for the dogs or put them in the screen room (and yes, they do know how to escape from it!).  In general our dogs are happy to hang with us and they have been really good with the whole idea of camping.

Seminole Trail

Our last morning at the campground we decided to go on the Seminole trail - back across the suspension bridge and then off on the other side of the river going away from the Baynard trail.  This hike required a little going over logs and what not - our dogs are use to this from our treks up to western North Carolina for the last 5 years.

This is the map you will see when you are starting out on the trail - we were trying to find the Primitive Campground area but I have to say we didn't find it.  I have no clue where we were because the trail was indicated to be blazed orange and the trail we were on was blazed yellow.  Eventually we just turned around and came back - there was no one else out there!

Ollie and Rue hanging in the tent room....this is where they spent a good portion of their time when we were in the campsite.

We did see one alligator sunning on a rock that could be viewed from the suspension bridge.  He wasn't a big guy, maybe 4-5 feet in size.

Overall our experience was very good.  Couple of things that I didn't mention earlier.

Other items to note

• They do have a concession stand by the pool area in the day use area. Hours are Friday, Saturday and Sunday - we didn't get a chance to visit due to the limited hours.
• Firewood is available at the ranger station where you enter the park along with ice. You must pay cash and have exact change.  Ice is $4 a bag. That's pricey, but keep in mind that you are 9 miles away from any real 'civilization' regardless of whether you turn left or right on US 301.
• Firewood can not be brought in from other areas and they don't want you to collect wood within the park to burn either
• There are campground cats - I saw at least 3 different cats and our campsite was visited by the orange tabby.  After I saw the cat twice, I figured I would give it some food to keep it out of the area the dogs were in.  No issues, they don't really want to interact with you (or maybe it was the dogs).
• They do have bath houses - they are functional, bathrooms and showers.  Since the campground loops are fairly large, the walk to the bath house was a little longer than the other parks we have stayed at thus far.  I did see sinks for washing dishes in addition to washing machines and dryers.  Although it appears from the notes on the dryers that they might not be working.  I hate to think about having an entire load of wet laundry and now I need to figure out how I am going to dry it.  I guess you could do the old clotheslines but I am not sure they want you to do that.
• I didn't see much in terms of rangers driving through the campground - which we did at Manatee Springs.  We did see a police car, but it wasn't a big deal - not sure what was going on but it was several campsites away.
• They do rent kayaks/canoes/bicycles but since we had the dogs we didn't partake.
• The pool is closed indefinitely at this point due to funding.  Hurricanes are causing damage to state parks, which in turn has taken the funding that is available.
• Maximum number of dogs per campsite is 3
• The other bridge that was damaged during Hurricane Irma has not been repaired and is still closed.  You must use the suspension bridge.
  
   

More photographs
 

For more photographs from Hillsborough River State Park, please click here, Hillsborough River State Park.

Map of Park (handout from Ranger station)

Map of Campground (handout from Ranger station)

The Magnolia 2 loop is very shaded - we loved it.  As we began the process of setting up our RV and camp I noticed that in the empty campsite next to ours deer had wandered in.  Wow, forget camp, let's grab the camera.  Our dogs were tied to their 'dog post' and watched these deer probably in bewilderment that the deer were so close.  Jim kept saying, the dogs are thinking...."Don't they know we are dogs?"...I think the deer did, but they also knew that the dogs are not loose and couldn't get to them.

Deer at our campgroundManatee Springs State park campground has deer visiting in mornings and evenings.

Our first campsite on the Magnolia 2 loop was #52.  This is considered to be an X-large campsite that allows for up to a 35' RV.  Since our Bushwhacker is about half that size, we had plenty of room which made it nice to have some space and not be right next to those camping in the next campsite.  Also, our dogs had a little more space to lay around while at camp.

Magnolia 2 Loop, campsite number 52Magnolia 2 Loop, campsite number 52 - our campsite

This time we had a piece of outdoor carpet by the door step - although, I saw a lot of other campers have a much larger one (maybe next time!).

Here's a map of the campground for those that might be interested - you will get a copy of this when you check in.  Important phone numbers are also provided for contacting the ranger should you have an issue requiring their attention (no water, no electricity, noisy neighbors).  Quiet hours at this campground are from 11pm - 7am.

We decided to stay an extra night, but had to move to another campsite within Magnolia 2 loop.  We moved to #46 because it allowed us to be at the end of the loop next to the 'swamp'.

Magnolia 2 - campsite #46Magnolia 2 - campsite #46

This campsite is 'large' but you can see it is still a nice size.  Just beyond our site is the swampy area that is currently holding water from the river flooding.  This campsite is a very short walk to the bath house (closer than our previous site).  We also had more deer visiting because it was at the end and quieter.

Just a note, in case you are curious.  We have Verizon for our cell phone service and we did have service through out most of the park and campground.  Using the internet was pretty slow but mostly worked for us.

The bath house for this loop was a short walk away and has 2 showers and 2 restrooms (at least in the women's side!).  

Magnolia 2 bath houseMagnolia 2 bath house  

One neat little thing they have that I really liked!  A "Pet hitchin post" - works great for when I was out walking the dogs and needed to make a stop. Rue and Abby hanging out while I took this photograph to show the hitchin post.

Dogs at the Pet Hitchin PostDogs at the Pet Hitchin Post

I don't know what the cleaning schedule is for the bath houses at this park as they aren't posted like they were at Highlands Hammock State Park - but it appears to be in the afternoon hours because they had been cleaned when I stopped by in the early afternoon.  Considering the size of this campground and the size of the bath house I was surprised to find that it was not busy.  If you want to see a few photographs of the inside of the bath house make sure you click on the link at the end of the blog to see the additional photographs from our trip that aren't in this blog post.

If you are looking for a campsite that has it's own dump station, check out the Magnolia 1 loop.  When we took a quick look at those, they all appeared to have their own hookups.  There is a dump station that you can drive to (or take you portable holding tank) to between the campgrounds and the ranger station.  All of the dumpsters for other trash are located at the dump station.  If you want to take a short walk, head down the trail called "Deer Run" and it's a short cut, not along the road, to the dump station/trash bins.

Manatee Springs State Park - what is there to do?

• Hiking on the trails
• Biking on the trails
• Swimming in the spring
• rent a kayak
• playground for the young at the day use area
• Relax

As many of you know, we travel with our 3 dogs - Abby, Ollie and Rue so we didn't do some of the things that you can do.  We did hike the trails while Jim road his bicycle on the trails.  One thing to be careful of - there are ticks!  And they are small and plentiful at least at this time of year.  So beware, they warn you on the park information as well.

Hiking the trails

The dogs love walking on the trails - I think it ranks as their #1 thing to do when we go to the 'great outdoors'.  We drove a short distance to the "North End Trail" nature walk within the park.  There is a parking area off the main road at the trail head.  If you get the green brochure from the rangers office it shows you the various trails.  They have 8.5 miles of trails based on the trail map. 

The girls are ready to start their hike.

Rue, Ollie, Abby - Our DogsOur dogs, ready to start their hike for the day.

We hiked about 2 miles on our first venture.  Our hike consisted of these trails, all connecting to each other to form a big loop.

• Scenic Trail (.20 miles)
• Loop Trail (.52 miles)
• Scenic Trail (.42 miles)
• Clay Trail (slightly over .21 miles)
• Shacklefoot Trail (.86 miles) - make sure you turn left if you want to go back to the parking area

We didn't get a chance to do some of the other trails this trip, but hopefully we will be able to on a future trip.

Seminole Chickee HutSeminole Chickee Hut is a replica of a Seminole dwelling that is part of the park's history per the trail map.

We only saw a couple of people on the trails - so mostly it was us and nature.  We did find these little caterpillars in several different areas along the way.  A google search says this will become an echo moth.

The girls at the midpoint of our hike - ready for a break.  Please make sure you pack water for you and your pets as you may want it depending on how far you hike.

Abby, Rue and Ollie halfway through our hike.Abby, Rue and Ollie halfway through our hike.

Day use area and Manatee Springs swim area

The day use area is a very short walk from the Magnolia 2 campground (slightly further from Magnolia 1).  Within the day use area is a large parking lot.  Most days we were there, they didn't have many cars which meant we didn't have any large crowds.

The playground.....

Day use area playgroundDay use area playground

The springs were clear the first few days we were camping.  On the third day, the springs were closed due to 'brown out'.  Basically, this occurs when the Suwannee River is flooding (and it's still flooding now) and causes the murky, brown, water to come into the spring.  It's no longer clear and you can't see the fish and plant life.  Typically, it is 72 degrees and clear enough to see to the bottom.  The park indicated that they close the springs when it gets murky because the alligators will come into the spring and it becomes a safety issue.

The spring....

The steps to the spring are all under water at this point.  The flooding of the Suwannee river which is connected to the spring and not far away has caused the water to rise considerably.

The springManatee spring at high water levels

Wildlife in the park

This park does have wildlife - with the most prominent being deer.  We saw deer passing through the area that we camped every day - usually in the morning hours - often early shortly after sunrise and then in the late afternoon.

We did see one very fat raccoon, but just once and it was running around near the bath house.  Thankfully for us, our dogs didn't see the racoon.

There is bird life - although many of the birds are small song birds, there are other birds as well.  I saw the large woodpecker in several areas and was able to get photographs of it.  The wood pecker that I saw is called a "Piliated woodpecker".  They appear to be about 10 inches or so being one of the largest (if not the largest) in our area of the country.  For those that are curious, I saw this woodpecker over in the 'dumpster/trash' areas when dumping our trash as well as along the swampy area that is near campsite #46.

woodpeckerwoodpecker

Of course, there are the common gray squirrels hanging around - caught this one having a bite to eat by the spring.

Gray squirrel eating a nutGray squirrel eating a nut

And the deer - we didn't see alligators, turtles or what not hanging at the spring but we didn't get a chance to swim in the spring as it went murky the day we planned to swim.

Other items to note

• They do have a concession stand by the spring in the day use area. Typical hours are 10am - 4pm except during summer they are open slightly longer.  If you want ice, this is the only place within the park
• Firewood is available at the ranger station (drive to it, short walk back to your car) or the concession stand (drive to the parking lot, have to carry the wood a good distance).
• Firewood can not be brought in from other areas and they don't want you to collect wood within the park to burn either
• Firewood is $10, must be exact change when we stayed here
• Walmart is on US 19 just a little north of the street to turn for Manatee Springs State Park if you need just about anything else (Winn Dixie is there too)

More photographs
 

For more photographs from Manatee Springs State Park, please click here, Manatee Springs State Park.

The Bushwhacker Plus is 17 feet in length (https://www.braxtoncreek.com/model/bushwhacker-teardrop).  As you can see from the photograph, it is a single axle - but it has full size 'rugged' tires and travels well on the roads and thus far has done very well on the dirt roads we have travelled as well (most of the dirt roads in Florida have some lime based/shells are part of the mixture for the roads).  There is a single stair to enter and my dogs were having a little issue using it so I purchased a camco carpet cover for the stair and they are much more comfortable with it (instead of bare metal). https://www.amazon.com/Camco-Protects-Unwanted-Tracked-Electrical/dp/B001U7FT9E

We had a smaller RV campsite - but the wonderful shade of all the trees, mostly oaks with some pine, made it shady and much more comfortable.  For reference, we were in campsite #25 near the entrance to the campground.

This campsite comes with 30amp electrical service, city water hookup and a picnic table.  They have a dump station (for gray and black water) at the entrance to the campground.  Our campsite was large enough for our 17 foot camper, a 10x10 screen room, picnic table and full size pickup truck.  The ground is primarily leaves and dirt - since it is March, my guess is the leaves may not be there year round, but it was nice to have them covering some of the dirt.  Other areas of the campground are not as shady as our site - some are much larger for the bigger RVs and there are a lot of sites to choose from.  

In addition, they have several bath houses/restrooms through out the campground.  It's good to check where they are and the cleaning schedule so that you know which one to go to depending on the time of day.  Each of the buildings has a few restrooms and showers.  I never noticed that any of them were full with a line and there were very few campsites unoccupied.  The bath houses were clean and functional.  Some would be concerned about them being older, but for me it's all about whether it is clean and functional - which they were.

Highlands Hammock State Park - what is there to do?

• Hiking on the trails
• Biking on trails (the hiking and biking trails are NOT shared)
• Take a tram tour (see parts of the park you can't otherwise or if it you aren't able to do a lot of walking)
• Visit the CCC museum
• Visit the campstore
• Playground for the young
• Relax!

We travel with our dogs, as such, several of the above options were not available to us but we did hike some of the trails.  All of the trails are short, most are .5 miles or less.  They were created back in the days of the CCC (think 1930s) and are still very nice and well maintained.  They are also shaded which is a plus as the temperatures get warmer - but remember bug spray as the temperatures rise.

Richard Lieber Memorial Trail

Our first hike we choose this trail.  We choose this trail based on the brochure description the park provided quote -  ".4 mile loop trail/25 minute walk. At the beginning of the trail is one of the largest Live Oaks. This oak shows remnants of a tree surgery done in the mid-1930s to preserve it.  This trail leads to a narrow boardwalk through Hardwood Swamp.  The dirt path connects to Fern Garden Trail."

This huge old tree trunk is at the entrance to this trail.  If you look at this closely, you will notice that some concrete pieces are embedded in the trunk.  They used to fill areas of the tree with concrete to help preserve it.

We started down the trail which contains a lot of natural Florida landscape, not much different than what we have near our home in west Florida.

A mixture of ferns, oaks, pine and various other natural plants for this area.  Many of the trails are dirt, watch you step to ensure you don't trip on roots.  In other areas, some of the trails have bridges over water areas or boardwalks over swampy areas.  Please note that dogs are not allowed on boardwalk trails and unfortunately the brochure provided by the park does not indicate which trails are boardwalks.

This trail hooks up with the Fern Garden trail.  Left or Right?  Jim and Ollie pointing to the possible directions we can take.

We choose right in case you're wondering.  Eventually we ended up back on the main road.  The Fern Garden trail has another section that is boardwalk and you guessed it "No Dogs"....so the dogs and I went another direction while Jim took in the Fern Garden trail that is boardwalk.

Wild Orange Grove Trail

Our second hike took us on this trail - per the brochure, this trail is .5 mile linear trail (aka not a loop) taking approximately 30 minutes to walk. Unfortunately, we didn't see any 'live' orange trees although I believe I saw several that were no longer alive.  This trail was before the drivable loop where many of the trails are located.  We started down this trail and continued through the woods, coming across a few bridges, a few muddy areas and eventually ended up behind the 'camp store' located in the park.  Ah, well since we are here, let's stop and get some ice cream.  Then Rue (one of the small dogs) and I walked back to get the truck while the others waited and talked with our campground neighbors who were also relaxing in front of the store.

If you take the tram tour, the camp store is where you catch it. (sorry, didn't take a photo of the camp store).

Cypress Swamp Trail

Our last day at the park, after talking with some other campers from Wisconsin, we decided this was a 'must see' before we headed out.  Who knows whether we will be back again and this is suppose to be the 'best trail' if you want to see a beautiful swamp.

Per the brochure, the beginning of an ADA accessible boardwalk through the Charlie Bowlegs Creek until the historic "catwalk" portion is reached.  For us, we were not able to do any of the catwalk portion of the trail because it is currently being renovated.

This little critter was the only thing I saw while I took my early walk down this trail (Jim and the dogs were waiting in the parking area).  I wasn't able to get this raccoon to look up, to busy looking for breakfast.

The famous catwalk - you can view it, but it is currently blocked off from walking.

For more photographs from Highlands Hammock State Park, please visit this link https://www.vpshoots.com/highlandshammock

Waterrock Knob Overlook signWaterrock Knob Overlook sign says elevation is 5820 feet. Located on the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Wikipedia states this is the highest peak in the Plott Balsams and is the 16^th-highest mountain in the eastern United States. The Plott Balsams are a mountain range in western North Carolina, in the southeastern United States. They are part of the Blue Ridge Mountain Province of the Southern Appalachian Mountains.

View from Waterrock knob overlookView from Waterrock knob overlook parking area.

We entered the Blue Ridge Parkway off of US 74 to the east of Sylva, North Carolina, just a short distance past Balsam, North Carolina.  This entrance to the Blue Ridge Parkway will take you passed several different overlooks and many different trails for those looking to do some hiking. 

This location is dog friendly - please make sure you have your fur kids on leashes (or voice command) as there are others that are taking their dogs out too.  We saw quite a few dogs up there enjoying the view (or maybe it was just the smells).

Ollie, our dog, at the Waterrock Knob Overlook.Waterrock Knob Overlook is dog-friendly.

Here is Ollie taking a few minutes break from riding on the curvy roads up here!  (She was on a leash - removed in photoshop).

The girls (our dogs) at Waterrock Knob overlook.View from Waterrock knob overlook parking lot.

Yep - most people make their children pose, I make the dogs pose!  Ollie (left), Rue (her sister), Abby (adopted sister?).

One of the pull offs from the Blue Ridge Parkway is Glassmine Falls.  If you look across the mountains to the far side, you can see a small amount of water flowing down the mountain.  There is a small trail at this overlook for those looking for additional views or just a short walk to get outside the car.  Google lists the address as “Black Mountain, NC”. 

Glassmine Falls view from Blue Ridge ParkwayGlassmine Falls view from Blue Ridge Parkway

Once you drive up to the parking lot for this view, there is a ranger station and restrooms.  For those that are up to a hike, you can hike up a trail that is about 1.2 miles in length to view the actual ‘Waterrock knob’.  There is a steep climb that goes up 412 feet in elevation – but on a beautiful day, this hike is probably worth the effort.  The first ¼ mile of the trail is paved.

Since the clouds were moving in, the trail was a bit steep and the view limited, I decided that perhaps today wasn’t the best day to try this hike.  The elevation at the parking lot is 5820’.  There is a map that you can look at and it tells you about the various mountains that you are viewing. 

Map at Waterrock Knob OverlookMap at Waterrock Knob Overlook

The hiking trail takes you up a little further in elevation, 6292’.

If you happen to have a clear view, the casino in Cherokee, North Carolina can be seen – that’s quite a way from where you’re currently standing.  The white 'spot' in the middle of this photograph is the casino.

Casino in Cherokee, NC from Waterrock Knob overlook.Casino in Cherokee, NC from the Waterrock Knob parking lot.

For more photographs visit: https://www.vpshoots.com/waterrockknob
 

For more information and photographs visit:

https://www.nps.gov/blri/planyourvisit/waterrock-knob-mp-451-2.htm

https://www.romanticasheville.com/waterrock_knob.htm

Like many, I have experienced this lost.  I've had many cats over my life time - my Mom loved cats.  But somehow I usually don't develop that same close bond with my cats that I have my dogs.  If you have known me (and Jim) for a long time - you remember Dolly.  Dolly came home with my step son so many years ago - wow, seems like an eternity now - Dolly was my soul mate - the perfect dog - everyone thought there was just something special about her - myself included.  She was my inspiration for getting started in pet photography.

First, Grieve.  Cry.  Remember.  Sulk.  Everyone is different, but you have lost a member of your family.

Cope with the loss of your pet by sharing your pet - photos, stories, memories on social media.  Let the world know about your beloved pet!

1) Share special moments

2) Share great memories

3) But first, you have to capture those special moments that will be great memories!

4) Make sure you print them (don't leave them in the digital world)

Here's a (much) younger version of me with my Dolly in her senior years.  Dolly always hung out close with me all those times that I would stop to take photographs of just about anything. Yep, I'm sharing!

Dog, Dolly, hanging with photographer ownerDog, Dolly, hanging with photographer owner

Share special memories Dolly was there for many of my early learning experiences of photographing a dog.  One of Jim's favorite memories is when I was having a tough time trying to get Dolly to do what I wanted in a posing session.  How did Dolly handle this?  I think the photo tells you all that you need to know.

My dog Dolly kissing me on the faceMy dog Dolly kissing me on the face My favorite portrait of Dolly in her later years is when she was laying in our backyard enjoying the sunshine. The soft glow around her face gives me wonderful memories of this ole girl.

Dog head portraitDolly, my dog, favorite head portrait

Losing your best friend - Find a support group

I have learned a lot during the last decade and that's other people understand. 

Another way to cope with pet loss - Find a support group - or friends/people that have pets or lost pets.

They will understand your grief.

They will understand your loss.

They will understand what it's all about.

Remember the good times

This is the first photograph we ever had taken with Jimbo - it was taken in the parking lot of the place where Jimbo was staying until we came and picked him up - so trusting, having made that long journey from the Bahamas via private plane.  Then traveling up to Tampa - saying good bye to Jim as he left with Jim's sister, then seeing us come back to get him just a couple of days later.

Loving our new dog, JimboOur first family photo together - the evening we brought Jimbo home

Jimbo had the biggest heart.  We learned from him. He learned from us.  A beautiful story.  

Create a memorial, print photographs and put them on your wall

As a photographer, you would probably guess that I have photographs of my pets - current and past gracing walls within my home.  It's a wonderful feeling to look at those photographs and remember a special moment.  Whether you ask a professional photographer to take photographs or take them yourself - don't forget to PRINT some of those photographs.  That will allow you to look at them anytime - and it's harder to lose than a broken phone or a failed hard drive (and you don't have a backup).

Animal Communication - after you lose your pet

While you may not agree, I firmly believe that when our dogs leave us in the physical sense, they do indeed stay with us.  While they cross the rainbow bridge, there energy continues to surround us. 

When I lost Dolly, I was so, so happy that Jimbo had joined our lives - now I had time and love that I could dedicate to him.  But you know what? Jimbo was not Dolly - but very similar in many ways.  A few months after losing Dolly I reached out to my first ever animal communicator.  My goal was to try and learn why Jimbo had some issues and how best to work with him. 

My first animal communication session

This was my first and only in person session (the other sessions have been via phone).  As Laura communicated with Jimbo, she shared a lot of things we knew about Jimbo but I hadn't shared with Laura. 

We learned a lot about Jimbo. 

Laura looked at us and said, "One of you is thinking about getting a second dog.  Jimbo wants to be the only dog."  I was caught guilty but so relieved that Jimbo was happy being the only dog in our household. 

Our session continued, Laura told me there was another dog present but not in a physical form.  This other dog was extremely happy to see Laura and wanted Laura to ask "Did I do good?"

I didn't understand. 

Laura continued to tell us that Dolly had a big role in bringing Jimbo into our lives.  She reached out to find a dog that would fit into our lives.  A dog that had many of the same attributes that she had.

I began to cry (and I have tears now too).  Dolly - you helped bring Jimbo to us?  She did.  Her time was limited with us and she wanted to make sure that I would be ok so she found another dog that would be perfect.  Dolly was so right - Jimbo was perfect.

Recent animal communication

I've worked with another animal communicator recently to help with some of the issues that Abby faces. 

Anxiety, particularly separation anxiety. 

When we finished our session, she reached out to find some of our previous pets.  Jimbo was waiting.

Shay asked if Jimbo was a large tan dog, similar to a golden retriever.  Yes, that's him. 

Shay told us that Jimbo is still here with us (it's been over 2 years now since he left us - at least in the physical form). 

Jimbo is showing Shay an image of a red bird with a black face - she asked if we have a lot of them around in our yard or nearby.

Male red cardinal birdMale red cardinal bird on tree branch

We do.

Jimbo sends a little energy to you with each of those red birds - he wants you to remember, remember the good times, remember him.

We do.  We love you Jimbo.  We will never forget you.  

What about kitties?

Most times (apparently) cats are pretty independent and will head on off to whatever might be next in their lives after leaving us. 

However, one sweet kitty was hanging out with Dolly.  Our little black and white tuxedo kitty, Angel. 

Angel had a special relationship with Dolly because Dolly found her at our local park.  Alone, sick and just a baby.  Without Dolly, little Angel might not have survived.  I guess that makes for a pretty special relationship.

Interested in Pet Photography Session? Special memory sessions for pets leaving soon

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to Dallas dog photographer Tracy Allard of Penny Whistle Photography writes about the origin of the term Rainbow Bridge and how it has helped people deal with the grief of losing a beloved pet.

Happiness is?

I totally believe that our dogs (and probably most dogs) are happiest when they are with their human family.  Sure they love the other fur members of the family - but it's different.

This first photo of Jimbo posing for a photo with me - one of the few of just the two of us up close (back when I first tried to do a selfie!).  We were out on one of our walks to a favorite local park just a short distance from our house.

Happiness is - well for our dogs it's simple.

Did you say Ride? Walk? Park? Snack? Starbucks? Mike (their best human friend that is our friend)?  The excitement can get a little overwhelming for them, but the joy is so pure, so simple and who can deny that it brings a smile to your face?

We have been blessed that ALL of our dogs have just loved to travel – travel short distances as well as long distances.  As such, we take our dogs to many dog friendly places locally including parks and restaurants. 

Not the best photo, but the expression on Abby's face is priceless.

By far, the best food places are a local place with an outdoor patio, Gaspars, located in Temple Terrace, Florida.  Often we will do an outside breakfast at Shamrocks, also located in Temple Terrace, Florida.  Of course, all of our dogs love drive-thru places, but for the most part (except for Starbucks and the Pup cups) drive-thru places are limited to when we are doing long distance travelling.  And yes, I know that Starbucks pup cup isn’t good for them but you try to ignore 6 brown eyes (I can sometimes).

Our dogs all love those car rides, but sometimes they realize that they ended up at an undesirable location (aka the vet) which is always fine until they either have to be separated from Mom (aka me) or go into the little room.  Rue and Ollie being smaller take refuge under the chairs…(so happy to be somewhere, but not so happy about this location!).

Happiness is going for our morning walks – although, every so often Abby thinks it’s going to be worthy of taking a favorite item with her (which eventually ends up being dropped and I am carrying another item).  I think Abby was having an 'unsecure' morning and bringing her cow gave her comfort.

Sometimes happiness is having a little cuddle with one of your fellow dog siblings….

Happiness is traveling to a nice park where nature runs abound whether it's in Florida close to home....

or in western North Carolina - a long way from home.

and for Ollie, who just loves her "Poppa" sometimes it's just hanging with him while he takes photographs of something other than her.

Happiness is....

1. A car ride
2. A walk
3. Time with my humans
4. Time with my fur siblings
5. A snack (aka treat)

And I'm sure there are many other things that make our dogs lives so complete, but these things top the list.

It all boils down to "where is the next adventure going to be - close to home or miles away, as long as I have Mom and Pops, that's all that matters to me".

For now, Jimbo says I'll leave you with one of the only video's of me as I create a nice place to lay down and chill - hope you enjoyed this week's blog post featuring candid cell phone photographs of the Perdue-Vargas dog family.

Interested in Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to Atlanta dog photographer CM Bryson takes you behind the scenes of creating an award winning image for Embark's Colorific challenge because happiness is Colorific!

The most often question I have been asked when walking my dogs is "What kind of dogs are they?".  I have to admit, for a good while my answer was "One with four legs".  I was clueless what exactly my dogs were, other than "My dogs" - shared with 'Pop' also known as Jim.  All of our dogs came from the rescue we photograph the most for, Maxx and Me Pet Rescue - all of them are mutts.  They are mixed breed, who knows what they are - but they are our little fur kids.

Here's each one the day we met them as we were asked to photograph each of them for the Maxx and Me Pet Rescue.

Meet Abby
 

Abby was approximately 6 - 7 months of age.  She came into the rescue from Starke County, Florida. Known for the jail - a town located in central Florida that we have passed through many times travelling Highway 301.  She came to us because it was thought that she might have kennel cough, she didn't have a foster lined up and with the possibility of having kennel cough, she could not go to boarding.  Our sweet Jimbo was kind enough to let her come to our house and stay - but he made it clear - you have to train her, I'm not (and yes, this was Jimbo, our dog, telling us this).

Abby, hound dog, poses for the cameraAbby, hound dog, poses for the camera

Meet Ollie (formerly known as Irma) and Rue

A litter of 4 puppies came into the Maxx and Me Pet Rescue.  They were little - real little.  They came from northern Florida, areas where often a good number of dogs are not given an opportunity to live.  Maxx and Me Pet Rescue grabbed this little litter of puppies, having survived parvo and brought them to Tampa.  They didn't have a foster - they were all placed in a boarding facility.  In September (just after Hurricane Irma) we were asked to photograph these cuties.  As there were 4, and Hurricane Irma recently came to our area - Irma has 4 letters - each letter was used to come up with names for these puppies.  Ollie was first known as "Irma". Rue was named Rue (and stayed as Rue).  The other two puppies took the letters M and A (I don't recall their names).  I couldn't call a little puppy "Irma" so in time with various fosters - she was renamed to Ollie by someone else and oddly enough that is my father's middle name and the name my grandfather went by.  Strange circles.....

Rue - the toughest puppy of all 4 to photograph! 

Cute puppy in a basketCute puppy in a basket

Ollie - the easiest of the puppies to photograph

Cute puppy in a basketCute puppy in a basket

Growing up - Abby became a beautiful hound dog

Abby is definitely hound - look at those ears?  But what are the various breeds that make Abby "Abby"?  Well, everyone knows she has some form of hound(s) in her - her looks say that.  She loves the water, she is very good at tracking us and even better at tracking Jim!  She doesn't let her Pop get to far away and if he does, well it's nose to the ground.

So what is Abby's DNA telling us?  No surprises for the most part for me!

29% Beagle

10% Treeing Walker Coonhound

10% Rottweiler

9% Bluetick Coonhound

8% Chow Chow

What was a little more surprising is that Abby has a sister that has tested (also lives in Florida, sharing 55% of her DNA) named Madison.  She also has 2 other close relatives named Charlie and Utah!

Black hound dog among the yellow flowersBlack hound dog among the yellow flowers

Growing up - Rue and Ollie remain very close

These two girls are from the same litter - and they look very similar.  People ask how we can tell which is which.  Here's the rundown of the differences.

1) Ollie has an extra dew claw on her hind foot

2) Rue appears to have broken her tail as a very young tike because the end of it has some little bends that aren't normal

3) Ollie is redder than Rue

4) Rue has white socks

5) Ollie is shorter and stocky; Rue has longer, thinner legs

Oh - and Ollie usually has a red collar on and Rue has a yellow green collar.  I as the "mom" can tell my twins apart just like any other parent can tell their twins apart - they each have slight differences.

Any guesses on what these girls are?  Everyone says they are unique - but no one guesses what their DNA hides....

33% Australian Shepherd

19% Miniature American Shephard

14% Chihuahua

11% Bichon Frise

5% Poodle (Toy or Miniature)

While Rue and Ollie did have a few relatives listed they did not have any close relatives :(

Just in case you are curious, the girls have one surviving brother who has fur similar to the shephard breeds they have in their DNA and they also have a sister that has piercing blue eyes!

DNA Results for my dogs

3 dogs pose for the camera while hiking in North Carolina3 dogs pose for the camera while hiking in North Carolina

3 dogs on a hike in North Carolina3 dogs on a hike in North Carolina

Vacation photos from our hikes in North Carolina!  The first group photograph is on a hike in the Nantahala Forest.  The second group photograph was taken at Dry Falls near Highlands, North Carolina.  (Yes, you take photographs of your kids on vacation - and we take photographs of our fur kids).

My dogs DNA was tested using the Wisdom Panel.  This is one of several companies that perform this particular type of test.  Another company, Embark, does DNA testing for dogs (and cats).  In the near future, I would like to try Embark to compare the results and determine how similar (or dissimilar) they might be.  Hopefully, the results will be similar, otherwise I might question exactly how the process is being performed and what the accuracy of the results is.

Interested in Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to Massachusetts dog photographer Darlene Woodward of Pant the Town Photography shares the DNA ancestry results of her rescued mutt, Kota.

Recently we took our little dog family to walk along part of the Riverwalk as the sun started to rise.  We parked at the Poe Parking Garage located at 800 N Ashley Dr, Tampa, FL 33602.  Make sure you have your trusty smart phone with the Mobile Parking app as you'll need it to park in most places in downtown Tampa.

As we began our walk, I took a few photographs in the early morning light.  This is a bridge house next to one of several bridges that cross the Hillsborough River.

bridge tower on riverwalkbridge tower on riverwalk

As the sun rises, the clouds pick up the beautiful colors.  The old railroad bridge stays in an upright position most of it's life.  While I have never seen it down, I hear that it does come down on a semi-regular schedule for a very short train line to deliver supplies into the downtown area.

bridge over Hillsborough River by riverwalkbridge over Hillsborough River by riverwalk

The Tampa River Center is located on the west side of the Hillsborough River at 1001 North Boulevard
Tampa, FL 33606.  The University of Tampa keeps the boats for the rowing team in this building, but it can also be used for many different types of events.  To visit their website, click here.
 

Tampa River Center along riverTampa River Center along river

The Riverwalk goes under Interstate 275 which is one of the main interstates in our area.  There are a few free parking spots located here under the interstate - 4 hour parking if you're lucky to get one of these.

Tampa's riverwalk at sunriseTampa's riverwalk at sunrise

Well, after about an hour, perhaps a little more of being 'pulled through' the Tampa's Riverwalk by my three fur kids - I had them pose for a few photographs before we headed back to the garage to pick up the car.

As we were in a fairly busy area with respect to possible things to chase - I was careful to just let Abby be our first model for this photograph of downtown Tampa from the park along the Riverwalk.

Dog downtown Tampa riverwalkDog downtown Tampa riverwalk

Rue and Ollie were pretty interested in the treats that Abby was getting for sitting so nicely while I tried to get a few photographs - so they joined in.  These two girls, being siblings from the same litter, spend a lot of time posing close to each other naturally.

Dogs downtown Tampa riverwalkDogs downtown Tampa riverwalk

In this last photograph, I realized that the kiddos were all facing in the same direction, east, as the sun was starting to come over the downtown buildings to the east of the river walk.

Dogs downtown Tampa RiverwalkDogs downtown Tampa Riverwalk

Rescue dogs enjoying a day out on the Tampa Riverwalk

Sometimes we take a dog out of the shelter or boarding facility to enjoy a little time outside - often we head to the river walk in downtown Tampa allowing them to experience some sunshine, smells, people and whatever else comes along during the few hours of 'freedom'.  Here's some dogs that we took out when they were looking for their forever home (they have since been adopted).

Dog downtown parkDog downtown park Dog Tampa RiverwalkDog Tampa Riverwalk Dog Tampa RiverwalkDog at the Tampa riverwalk

Lola is enjoying the dog park near Armature works while posing for her photography session.

Dog at dog park near Tampa riverwalkDog at dog park near Tampa riverwalk

Dog at dog park near Tampa riverwalkDog at dog park near Tampa riverwalk

Interested in Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to Carol Mudra of Apawture Studios in Milan, Italy "notes" one of her favorite locations nestled within Parco Formentano that makes a great backdrop for dog portraits.

Meet Buck.  Buck is about 2 years old, fully grown, weighing in at about 80 pounds and once he knows you, well let's just say you're a friend for life!

Buck, a large mixed breed male dogBuck, a large mixed breed male dog

Buck was shy at first, protective of the personal dog trainer who brought him to us.  We let Buck have his space – talked with his personal dog trainer and enjoyed the park where we meet.  Since we also have a dog that has some issues with new people, situations and other dogs - it's pretty easy for us to just chill and ignore the dog for a little bit while they figure out that we are 'good humans'.

We placed a small ball where we wanted Buck to sit, lay down, stand (really it didn't matter) - just hang out here somewhere big guy.  He laid right down, the ball in front and stuck the pose - wow, from being shy to doing this?

Dog laying behind a toy ballDog laying behind a toy ball

Well, wasn’t long before Buck thought all the wonderful attention he was getting made up for anything else he might have been thinking. Buck looks like he has known us a long time now!  Truthfully, it's been about 30 minutes, but he warmed up to us pretty quickly.  Very happy, relaxed pose for the camera.

Dog standing by toy ballDog standing by toy ball

You want me to sit here?  Sure – not a problem.
Dog sitting with tongue hanging outDog sitting with tongue hanging out
Play with the ball – sure – oh and thank you for bringing it, that was kind of you.

Dog chasing toy ballDog chasing toy ball Ah, I caught it!  Buck is saying I caught the ball - I am saying I caught Buck with the ball in his mouth (it didn't stay there very long so being quick is definitely a good part of the photography session game with animals).

Dog with toy ball in mouthDog with toy ball in mouth

And after some treats, some attention and a little play time – well, what better can a dog give but some wonderful kisses!  Trust me when I say there were a lot of kisses - because my partner, Jim, was getting licked all over his face because he smelled like turkey.

Dog kissing a manDog kissing a man

Buck is available thru Maxx and Me Pet Rescue located here in Tampa, Florida.

Buck's personal dog trainer, Dara Crystal, is available in the Tampa/St. Pete/Clearwater area if you need some help with your dog(s). The website for Crystal Clear Dog Training is located here https://crystalcleardogtraining.com/
 

Interested in Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to Seattle Pet Photographer Holly Cook highlights on of her most recent photo sessions with Mossy Wonder at the beach.

As many of you know, we live a few blocks from the Hillsborough River in Temple Terrace, Florida (a small city on the east side of Tampa).  But - the Hillsborough River has alligators.  And those alligators find dogs tasty - so our dogs have been trained that they are NOT allowed in the water - no swimming allowed.  That's mostly for their protection from these big alligators that many times aren't as afraid of people as we would like them to be (hint to those of you that think it might be fun to feed them - it's illegal).

But - when we head up to the mountains, there aren't any alligators.  Sure there are snakes, those are everywhere - but the likelihood of a snake biting our dog in the water is probably even less than an alligator attack.  So, once we scout the water, if it's clear - it's game on.  Abby absolutely loves the water.  Especially if she is hot (but that's probably true for all dogs).

These aren't portraits of dogs, these aren't fancy photographs this week - but they do show my girls Abby, Ollie and Rue enjoying being dogs!  When we arrive at one of these lakes with the 'Georgia red clay' bottoms, this is what I see - a beautiful scene with cool water (it was late April).

Finger Lake, Fontana, North CarolinaFinger Lake, Fontana, North Carolina

And this is what Abby sees. A Place to jump in and cool off.

Dog standing in lake, Jack Rabbit Trails, North CarolinaDog standing in lake, Jack Rabbit Trails, North Carolina None of our dogs are much for swimming, so I usually have zero worry that they are going to go very far.  They just love playing at the water's edge where there feet are still on solid ground.  Well, most of the time there feet are on the ground - except when its time to jump on your sister.

Dogs at lake shore, Tsali Trails, North CarolinaDogs at lake shore playing, Tsali Trails, North Carolina

Abby splashing along the shoreline of the lake at Tsali bike trails, Whittier, North Carolina (near Fontana, North Carolina).

Dog running in lake, Jack Rabbit trails, North CarolinaDog running in lake, Jack Rabbit trails, near Haysville, North Carolina

Tsali Trailhead - Bike, Hiking, Horse Trails

So where exactly is Tsali bike trails?  It's near Fontana, North Carolina and is located near several different lakes.  In addition to biking trails, there are also plenty of trails to hike on (share them with the bikers or the horses) and also trails available for those with horses.  They alternate by day whether a given trail is for bicycles or horses - so you shouldn't meet both of them if you're hiking on foot.  Snipet from Google maps to help provide location information on these trails.

Tsali Bike Trails LocationGoogle snipet for location of Tsali Bike Trails

Jack rabbit Trailhead - Hiking and Bicycling

Jack Rabbit trails are located near Hayesville, North Carolina.  Several of the trails are located along the lake shoreline.  All trails are marked very well and blazed different colors.  Hikers share the same trails as those bicycling.  There is a 'restroom' on site in the parking lot (but nothing fancy).  Nearby they have camping grounds for those considering spending more than a day. 

Jack Rabbit Bicycle Trails locationJack Rabbit Bicycle Trails location

Jackrabbit Bicycle Trails, Hayesville, North CarolinaTrail map for Jack Rabbit Bicycle Trails This trail map is at the entrance to the trails which all start from a common location.  The "You are here" is clearly marked to help orient yourself before setting off on a trail.  For those that are hiking, there are many signs that help identify different types of vegetation providing for a learning experience if you're inclined.

Interested in Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to Courtney of CM Bryson Photography loves spending Georgia summer mornings kayaking with her dogs. In this blog post she's sharing 3 Must Haves for Kayaking with Dogs.

paved walkway at Lettuce Lake ParkLettuce Lake Park - County Park in Hillsborough County, Florida

If you want to take your dog(s) for a nice, mostly shaded walk - whether you prefer a paved path or a more natural path - Lettuce Lake Park has got you covered!  The paved path is enjoyed by those walking, bicycling (slow speeds only) or skating - whether you have a furry friend or not - it's a beautiful park.

Handicapped accessible paved walkway at Lettuce Lake ParkHandicapped accessible paved walkway at Lettuce Lake Park

There are several shelters through out the park to have a picnic, family gathering or perhaps just a quiet break with your furry friend.

Picnic shelter at Lettuce Lake ParkPicnic shelter at Lettuce Lake Park

The visitor center has a 'dual' water fountain - one for us humans, but also one for the dogs along the pathway.

Dog water fountain at Lettuce Lake ParkDog water fountain at Lettuce Lake Park by the visitor center

If you're looking to do a few things without a furry companion - perhaps you'd like to rent a canoe or a kayak and paddle on the Hillsborough river where few motor boats travel.  Or the boardwalk is a great addition to walk along to see birds, turtles and alligators (no dogs are allowed, but it's for their safety).  

Take a little wooded trail that goes between the boat ramp (canoes/kayaks) and the paved trail for a wonderful, totally natural trail.  Just be advised, that if it has done a bit of raining recently, it is likely to have puddles and possibly muddy areas.
 

Natural trail at Lettuce Lake ParkNatural trail at Lettuce Lake Park

And sometimes Jimbo just liked to be 'free' but he always stayed close and only when we were 'alone' on the trail. This is the natural trail after a heavy rainfall.  Here he is waiting for us to continue following.

Natural trail at Lettuce Lake ParkNatural trail at Lettuce Lake Park

More about Lettuce Lake Park:

6920 E Fletcher Ave, Tampa, FL 33637

The park is 'officially' just outside the city limits of Tampa and opened in 1982.

In addition to the other amenities mentioned, there is a central location has a large playground, restrooms, field to play games and sand volleyball courts.  The boardwalk has lots of birds for those into bird watching!  There is also a tower you can climb to get a higher viewpoint of the river and it's wildlife.  

Official county link to this park: https://www.hillsboroughcounty.org/locations/lettuce-lake-conservation-park

Interested in Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to 

A walk in the park in the St. Cloud MN area with About A Dog Photography!

I began a quick search to find a St. Patrick's day outfit that might fit my fur girls.  The first thing I found was that most of the different things that I could get in a short time period is made for smaller dogs not large dogs like Abby.  We ended up with 2 different types of outfits for the fur girls.

The most challenging outfit is the little hat/beard which required a dog that would allow this to be placed on their head.  Who would wear the little hat and beard?  I didn't think it would fit Abby...and Rue, well - she is "Rue (not a model)"...leaving me with Ollie.  Here's Ollie posing with her St. Patrick's day costume. I can hear her now - how many treats do I get for wearing this crazy hat and beard? 

St Patrick's Day - went to the dogsour dog, Ollie, sporting an Irish hat and beard

Often in order to get photographs of the smaller dogs (Ollie is about 32 pounds), I will place them up on something so they are not on the ground.  By placing them off the ground, it takes a little bit more for them to 'run away'.  If we are in an open space such as a park or the dog does not do well with the 'stay command' then a leash is used to help keep your dog in the area preferred for photographing.

Tricks for working with Abby and Ollie :

1) Very food motivated - ensure she knows I have 'snacks aka treats'

2) Both are good with the 'stay' command when food is involved

3) Ensure she is in a 'sit/stay' position

4) If no helper to ensure she stays, I will use a wider angle lens so I can stay close and keep her attention 

A fair amount of trade on the dog treats and Ollie was kind enough to look at the camera for another pose.  The little hat/beard was found at Pet Supermarket here in Tampa, FL.

Dog celebrating St. Patrick's dayDog celebrating St. Patrick's day

This one has an interesting look because of the way the beard line is on her face (it's not photoshopped - it's really on her).  Abby is often my 'go to' on photographs - she will do just about anything I ask if there is food involved.

Finding a St. Patrick's day costume or accessory for a larger dog is not as easy as for a smaller dog.  Abby weighs in at about 65 pounds.  These little 'vest/bowties' actually have a simple collar to put them on your dog which works perfectly.  A different collar could be used as long as it fits in the slits that are provided on the costume which is about 1/2 inch in width.

Mixed breed dog celebrates St Patrick's DayMixed breed dog celebrates St Patrick's Day

As I wanted a little more control over what was in the background of this photograph of Abby, I decided to try looking down on her and filling the frame with her - calling out the 'keyword' for all of my dogs "S N A C K".  If that doesn't get them looking at you, then it probably isn't going to happen.

Mixed breed dog celebrates St Patrick's DayMixed breed dog celebrates St Patrick's Day

Last, but not least, is Rue.  Rue doesn't do the 'stay' or 'pose' very well - so she is the hardest of my dogs to photograph.  Tricks I used with Rue since she is not a good "stay/pose" dog include:

1) I put her off the ground - in this case she was sitting on a bench

2) I stay very close - using a wider angle lens allows me to be within 2 feet of her

3) I ensure she knows that I have 'snack' if she is good 

4) I will keep her in place by gently putting her back into place several times before I attempt to take photographs

5) Work QUICK!

Dog sporting a St Patrick's day bowtieDog sporting a St Patrick's day bowtie

Hope you all have a wonderful St. Patrick's day!

Interested in Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to Syracuse photographer shares the story of a lucky dog and his journey to a new home.

Maxx and Me Pet Rescue is run by individuals that have full time jobs in many cases and do rescue work because of their love of animals.  Many of the dogs that come into Maxx and Me are mixed breeds and often are senior dogs or dogs that have come from a situation that is less than desirable for the dog.  My heart aches when I see how some of these dogs have been treated, but our specialty is to spend time with them and capture some images that will help them find a new home - one where they can be loved.

Thus far this year we have photographed a few golden retriever girls who were formerly with a breeder.  These girls have never actually been in a loving family.  It's interesting to see how different their personalities are.  The first one came out and was pretty happy just having 3 people (all photographers) giving her all of their attention and treats that she wanted.

The second golden retriever was quite the opposite - very uncertain of the whole situation and trying to stay away from us as much as possible.  So, what do we do?  Well for starters, we spend a bit of time just trying to get her comfortable.  Then there is time we may just ignore her and talk for a while as she gets the idea we aren't there to hurt her in any way.  Eventually, we realize that she has been through a lot and it's time to 'improvise' and get some photographs of her.

And by the end of our 45 minutes with her (yes, some take longer than others!) - she is happy to give us a few poses as long as we don't tell her what she must do.  

Sometimes we have dogs come into the rescue that are 'owner surrendered' - meaning for whatever reason the owner no longer wants the dog.  This is always sad because many times the dog is coming from a good situation that ended in divorce, death or some other reason the dog has found itself without a human.  Recently we photographed a few dogs that were in this situation and they were a joy to photograph because they had been loved, but perhaps were more adjusted than some that were abused (translate to 'easy to get photographs'!).

Teddy is a chocolate lab - and he was very good with posing!  I love the next photograph because I gave him a toy knowing full well this was the end of this little ball's life but the expression on Teddy's face says "Oops, I wasn't supposed to do that?"

Our next little guy was taught how to do a lot of tricks, so at some point he was given a lot of time and just loves being with humans.

This big boy grew up to be a wonderful dog - but he is a big guy coming in around 80 pounds!  Loves to play ball or frisbee and needs to have humans that want an active dog.

So there you have a sampling of the dogs at Maxx and Me Pet Rescue.  There are other rescues that we also do volunteer work with including Polka Dogz located in central Florida (Clermont, FL).  They work with a lot smaller dogs and often these dogs have health issues that are addressed once they come into the rescue.  If you are interested in a smaller dog, you might consider this rescue - polkadogz Dog Rescue.

We work with any rescue that is in need of our services.  If you are a local rescue that needs help with photographing dogs or cats (we haven't done other animals, but that doesn't mean you can't be the first!) feel free to reach out and providing our schedules allow us to assist we will!  

Interested in Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to Darlene Woodward of Pant the Town Photography raises funds to help the animals of the MSPCA Nevins Farm in Methuen, MA.

Here's some family portraits with our dogs - these were taken to remember each of these wonderful creatures we share out lives with.  

Family portrait with our dogs, Rue and OllieFamily portrait with our dogs, Rue and Ollie Ollie (left) in front of Jim and Rue (right) sitting on my lap.  We officially adopted these girls from Maxx and Me Pet Rescue (maxxandme.org) and the rescue likes to have a 'family portrait' when you adopt dogs from the rescue.  We enlisted Jim's son to help us take this photograph so that we could both be in it with our new family members.

Family portrait with our dog, AbbyFamily portrait with our dog, Abby

A young Abby - this family portrait was taken in our back yard with the help of the basic photography equipment - a tripod and self timer!  Lucky that we were able to get this photograph of Abby looking directly at the camera - she looks so young here - not a gray hair to be found on her face. 

Portrait with dogsPortrait of Linda with Abby and Jimbo, our dogs

Jimbo decided to join in on the photography session once we had the 'required' family portrait of our new family member from Maxx and Me Pet Rescue.  Jimbo was such a great sport allowing this loud, barking young girl into our family.

Family portrait with our dog, JimboFamily portrait with our dog, Jimbo

Family portrait with Jimbo taken in the fall of 2015 at Pine Mountain, Georgia where we were on our first vacation after officially retiring from Verizon.  Jim actually 'took' this photograph by setting the camera on a tripod and using the self timer.  Jimbo and I just sat there waiting for the perfect photograph to be taken.  This photograph went on to become our Christmas card for the year 2015 (another great reason to have portraits with your pets).

Casual portrait with dogOutdoor casual portrait with dog

Jimbo and I stop for a moment for Jim to capture our photograph while hiking in the mountains one year.

#1 Reason to have a photograph with your pets

So are you curious? 

What is the number one reason you MUST get photographs with your pets? 

Especially your dogs since they go outside?

Here's the answer:

If your dog gets lost or worse, gets stolen - if you have a photograph of your dog and you're not in that photograph - how can you prove that it's your dog?  Yes - it's great to have photographs of your pets, but if you truly want to ensure that people know it's your pet - be in that photograph with your pet.  Take that extra step to be in that photograph with your pet.  Make sure there is a connection between you and your pet - something that isn't easily changed in post processing (which is so easily done in today's world).

So there you have it - that's the number one reason you should always have photographs taken with your pet.  Even better is to have professional photographs taken with your pet because those photographs will be sharp, crisp and allow for seeing a lot of details on your pet should they be a breed that might not have a lot of unique characteristics.

Interested in Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to Elaine Tweedy of I Got the Shot Photography in Northeastern PA, talks about a New Years resolution that should be on every pet owners' agenda.

This year we have photographed over 80 rescue dogs, some dogs we photographed more than once making the number of photography sessions go over 100 this year.  We love each and every dog we meet whether they are looking for their forever home or they already have their forever home. 

As 2022 begins in a few days, one goal I have for 2022 is helping people with 'end of life' photography sessions.  This is a tough thing to do, but the rewards are so big and having lost our Jimbo in 2020, it's very fresh in my mind. 

It's been almost a year now when a litter of puppies was born into the Maxx and Me Pet rescue and one little puppy wasn't as fortunate as the others.  Her name was Honey and she was being fostered by a very special person who was also a vet tech.  I stayed positive during the whole photography session, but in my heart I could only pray that I would be able to capture this small puppy's personality. Honey did great and within a few weeks was no longer with us.  I often wonder if she was just waiting for us to capture some great memories that touched every one that met her.

Meet Honey

More Photography

A good portion of our photography is 'for the dogs'.  We have photographed a lot of dogs!  We also photograph people (family portraits, senior photographs) and photographed a wedding for friends.  In addition to doing pet photography, I do stock photography for an agency and sold one of my 'biggest' name authors cover this year - Lisa Jackson's book "The Third Grave" features my photograph (and the book was really good too!).

A look back at 2021 has given me time to reflect where I might want my photography to go in the next year.  Definitely I will continue to help the rescue dogs with my photography.  It's a very rewarding project.  As I mentioned earlier, I would like to help with "end of life" sessions and have recently joined The Tilly Project and I am currently looking into additional avenues related to this particular type of photography.  Having said this, I am happy to continue to photograph my furry kids (Abby, Ollie and Rue) and other pets of all ages.

Interested in Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to Toronto based pet photographer, Terri J Photography, shares her first ever client photo awards for 2021.

As many of you know, we have three rescue dogs adopted from Maxx and Me Pet Rescue.  Abby is our oldest at almost 6 years now and is my best model.  Abby will do whatever you want for food - so take along a few treats and you're just about guaranteed to get some great photographs.  The idea of putting a scarf around their necks was new to them and they all seemed very happy to sport this new item (whew, they were not trying to eat it or yank it off!).

This photography setup has worked for several years now and always provides beautiful photographs.  Late afternoon on a mostly overcast day, we went into the woods near our home and set up in a quiet area.  My photography equipment is fairly simple - a Nikon D750 camera with a trigger for the off camera light.  For lighting, I use a soft box and the AD200 flash unit on a light stand.

Black and white hound dog Christmas portraitBlack and white hound dog Christmas portrait

Abby stood watching those treats while we set up the lighting and got everything in place.  Next, my partner, Jim is working to get our twins into the photograph with Abby.  Ollie (green and red stripe scarf) is a good model and sits fairly well - however her sister, Rue doesn't have a clue what 'stay' means - making this a tricky job to get all three lined up.

Three dogs pose with holiday scarfsThree dogs pose with holiday scarfs Ah, well everyone is lined up, but Abby has a pretty serious look there.  Let's try again for a little more relaxed smile.

Three cute dogs pose for Christmas portraitThree cute dogs pose for Christmas portrait

Ah, now we got a great photo of our three fur kids (Rue, Ollie and Abby).  Thank you to my partner, Jim Vargas, for helping to corral those dogs into a wonderful photograph.

Abby has a hound dog nose and she knows there are still some treats in that little bag, and she hangs out waiting for another treat - so I captured another beautiful portrait of her.

Black and white hound dog Christmas portraitBlack and white hound dog Christmas portrait

Interested in Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to Jemma Martin of JM Photography looks at all things festive and shares some festive dog photography.

Salem

Salem is a husky mix and is a sweet, yet high energy dog.  She is easy going, but needs an active family - perhaps one that likes to go hiking so she can go along and get some exercise with them.  Salem came into the rescue and had a litter of puppies.  All the puppies are growing up in their forever homes, and now it's Salem's turn.  We took her over to a local park close to her foster home and she did wonderful.  Modelling just like a pro.

Husky mix dog laying among hay and pumpkinsHusky mix dog laying among hay and pumpkins Salem has beautiful light blue eyes, a short fur coat and is a medium size gal.  If you are looking for a dog to go hiking (or maybe jogging) with you, consider checking this gal out!

Dog portrait in fall sceneHusky mix dog portrait with hay and pumpkins for the fall.

Smokey

Our second dog, Smokey, came into the rescue as an owner surrender after being hit by a car.  Poor Smokey has lost both of his eyes due to his early life not being exactly what one would like - but this guy was great at the park with lots of activity going on around him.  It appears that the other senses have taken over a good bit and Smokey relies on his keen sense of smell and hearing.  He was a very good model considering that he was probably a bit confused over what this new job (modeling) was all about....but, once he found those little dog treats - it was like magic in getting him to pose.  Smokey is a full blooded German Shepard looking for his forever home.

Blind German Shephard relaxing with a fall sceneBlind German Shephard laying down with pumpkins and hay. Head portrait of blind German ShepardSmokey, a blind German Shepard poses for the camera.

Interested in Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to Canberra Pet Photographer Ina J Photography shares how you can display your images after your pet photography session

Check these silhouettes out.

The first one actually shows a little 'rim' lighting around the dog's face showing little bits of fur in a few places while the overall face is dark and without much detail.

Dog head silhouetteDog head portrait at sunset using silhouette techniques

The second photo (below) shows more of the dog's body along with some shape to the overall head and face.  In this photograph, the dog was on a bench and I was down below her using a wide angle lens.

Dog silhouette at sunset on benchDog silhouette at sunset on bench

This young dog is striking the pose as a little dog treat is held above her head.

Dog standing - silhouette at sunsetDog standing - silhouette at sunset

The last photograph shows a silhouette of owner and dog - in this photo, the dog is being asked to hold a stay pose on the bench (hence the raised finger to tell her to stay).

Silhouette Photography with dogsTrainer and dog - silhouette

That's it for this week's blog post - if you have some time, go out and try doing some silhouettes of different objects - whether it's your pet or some other object that can be easily identified with form alone.  

Interested in Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to Nicole Hrustyk of Pawtraits by Nicole shares a few silhouettes

Memory in its technical terminology refers to the processes that are used to acquire, store, retain and then later retrieve information (https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-memory-2795006#:~:text=Memory%20refers%20to%20the%20processes,encoding%2C%20storage%2C%20and%20retrieval.).

This week’s blog post is about memories – first creating those memories by taking photographs of our loved pets – whether it’s a dog, cat, hamster, mouse, bird – doesn’t matter

It’s sad that our pets have a shorter life span then us humans, but the joy our pets give us during their lifetime make it worth it.  “Memory” can be referred to as the ‘sum total of what we remember’ and the more photographs you have the more memories you have created allowing you to look back and remember those great times.  We want to remember them in photographs so that we can look at them and remember them.

MAGGIE

Memory sessions with your pet are very important – I’ve done a few for people I know in the past and it has brought them joy to have those special photographs to provide memories of their pet.  Maggie, an older dog, used to go to the dog park with several others and when her health started failing, I took this photograph of her and gave it to her owner – such a wonderful moment to share – a wonderful memory and tribute to Maggie. 

Maggie, a senior black dogMaggie was a dog that was adopted as a senior.

Along the way a few others have asked for short memory sessions.  I always take the time to provide these – they are important to you and me.

DOLLY

I’m blessed that I have so many wonderful memories in photographs with my dogs.  My photography has grown leaps and bounds from these initial photographs many years ago - I am honored that Dolly played a big part in allowing me to begin my journey in dog (pet) photography.

Memories of our dog, DollyA collage of photos with memories of our dog, Dolly.

JIMBO

By the time Jimbo was entering our lives, I had completed several online photography courses that helped me improve greatly into the photographer that I am today along with several years of rescue dog photography provided mostly by Maxx and Me dogs.

Dog boating on Hillsborough RiverJimbo, dog, boating on the Hillsborough River

Floating down the Hillsborough river - Jimbo grew to enjoy boating on the river after a few initial trips.  Late afternoon sun, showing Jimbo and what he is seeing became a style I adopted for boat trips with our dogs.

Taken by my partner, Jim Vargas, on one of our vacations in the Carolinas.  Jimbo was a wonderful boy - he was easy to please and always stayed close by giving him the freedom to pose without a leash (no photoshop removal here!).  

Jimbo's trip to come live with us was special and Jim Vargas, my partner, created this video of his first year with us (it's a little long, but tells Jimbo's story) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPtZUPGU30Q . We also did a blog post when Jimbo's fifth anniversary with us came several years ago. https://www.vpshoots.com/blog/2017/10/celebrating-5-years-with-jimbo-our-potcake-dog-from-the-voiceless-dogs-of-nassau

We continue to make new memories with our current dogs, Abby, Rue and Ollie. 

Twin puppy sistersLitter mate little girls, Rue and Ollie Rue (left) and Ollie (right) as puppies shortly after they came to our house as foster puppies.  Little did I know that a year later they would still be in our foster care and we eventually adopted these twins (siblings).

Abby lounging on the 'dog' sofaDog snoozing on the sofa Abby sleeping on the loveseat in our office that our dogs seem to think it belongs to them.  Course, now it does - we got Abby as a young adult about 7 months old, but these photograph shows her beautiful face before any gray hairs started coming to her face.

Have you thought of having a memory session with your dog?  What are those little things about your dog you want to remember?  Make sure you capture those before you don’t have an opportunity to.  Memory don’t have to be ‘sad occasions’ – perhaps you want some great photographs of your dog while they are still a puppy – these are also wonderful memories to capture – and we can make this happen for you at VP Shoots Photography.

So – what are YOUR special memories?

Interested in a Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to Canberra Pet Photographer Ina Jalil of Ina J Photography shares why she started her business in pet photography in loving memory of the loss of her dog.

This was land donated several years ago by the owners in the condition that it remained a beautiful garden for all to enjoy.  For $2 you can visit this park, take a walk through the gardens or perhaps you prefer the more natural woodlands along the boardwalk.  They have bathrooms, water fountains, picnic tables, shade and the perfect place to enjoy some quiet time.  

Our dogs will take you on a walk through Eureka Springs Park located at 6400 Eureka Springs Rd, Tampa, FL 33610. Rue and Ollie are leading the way on the boardwalk which is a nice walk through the wooded areas with lots of tall cypress trees growing as well as other plants.

I suspect from their height of just over a foot, they don't see a lot except the sides of the boardwalk - but they definitely lead the way along this part of our walk.  Sometimes Abby will join them in front but most of the time she is 'bringing up the rear on our walks'.

Eureka Springs Park walkwayWalking the boardwalk at Eureka Springs Park. Now that we have completed the boardwalk, let's go through some of the other areas.  Abby posing by the 'entrance' of the park as we enter the gardens.

Eureka Springs Park walkway

Covered walkway over the area where all the water lilies are growing. They are blooming now (September) and blooming several months of the year.

Eureka Springs Park walkwayEureka Springs Park walkway over the water lily pond area located in Tampa, Florida.

This little sitting area is near the entrance of the park - the flowers in this area vary based on the time of year.  Right now, they are purple and really beautiful.

Eureka Springs Park benchEureka Springs Park sitting area with bench.

Couldn't resist - let's get Ollie on the bench for a photograph. It seems that my dogs are 'over it' on the posing - none of them really like looking at the camera when I ask them to pose for a photograph.  So a nice - looking off is what I often get of my gals.

Eureka Springs Park

In one area a beautiful sweeping oak tree comes low over the walkway.

Eureka Springs ParkPathway at Eureka Springs Park in September - large oaks, lots of shade and many flowering plants.  

I think one of the most used area is the arbor in the rose garden - I see a lot of people being photographed here.  The rose garden photo is from April of this year.  Different things are blooming at different times of year, so keep this in mind as you wander through this park.

Eureka Springs Park arborEureka Springs Park arbor

The green house area has an arbor structure as well as plants that are sensitive to cold. 

Eureka Springs Park

In the picnic area is a tree stump about 3 feet high - perhaps for putting small dogs up on for a photograph with some greenery in the background.

Tree stump at Eureka Springs ParkTree stump for photographing smaller dogs.

Rue is my worse 'model' at staying put - her idea of staying is touching you....so she is always harder to photograph and in this photo is ready to jump down off the tree stump as soon as possible!

This concludes our walk through Eureka Springs Park....I wonder if our dogs will ever figure out that the faster you walk, the sooner the walk ends?

The Hillsborough County Website for Eureka Springs Park is located here.

To see more photographs taken at Eureka Springs Park, click here.

Interested in a Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to Tracy Allard of Penny Whistle Photography serving Grapevine and the greater Dallas - Fort Worth metroplex, shares images from a recent senior pet session at Grapevine Botanical Gardens at Heritage Park.

In order to make writing this blog post easier, I will refer to your fur baby (babies) as dogs - but they might be some other type of animal.  Most of the time it is a dog, but not always! I always ask for an hour of time to work with you and your fur baby.
 

Step 1 - Introductions

The first step is a little meet and greet.  Often times it is the first time that we have met face to face especially if we are photographing a rescue dog for one of the local rescues.  We typically get out a little bit of our camera gear and come meet you and your dog.  If your dog is shy or timid, then at first we will focus our attention on you - the humans - and let your dog get more comfortable with us and all that stuff we have!

Step 2 - Dog meets camera

Once we have completed the meet and greet, it's time for us to get an idea of how your dog reacts to a camera.  First, I will take a few photographs of the area to see how it looks on camera.  Gives the dog a few minutes to see what is going on, but still not be a part of the action. 

Early in my pet photographing years with rescue dogs I had a beagle that was afraid of the camera.  I sat down, put my camera down - and with permission from the foster parent, I put a dog treat on my camera and waited for the beagle to come check it out.  This went on for a good 5 minutes.  At this point, the beagle trusted me enough to allow for photographs to be taken.  For this senior girl, I used open shade - I already knew that this dog wasn't going to handle any fancy lighting.

Sweetie - a senior beagleSweetie a senior beagle poses for the camera

In some cases, I will use natural light and in others I will bring in artificial lighting - this depends on a number of things including your dog, what your dog can handle and what the lighting looks like.  Overall, these are determining factors that will help to make great portraits of your dog.
 

Step 3 - Dog becomes model

An important step as we begin is to confirm what motivates your dog - food, toys, noises? If it's food, confirming there are no allergies or using your treats. The next step after the dog has gotten some time to settle in and we have got our location (or at least the first location) chosen - it's time to get your dog into the location for photographs.  In the case of dogs, they are much like young children.  Short attention span, work fast and then change things up a bit.  Giving the dog a break every 10 minutes or so to do what dogs do (sometimes potty, sometimes love, others just take a break and move around).

Then we will continue to work with your dog over the course of about 30 minutes to capture various different photographs and show them off.  

Trooper was a rescue dog with Maxx and Me Pet Rescue back in 2019 - he was adopted a few weeks after we completed his photographs.  This young dog had been hit by a car and was taken in by Maxx and Me Pet Rescue, given the care he needed and healed.  He was named Trooper by the rescue because that name fit him so well - he was a 'Trooper' and did wonderful with his photo session with us.  Trooper's foster mom had this wonderful bench on the back patio area - we setup the bench in hopes that Trooper would be willing to sit on it for us.

Setting for dog photography sessionPhotography setting for a dog portrait

As it was, Trooper had zero issues sitting up on the bench and hanging out while we took photographs of him!

Dog sitting on a benchDog sitting on a bench for photography session

As the sun got lower in the sky, we decided to change things up and let Trooper stand up for a few photographs.

Dog standing by lakeDog posing in a stand position by lake

After this beautiful photograph, we called it a wrap and just played with Trooper for a little bit while talking with his foster mom.  What a great personality this boy had considering all that he had been through in his young life!

A couple of key points to keep in mind

1) Your dog will be a dog - don't worry if they aren't the best behaved, tend to wander off, have to go potty, whatever might be the case

2) Human parents need to relax and enjoy this whole process - your fur child will know if you're anything but that

3) We have patience - and we don't book sessions close together so time is not typically an issue, if your dog needs more time - we have the time to give them

Don't forget to check out the previous week's blog post about getting prepared to for your dog photography session.  Here's the link. We also put together this little cheat sheet on our website that might help if you're considering getting professional pet photographs. Click here. 

Interested in a Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to Elaine Tweedy of I Got the Shot Photography explains the nuances of a pet photography session in the beautiful Endless Mountains of PA.

If you're thinking about having some photographs taken, the first step is to reach out to a potential pet photographer in your area.  At VP Shoots Photography we serve the Tampa Bay area.  This area is pretty broad including Hillsborough County as well as some areas in Pinellas County, Pasco County and Polk County.   We have photographed a lot of different dog personalities with several years of rescue work. 

Initial Inquiry

The initial inquiry is to find out what you want photographed and involves discussion about your pet(s).  I know this list looks like a lot of questions, but many of these are very simple!  If we were to meet while walking our dogs, I'd probably know a lot of the answers immediately.  This is all about 'getting to know you' and your pet. 

1. What type of pet(s) do you have?

2. How many pet(s) do you want to have photographed?

3. Pet name

4. Pet size (approximate weight - just trying to determine if we have a small dog like a chihuahua, medium dog such as a border collie, large dog such as Collie)

5. Pet breed (if you know - just trying to determine a little bit about your dog particularly if they are pure breed)

6. Pet fur colors

7. Pet age (or approximate - specifically asking to determine if your pet is a youngster, adult, senior)

8. Any special considerations such as blind, deaf, 3 legs, immobile, etc

9. Do you or any other family members want to be in the photograph with your pet?

If your pet is a cat, rabbit, or most likely anything except a dog - the photographs will be taken at your home.  My experience is they prefer this location since we do not have a studio location.  We do have mobile studio equipment we can setup at your home.

Dogs

1. Do you want to have photographs taken outside or inside?  If outside, do you have a particular location in mind? (backyard, park, beach, etc)

2. If you have multiple dogs, do you want photographs of your dogs together? separate? both?

3. Do you have any specific type of photograph or look that you want captured?

4. What commands (if any) does your pet know? (Sit, down, stay, etc)

5. What motivates your pet? (noise, treats, attention)

The primary goal of this initial inquiry is for us to get to know each other.  It's important that we discuss what you are looking for as well as what we, as pet photographers, can provide.  If after initial discussion, it's sounds like you would like to pursue setting up a session, we will discuss details related to your specific session and cost associated with your session.  Our primary goal is to provide you with wonderful memories from a fun, enjoyable experience as we capture special moments with your pet.

Inquiry and Consultation Example

Potential clients like to reach out to us using various methods.  A text message is often the beginning of our discussion.  I'm happy to text and get some ideas of what you're looking for, but ultimately I want to talk with you to ensure that we have a common understanding of what you're looking for and what we can provide.  A few years ago, I was approached by one of the many dog fosters we meet each year who wanted a special photography session.  She asked about having a photograph of her grandson with the Christmas decorations they put in their yard every year.  More importantly, she wanted to include her daughter's aging dog with her grandson - as she was concerned that this might be the last Christmas they would have together.  I asked about her grandson (how old was he, did he like to have his photo taken, general questions).  Then I asked about their dog - many of the same questions listed above.  It turned out the dog is a Corgi and had been with their grandson all of his life as well as a part of the family for a number of years.  Our conversation was light, nothing difficult - just like having a conversation with a friend.  That's what makes this process so much easier for you and us.

Grandson and family dog posing among all the decorations.

Christmas Portrait of young boy and dogChristmas portrait of young boy and his dog in the yard.

Corgi dog portraitPortrait of senior Corgi dog

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to Darlene Woodward of MA, owner of Pant the Town Photography, shares how simple it is to get you started with your dog photo session experience.

Interested in a Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Often the large dogs have a harder time finding a home.  Larger dogs eat more, cost more for vet care in some cases and sadly don't live as long. If you allow the dogs on your furniture, they might need their own couch!  But, then perhaps they are more likely to be gentle giants.  I remember when we first got Jimbo - I thought, wow he is a big dog!  Jimbo is the largest dog I ever had topping out at about 70 pounds.  At first, I will admit that his size alone was a little scary to me.  But once we got to know each other, we became fast buddies and spent a lot of time together! 

The largest mutt I have photographed is Flash.  He was a large mix breed mutt who lived with one of our friends once he was rescued.  Flash was among those I considered to be a 'gentle giant'.  I suspect that Flash had some mastiff mixed in with some other dog breeds creating a wonderful combination of mutt.

Course, when you see just his face portrait, it's hard to see how big a boy Flash is - so his little buddy Jackson decided he would pose with him to help get some perspective.  Jackson is probably around 20 pounds just in case you're curious.

The most important point for photographing large dogs is to ensure they look comfortable in the space - whether it's outside or inside.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to Tracy Allard of Penny Whistle Photography just photographed what might be the biggest dog in Coppell, meet Navy the Great Dane

Interested in a Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

First, unless I am practicing photographing dogs in action, I do not photograph at a dog park unless I can be guaranteed that we will be the only dog(s) in the dog park.  This is not an ideal situation as there are to many other dogs as well as distractions that will have the dog looking everywhere but where you want them to look.

I've shared photographs of Riverhills Park and Scout Park (aka Boy Scout Park) in other blog posts and this is the featured location for this week.  A few things to be aware of (especially for dogs) are this park has wildlife - there are a lot of birds (including ducks), squirrels as well as the water critters which usually are not an issue as they stay in the water.

So, how do I pick a location?

Key Point #1 - The location must be dog friendly!

Any location where a dog is going to be photographed must allow dogs - that simple.

When you're models are ready but you haven't figured out if this is where you want to shoot or go someplace else - they tend to get a little bit bored and start well - looking around or hanging their heads low as if to say "Not again"!  (Thank you Abby and Jimbo for letting me take this candid photograph of you both!).

Dog friendly Riverhills ParkRiverhills Park is dog friendly

Key Point #2 - Accessibility

What are the hours the location is available?  Is the location available from sunrise to sunset?  Or are the hours more limited to less desirable hours (say 10am - 4pm as this is a fairly common time frame I see at areas locally to us here in the Tampa, Florida area). This photo was taken in summer, early morning.  Keep in mind things change depending on the time of year as well as the time of day.

Early morning near the Gazebo at Riverhills ParkEarly morning near the Gazebo at Riverhills Park

Key Point #3 - Shaded areas

I look for areas where I can get away from the bright sun.  Contrary to what many people think, the bright sunlight can create harsh shadows that don't always make the best photographs.  Yes, there are photographers that shoot in the middle of bright sun - and I've done that too - especially with black dogs.  But is this my favorite place?  No.  It's hot in central Florida and the dogs typically are looking for shade within 15 minutes and we are too.  This is typically all year except winter (defined by when the trees lose their leaves, not the temperatures).

Large oak trees near riverLarge oak trees near the Hillsborough River at Riverhills Park

Key Point #4 - Variety

Does this location have more than one option for photographing the dog(s)?  Or is there just one location and all the photographs will look very similar?

Scenes at Riverhills ParkVarious scenes from Riverhills Park, Temple Terrace, Florida

In the early morning hours (particularly non-weekend/holidays) the boat ramp is quiet and shaded.  In late afternoon, often there is a beautiful sunset that can be used in the photographs on or near this boat dock by the boat ramp.  This was taken in June.

Early morning near the Gazebo at Riverhills ParkEarly morning near the Gazebo at Riverhills Park

Key Point #5 - How busy is this location?

Are there going to be a lot of distractions - whether it's people, dogs, cars, etc.  Working with a well rounded and socialize dog this may not be an issue - in fact, often times you can get some people walking by that will give you just what you're looking for - the dog is alert and actively looking in your direction.  However, with rescue dogs, often times they are not as comfortable as they have been through a lot in recent weeks and are trying to find someplace they feel 'safe'.

Late afternoon during certain times of the year (this was taken in January), the sun will shine through and light this area up beautifully.

Entrance to Boy Scout Park trailsAt sunset on a beautiful day the entrance to the trails at Boy Scout Park is lit up.

So there you have it - these are the key points that I look for when I pick a location to photograph dogs.  This week's dogs was photographed at one of my favorite locations, Boy Scout Park, located just a couple of blocks from our home.  I will admit that Dolly was a great sport in posing for these photographs - but we decided to cut this photograph session a little short as the mosquitoes were a bit on the vicious side in the early evening hours.  In case you're curious, both Dolly and Lola have loving homes (they are not rescue dogs).

Boy Scout Park meets all the criteria listed above.  We went to a shaded area in the late afternoon where we could get away from everyone and any distractions that might be area (except of course those darn mosquitoes!)

Dolly, female dog, posing for the cameraDolly is a mix of blue heeler and hanging tree breeds creating a beautiful blend.

We headed to the area where lots of ferns grow with little trails through out the ferns.  It's all natural back here - no man made things and definitely a dog treat here in Florida.

Black and white dog in the woodsBlack and white dog in the woods

The soft greens in the background provide just the right amount of color and blur for a pleasing background without distracting from the beautiful young dog - Dolly - a blue heeler and hangin tree hound mix.

Beautiful black and white dog face portraitBeautiful black and white dog face portrait

These photographs were taken about 2 hours before sunset.  It's shaded and a little on the dark side since it is very wooded.  Dolly was a little scared each time the flash (Adorama AD200) went off inside the softbox.  I think this was her first official modeling job.

Dolly's cousin, Lola, has grown a little bit since I last photographed her - she is now almost 5 months old.  They got the pleasure of spending a week together.

Blue heeler face portraitBlue heeler face portrait

This last photograph, we decided to let Dolly climb an oak tree that was at a great angle to allow a dog to climb up a few feet.  This is one of a couple of trees that have a portion of the trunk that travels at a low angle making it an ideal location for dogs and people to be photographed.

Black and white dog sitting in treeBlack and white dog sitting in tree

This week's post is primarily about how I pick locations to photograph dogs - why?  Well, I photograph cats on occasion too, but cats tell you where they are going to allow their photographs to be captured - so there isn't as much input coming from us as photographers.  I always photograph cats at their home where they are most comfortable.
 

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to visit Nicole Hrustyk shares her 3 tips for finding the perfect session locations in Mount Charleston, Nevada

Interested in a Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

As I looked at all the beautiful flowers, I unloaded one dog at a time and put them in the flower field.  My Abby was definitely the best model of the three dogs I have.  She is a beautiful black and white hound dog.

Abby - Beagle/Coonhound mix

Abby, hound dog, sitting among the flowersBlack and white hound dog sitting in the flower field

Up close portrait of Abby sitting among the zinnias.

Dog portrait among the flowersDog portrait among the flowers

Ollie - shorter of the two 'twins' (Australian & Miniature American Shepherd, Chihuahua mix)

Many of you know that we have two little (about 30 pound) dogs that are siblings.  Ollie is my better model by far than her sister Rue.  After some thought I was trying to determine if I should use a stool or what to keep Ollie from being 'buried' among the zinnia flowers that were a good foot taller than her.  Here's little Ollie flower field photos.
 

Dog face portrait among the flowersDog face portrait among the flowers

Ollie, a smaller dog (about 30 pounds), sitting on a stool in the middle of the flowers.

Rue - the one that thinks 'stay' is 'by your side'

And last, but not least, is Rue.  Rue is pretty much my 'velcro' dog.  She wants to be touching you at night when it's bed time.  She is the worse of my three when it comes to "stay".  "Stay" to Rue means sit at your feet.  That makes taking photographs in a flower field rather difficult, so this is my attempts to get photographs of Rue in the flower field.

Rue, small dog, running through the zinniasRue, small dog, running through the zinnias

Yep, Rue is running back to me as I tried to get her to stay in the flower patch.  She stopped when she reached my feet - this would have ended better if I had Jim (Dad) along with me - but flying solo didn't work with Rue!

Dog looking up at the cameraLittle dog looking up at the camera

And there you have it - my three kids out for an adventure in the flower field on McIntosh Road, Seffner, Florida.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to visit Courtney at CM Bryson visits dog friendly Roswell, Georgia to find unexpected blooms in the city during Jamie's pet photography session.

Interested in a Pet Photography Session

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Collars

Most of the dogs I photograph have collars.  In fact, I think a good portion of the people I meet keep collars on their dogs all the time except perhaps bath time.  I fall into this category with my girls - all wear collars with the required tag and an id tag.  Photographing a dog with a collar is the most common scenario.  My favorite collars are simple, solid color collars.  Nothing fancy, you want the focus on your dog not their collar.  Sure, right now you might have a very trendy collar on them, but will you still have and like that trendy collar in 5 years?

The best collars for a photography session are:

1) Solid color collar 

2) Blends or contrasts nicely with your dogs fur

3) Doesn't have excess collar length (if it has a buckle as opposed to snap lock)

Here's an example of a basic collar by AMAGOOD found on Amazon.com

AMAGood blue dog collarAMAGood blue dog collar

Here's an example of an aqua collar on a black dog - good color combination to provide some color on a dark dog.

Dog with basic collarDog wearing a basic aqua collar

While we are discussing collars, let's think about a few points to consider:

1) Collar with no tags for the photography session

2) What tags are on the collar? (nothing that will take attention from your dog's beautiful face)

3) Minimize the tags on the collar for the photography session

4) Non reflective collars if they will reflect back at the camera when we photographers use lights in our photography sessions (we don't want the collar to pick up that light)

5) No martingale collars because it makes it harder to make the collar look like a leash is not attached in final photographs

Here's an example of the martingale collar which has 'chain' for the slip portion of the collar.  The leash is laying on the ground in front of the dog, this is a challenging photographic technique that would need to be corrected on all photographs or the collar/leash has to be positioned such that this doesn't show.  Hence the reason I prefer not use these collars in a photography session.

Dog wearing a martingale collarDog wearing a martingale collar with chain

Having said all this, I will photograph your dog with whatever collar you have or want the dog photographed in.  These are things I have picked up over the years and realize what makes the color less a prominent part of the portrait.

Naked

Yep, no collar, no harness, just the dog as nature intended.  This often is not a choice in the outdoors depending on your dog's training, but some people don't have their dogs wearing collars except when outside the home.  If that's the case, then certainly it's an option - but there are some things to consider.

1) Is your dog in a safe environment?  Perhaps indoors at their home?

2) Will your dog stay if there is something interesting going on outside of the photography session? (did a squirrel just run down the tree?)

3) Does your dog have very good recall ? (you call them, they stop and come back immediately)

Harness

A dog harness is a great option for walking your dog.   I highly recommend the "Easy Walk harness".  All of my dog's have an "Easy Walk" harness and when we are out walking, that's what the sport on their bodies.  They all have a bit of pull and I think it gives me more control over them without choking. Abby, my largest dog, has more pull when she is 'going after something', so with the Easy Walk harness I actually put the center where the leash attaches on her chest.  She pulls hard, I pull her and she is pulled away from whatever that something is.  My smaller dogs have the Easy Walk harness with the leash attached on the back as one would normally expect.

However, a harness is not the best looking idea for a photograph.  If once we complete a little walk for your dog to explore and we are now ready to photograph, I refer to take off the harness.  I can attach a lead if they don't have a collar or there is still a 'flight risk'.  Using a lead the dog doesn't have the ability to easily slip out providing it is kept snug. Many rescue dogs wear leads when we photograph them. I use basic slip leads not show leads.  Small leads for smaller dogs, big leads for bigger dogs. Show leads are great, but I have to many dogs chewing throw in a minute and then singing "I'm Free"!

Blaze is wearing a slip lead in the photograph below - the portion around his neck was left as a 'collar' and the leash part of the lead was removed in post processing.

Dog wearing a leadDog wearing a lead leash

Typically if your dog must wear a harness, then I photograph with the harness but it's in the final photograph a good majority of the time.  It's best to remove the collar if they are going to be wearing a harness in the photograph.  This rescue dog was at risk of taking off and this was a big open area for him to run, so we had both a collar and a harness on him for his photography session to ensure he didn't sing "I'm Free".

Dog with collar and harnessDog with collar and harness

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to visit Jemma from JM Photography in Suffolk, looks at the different collars and accessories she likes her client's dogs to wear for a photoshoot.

Interested in a Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Dog facing away from cameraDog facing away from camera

When we started working with little Sundae, she didn't like being put up on a swing nor bench.  So the looks we got were scared and I am outta here.  Not good for any dog photographs, much less adoption photographs.  The next step was to find something that she was more comfortable with.  The nice furry blanket worked.  Course, now she isn't looking at the camera.  One step at a time.....patience.....

Sundae was agreeable to being moved into position, so we gently turned her the direction we wanted, found out she loves chicken jerky and now we were on the way to some great photographs.

Dog face portrait looking up at the cameraDog face portrait looking up at the camera

There are simple things that we try in order to overcome each of these scenarios.

My dog won't look at the camera

That’s the more difficult of these two things that often we come across as dog photographers.  I’ll be honest, I don’t want to see a video of us working to get a dog to look at least towards the camera.  It might be pretty embarrassing but hey, if that’s what it takes.

There are a variety of things that can be done to help overcome the “My dog won’t look at the camera” situation.

1. Use a longer lens on your camera allowing the dog to be more comfortable and ‘be a dog’.

2. Sometimes it is the flash or lighting equipment that makes the dog look elsewhere – go with natural lighting.

What motivates your dog?

If these two things don’t get you anywhere – well, there are other techniques to overcome “My dog won’t look at the camera”.  Let’s find out what motivates your dog.  Usually, we find that one of a few things will motivate a dog – and this helps us to achieve our goal.

1. Noise – I’ve learned to make a lot of different noises with my voice.  Sometimes my partner brings a harmonica and plays different notes on it.  Squeakers help with some dogs.  However, noises only work if they are noises the dog is curious about, and more importantly hasn’t heard before or has heard infrequently
2. Food – Does your dog have a strong food (treat/snack) drive?  I know all 3 of mine do and the keyword for them is usually “snack” – Do you want a snack?
3. Movement – Does your dog follow movement?  Hey, we have been known to do jumping jacks, peek a boo, open doors, close doors, run across the area behind the photographer – I’m sure it’s a comedy show to watch.

At the beginning of our photo session with another rescue named "Charlie Moon Pie" - we took him our of the boarding kennel for a few hours at the University of Tampa - the beginning?  Well, he is 'big eyed' over everything he was seeing - just being out in town was making his day, but not the best photographs yet.  And yes, he was on a leash in all photographs which is removed in post processing - so your dog doesn't have to be the "best dog in the world" and doesn't have to look at the camera.

Dog wide eyed with wonderDog wide eyed with wonder at the University of Tampa

After giving Charlie Moon Pie a little time to explore, go potty, and relax - we got him to sit on a bench and look at the camera!

Dog sitting on a benchDog sitting on a bench at the University of Tampa

Course Charlie Moon Pie is just like any other dog - sometimes he will look, sometimes he won't.   Looking into the camera may not always be the best captured image - sometimes personality is more important (or in the case, the other dog that was playing fetch and having fun).

Dog looking away from the cameraDog looking away from the camera

My dog still won't look at the camera

If none of these things work, then the next thing to do is just take a break.  Maybe getting a little time where your dog can just relax is the ticket.  Often times they are taken to a new place or location, sat down and expected to model – what about checking out the area with all these new smells?  Usually by this time, we can get the dog to at least look close to where the camera is.  Maybe just don’t hide your face with the camera.  It can be quite intimidating and perhaps using “live view” is a better option.  Think about it – all those cell phones photographs aren’t covering up your face – perhaps that is the answer?

If after all these various things have been tried and your dog still won't look at the camera, then it might be time to consider that your dog just isn't going to look at the camera - however, that doesn't mean you can't get great images of your dog, just means you might have to change what you're trying to capture.

In this photograph, Charlie Moon Pie, is looking slightly to the side of the camera, because, well that was more interesting!

Black dog face portraitBlack rescue dog face portrait

Still not exactly looking into the camera, but getting close!

Black dog face portraitBlack dog face portrait with soft green blur behind

We continued to move around the area of our location shoot and found different places that Charlie Moon Pie could hang out and as he got to know us better, realized we had food and water - well, he began to trust us and just plain enjoy the time hanging with us.

Dog sitting and looking directly at the cameraDog sitting and looking directly at the camera

And Yes, he did look directly at the camera for many of the photographs that we captured in this mid-morning outing.  If you're interested in adopting Charlie Moon Pie, please go to Maxx and Me Pet Rescue and fill out an application.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to visit Jemma Martin of JM Photography shares her top secret tips on getting dogs to look at the camera.

Interested in a Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Boat ramp - want to enjoy nature in a canoe, kayak or power boat? or perhaps go fresh water fishing? - It's available at this neighborhood park

Play ground - want to take your children to the playground? - It's available at this neighborhood park

Fishing on river bank - want to go fresh water fishing? - perhaps your children want to experience fishing? - It's available at this neighborhood park

Are you starting to get the picture?

Other activities include a picnic at one of the many tables available under the trees, a party or get together at the gazebo, a nice walk along the river on the boardwalk, pickle ball on the courts or perhaps gardening at the Community garden.  There are a large variety of things to do.

If you're more into nature and want a little bit of a get away, check out Boy Scout Park - you might not notice that you changed parks unless you see the sign as they are right next to each other.  Boy Scout Park offers a trail system in natural Florida.  It's a nice place to wander with your dogs among the trees, ferns and other vegetation.  Just watch out during alligator mating season (April/May) - yes, they are here!  Watch out for the spiders and mosquitoes.  If you're lucky you might spot a barred owl or perhaps a red shoulder hawk.

I must admit, that we walk our dogs through this park almost every day.  We might skip a day due to weather or being away but just about every other day we will walk through this park and the dogs love it.

Our first walk with Jimbo so many years ago (2012) was to the trails at Boy Scout Park.

Happy dog among the fernsJimbo, our dog, happy to be out among the ferns at Boy Scout Park.

After walking among the ferns, Jimbo just sat down in the middle of them.  I think he was looking for our other dog, Dolly, who was the 'senior' of this pair.

I am in the middle of ferns!

Recently some new paths through the ferns have been cut - the dogs are enjoying going through those to see where they lead.  These ferns are a couple of feet in height, so I'm sure they are just following the path without any idea where exactly it is going.

Sometimes (not often) when "Dad" comes along, if it's hot, and we are careful...we get to play in the water at the boat ramp.  Never when it's busy, always watching for gators only for a very short period of time (I do not recommend this by the way).

Dog playing in waterDog playing in the water

Water coming out of Abby's mouth in various directions (she was having a lot of fun).

Dog playing in the waterDog playing in the water

Only Abby loves the water - and when we are up in the mountains, we let her play as much as she wants (no threat of gators) - but here at home, doesn't happen very much.

Sometimes, its just a few minutes sitting on the boat ramp dock with Dad relaxing and taking in the view.  In the early morning these trees look like they have been toilet papered. There are so many white birds (mostly Ibis) that flock to this island of trees each evening and each morning they leave for the day.

Man relaxing with dogs on boat dockMan relaxing with dogs on boat dock

So what does this park actually look like?

The boat ramp and playground

Approaching by boat the boat ramp at Riverhills Park and the playground in beyond in the distance.

Riverhills boat ramp and playgroundView of the boat ramp and playground at Riverhills Park from the water.

The Sunsets

The sunsets can be very beautiful!  Especially in the cooler months of the year - sometimes during the summer after a thunderstorm the sunsets are spectacular also.

Sunset at Riverhills ParkBeautiful sunsets at Riverhills Park

The trees

Beautiful oak trees are among the park providing shade from the Florida heat.

Beautiful oak trees at Riverhills ParkThe oak trees are big, old and beautiful at Riverhills Park. The boardwalk

The boardwalk is a nice walk along the river's edge.  Watch for birds, turtles and the occasional alligator.  And please do NOT feed the alligators.  NOTE: The boardwalk was redone a few years ago with plastic wood which is not shown in this photograph.

Boardwalk at Riverhills ParkThe boardwalk at Riverhills Park goes along part of the river.
Fall Color along the water's edge

The cypress trees turning to a beautiful color as fall approaches.

Fall color at Riverhills ParkThe cypress trees turn color at Riverhills Park along the boardwalk.

Entrance to Boy Scout Park

The trail system within Boy Scout Park can be a fun get away from the 'city'.  At sunset, if timed right for the sun to shine through, the trees light up beautifully.

Entrance to Boy Scout Park trailsAt sunset on a beautiful day the entrance to the trails at Boy Scout Park is lit up.

Dog Photography at Riverhills Park

In case you are curious, yes - there are some great places to take your dog and get some great photographs too.  Many of the photographs that I have shared of our dogs (Abby, Ollie, Rue and Jimbo) were taken at this park.  Here's a few photographs taken at Riverhills Park.

Dog portrait taken at Riverhills Park (Leash was removed in post processing)

Dog portrait at Riverhills ParkEarly morning dog portrait taken at Riverhills Park.

Full body - this dog had a great time during our photo shoot at Riverhills park near the Gazebo. Leashes were removed from the photograph in post processing.

Full body dog portrait at Riverhills ParkMaxx and Me Pet Rescue dog portrait taken at Riverhills Park.

Jimbo among the roots of what was at one time the most iconic tree at the park.  Unfortunately, it was removed a few years ago because it was dying and branches were falling down.  We loved our Jimbo - we loved this tree - now both are memories.

Address

Riverhills Park - 401 South Riverhills Drive, Temple Terrace Florida

Located behind Riverhills Elementary School

Boy Scout Park - located off West River Drive (west of this street) and Broxburn Avenue.  Please note - Google indicated that this park is closed, however it can be accessed from the parking lot located to the west of the intersection of West River Drive and Broxburn Avenue in Temple Terrace.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to visit Pawtraits by Nicole, photographing pets for their people in and around Las Vegas, Nevada

Interested in a Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Neighborhood park

I am fortunate - I live a couple of blocks from a beautiful park.  The park includes trees, boardwalk, gazebo, playground, boat dock, and river.  In the early morning, especially during the week, it's pretty quiet.  There might be a few dog walkers or boaters heading out but often times we might be the only ones in the park.  This is my favorite time to photograph our dogs (or your dog(s) ) in this park.  It's beautiful at this time of day.  Usually, the sun doesn't reach into these trees and park until about 2 hours after the sun rises which often works better with the human schedules.

Oh, did I mention the weather here in Florida? Well, we may be known as the "Sunshine State" but I will tell you that we have a lot of overcast days.  And while I wanted to capture some of that beautiful golden hour either in early morning or late evening, it's been a choice of rain or overcast skies.  So, the golden hour wasn't golden.

Overcast Skies

There is a special place for those overcast skies - you won't have harsh shadows, you won't have the dogs over heating as fast - but you'll have some beautiful even light to photograph.  My best tip if the sky is overcast - enjoy it and if you can eliminate the sky from your photographs they will come out very nice.

Dark eyes - both Rue and Ollie (Rue is in this photograph) have very dark eyes - if you can't catch light in their eyes, it looks pretty dark in there! Whether you have something white that reflects in their eyes (overcast sky, flash, or perhaps a white object of some size), it's going to look a little lifeless.  In post processing, I was able to get a little life in those dark eyes (next time I need to use some artificial light).

Dog standing on a large rockLook at me! I balanced on this rock - Rue, our Maxx and Me dog.

Abby hanging out on the boat ramp - due to the drought, early morning hour and recent rains - there was only one other person in the park.  So, Abby had the boat ramp to herself to hang and wait for a few photographs to be taken.  The curious look - I missed what she saw, but she was nice enough to stay posed.

Curious dog lookWhat is that - curious look for our hound mix dog

These photographs were taken with 'just a camera'.  Notice how the overcast skies provide a catch light in Abby's eyes.  The blur of the background allows Abby to stand out from all the things in the park.  I will say, that in 2020 my Abby definitely went 'gray'.  She celebrated her 5th birthday in February - but now seems to have the facial characteristics of a much older dog.  Perhaps this is proof that COVID was hard on the animals as well.

black and white dog face portraitDog relaxing - face portrait

Having a mostly black dog has taught me some basic things about how to photograph black dogs.  First, you have to make sure they don't become black blobs - you want to be able to see those beautiful details and texture.  Second, I often reduce the saturation or at least the blue saturation to remove the blue cast that is very common on black fur when photographing outdoors.  The empty boardwalk at this early hour of 7:20am is just about 30 minutes after sunrise.

Hound dog standing on boardwalkHound dog mix standing on the boardwalk at Riverhills Park.

So there you have it - early morning is my favorite time to photograph.  It's my favorite time to be out walking the dogs.  It's peaceful before the day really gets started rolling.  But - when those beautiful sunsets are available, I will never turn one down if I have the opportunity to photograph a beautiful bundle of fur!

Jimbo - watching the sunset

Dog silhouette at sunsetDog at Riverhills Park watching the sunset.

In memory of Jimbo - he loved this park and walked there almost every day of his life - watching the sunset - they can be beautiful at this park if you're looking for a great place to watch the sun set.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to visit Angela of Big White Dog Photography, creating light for great dog portraits in Spokane, WA.

Interested in a Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Carrots

I have three rescue girls - they all love carrots - I usually give them the 'baby carrots' because that's what we like.  Carrots do have some naturally occurring sugar, so don't over feed these - but as a small treat every so often - it's easy and no work involved.

Beans

Another common and often well liked treat.  Often times we are able to give these to our dogs straight out of our garden (organic garden, no chemicals).  Some studies have been done that indicate beans may not be safe for dogs in large quantities - so use this as a limited treat.

Bananas

I didn't know about this delicious treat until recently and I gave it to each of my girls one at a time.  Abby said - Yes, I like this.  Rue said - Yes, I like this.  Ollie said - "Yuck what is this?"  (no go for Ollie - tried more than a few times).

Making your own treats

I've made several different types of treats along the way for my dogs.  Baking a combination of pumpkin and peanut butter is a big hit here - but that takes a little more work - especially if you want them to look like cute little doggie bones.

In asking several facebook friends - I found that many of the recipes had similar ingredients - plain greek yogurt, blueberries, and peanut butter.  Some people throw in bananas, chicken broth (low sodium) and pumpkin.  However, in reviewing all these great ideas - I decided to try a simple recipe and see how my dogs liked it.

Here's what you need.

Blueberries

Peanut Butter and Plain Greek Yogurt

Mix up the yogurt and peanut butter - I mixed enough peanut butter to make it taste more like peanut butter than yogurt.  I also choose to use smaller individual containers so that I didn't have to make to many at a time (worked out good for me).  Mix it up real good so that it almost looks like a marble of peanut butter and yogurt.

Throw some blueberries (if your dog likes them) into it and mix it up.  Then find a suitable container to freeze it.  In my case, I used an ice tray.  Several people indicated in my query that a bpa free mold is best.

Nothing fancy, yep some of them have been eaten!

No dog photos this blog post although if you could have seen Abby sitting there wondering what I was doing with all these great ingredients in front of the camera instead of heading to her mouth it might have been an interesting photo!

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to visit Jessica Wasik of Bark & Gold Photography, celebrating National Donut Day all month long with Hunter's favorite treat recipe

Interested in a Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

We were the only ones on this trail with our 3 dogs on this weekday in May 2021.  To find this trail and see this wonderful nature take US-74 west from Bryson City (or in our case, we came from Franklin off NC 28, so we turned right on Highway 74) - take exit 64 for Alarka Road.  You will be driving through the Alarka Community for several miles - one website said about 10 miles.  It's a nice paved road for most of this distance and no need to worry about hard curves and up down hill along a mountain side.  Take Alarka Road from Highway 74 and keep driving till you get to the end where there is a small parking area (looks more like a turn around or cul de sac).  

The trail is on the east side, don't go the forest service road (gated).  Not very exciting looking, but this is where a small camping area is and the entrance to the trail.

Photo of the Trail head

I must confess, that as we approached towards the end of this trail it appeared to be getting very rocky and steeper - so on this trip, we didn't make it to the end but maybe next time as everyone on google says it is worth it!

You'll see the water flowing to the right of the trail - very soon - if you don't you're probably not on the trail we took.

Some trees to climb over

The trail itself is pretty easy, well worn and not hard to follow.  Dirt with some rocks along the way. There are a few places where trees have fallen across the trail - so you will have to either climb over or find a way around them if they are still there when you arrive.  We climbed over, but found our smaller dogs preferred to go under - so we dropped the leashes so they could find the way that worked best for them.

Cascades, water falling

Beautiful water flowing through the rocks.

The trees in May were beautiful with the green leaves.  The sounds of the water falling down over the rocks was relaxing - don't forget to take the time to enjoy this hike.  The entire hike is about 1 mile (perhaps a little further in some other blog entries).  Still an easy and great hike.

A glimpse of the trail

Some of the trees have been cut to allow the trail to go through, but in some places the trees are still across the trail.

Near to the end of the area that we hiked to, this beautiful setting with trees, water and fallen branches/trees across the water.

Our dogs along the trail

The rocks can be slippery near the water, so be careful.  I scrambled up a little way but soon decided that the little girls were having a bit of issues and perhaps we should try another day.  Abby being larger was roaming around on the rocks. I was past this rock at one point, it wasn't that easy to come back down with a camera - so be careful, especially if it's wet.

A good portion of this trail is in the shade - that makes it nice too as it didn't get as hot.

The twins tied off to keep them from going to far from us.

Yep, now they are all waiting on us.  Kept them tied up a good portion of the time to keep the wandering to a minimum just in case someone else wanted to join us on the trail and perhaps had their canine(s) with them.  Another photo of the trail to get an idea of the terrain.

A couple of different websites have information on this particular trail.

https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/north-carolina/alarka-creek-falls  and another website is https://www.hikewnc.info/ (hopefully these links will be live for a long time into the future).

Google Maps provides this information for a google search "Alarka Creek Falls Trailhead"

That's it for this trip - enjoy the hike if you decide to check it out.

1. Full body - I always want to capture a full body photograph of your pet - let's show off those beautiful colors and markings - your pet 'stood in line' to get them!  Our first pose is Lola sitting - her beautiful markings and those ears!

Next she decided to lay down and we captured her tail along with the freckles all over her body.

2. Looking directly at the camera - yes, I want that connection between your pet and the camera and I think that is best conveyed by having your pet look directly at the camera - at their level - not shooting down at them.  I like to be at the same level as them - see the world from their perspective.

Sometimes it's the cute laying their head on the front paws (other times its a dead stare to see who wins).

A slight head tilt while still showing a good portion of her body.

3. A face/head shot - if your pet (talking dogs here as I have not seen cats do this much) will give that cute little head tilt or a playful look - that's what I want - something that shows their face up close with all the beautiful markings.

A tilt to the right?

Or a tilt to the left?

Little Lola gave us both!  That doesn't often happen and when it does, it takes a bit of fast clicking to capture both of them.  So there you have my top three must have photographs.

Now, having said these are my top three must have photographs doesn't mean that's all I will shoot.  I will shoot until your dog has decided that it doesn't want to participate or until I think we have captured enough photographs that we have a good selection of choices.  Some dogs love to play, some like to play catch, or perhaps a bit of tug a war - we will capture those moment too if that's what you're looking for.  Our end goal is to capture their personality is what we always try to do - along with showing a happy dog (cat) in as many cases as possible.

Here Lola has decided to relax, I think she decided that was enough for this photography session, but a casual outdoor, natural light photograph shows a different side of Lola.  It's also showing her with a slightly open mouth, a little smile perhaps?

When we are photographing rescue dogs, it's a matter of what the dog is willing to share - some are much more willing to enjoy the whole process while others find it very intimidating and challenging to get great photos - but with almost 6 years of experience in the world of rescue dogs, we have learned a lot along the way!  If we are photographing an animal (dog, puppy, cat, kitten) I always try to get these top photographs:

1. A photograph of the entire body - sitting, laying down and/or standing

2. At least one facial portrait - let them see those eyes - and get a connection between the viewer and the animal looking for a home.

3. Photograph(s) at the animal's level

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to visit BARKography by Kim Hollis and her 7 Must Have Poses at each photo shoot in Charlotte NC

Interested in a Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

The parking area

The parking lot is well setup and holds about 10-12 cars - all nicely sectioned off into little areas that allow a little privacy should you need that.  Keep in mind that there are no bathrooms except the great outdoors - no food, water, etc unless you brought that with you - so plan ahead.  It's easy to see why this particular area was named 'Tellico Gap' as there are large electrical towers coming up through the mountains here.  This one is right next to the parking area.

Gives you an idea, there are several little areas that are well marked for parking.

As we parked and got our little group of 3 dogs leashed up and ready to go, the next step was to find the trail. While we like to hike, I wouldn't consider us experts on the 'way of the land' when it comes to hiking.  If you look here, you will see a trail that is on the left and then another trail that is behind the 'road closed' sign.  These are pretty important to be aware of and we did miss this on the way up on our hike.  The trail on the left is actually the Appalachian Trail - blazed white - and you're in for a nice hike that steadily climbs in elevation.  The hike itself is well marked and not to challenging - but it is 1.4 miles in length.  There are some areas that have drop offs or are pretty narrow - so keep those dogs close as well as any human children you might have with you.  Plenty of places to stop and take a break - and we did.

If you take the trail to the right, the one behind the 'road closed' sign - that's an old forest road (I'd love to see a vehicle travel it) - it's is .6 miles in length (a lot shorter!) and based on what others have said it is steeper than the AT although, I'm not totally sure I agree it was that much steeper.

If I was to do this again, I would choose the trail on the right - it's shorter and I can handle a little steeper if it's that much shorter to the same wonderful view.  But, we didn't see that at first, so we headed off on the AT, the trail on the left.

Tellico Gap

Shortly after we started our hike on the Appalachian Trail, we saw this sign confirming where we were.  I am sure that this is very helpful to those that have been on the trail for many days and are wondering exactly where they might be now.

We continued hiking on up the trail - here's a few photographs to give you an idea of what parts of the trail are like.  In many areas the clay and dirt is very well packed down and there are very few rocks on the actual trail.

This area of the trail is fairly wide - enough to comfortably hike without seeing any drop off that is close. Along the way you will get some glimpses of the overall scenery - but for the most part, until you get to Wesser Bald, there aren't any real open views that don't have trees, branches or some other obstacle blocking part of the view.

Along the way we saw several people that were carrying their smaller dogs back down the mountain.  The smaller dogs one can carry - but ours aren't that small - the smallest being about 30 pounds.  Having said that, we took breaks! And right in the middle of the trail we did.  The elevation changes and having been under the weather the previous few days forced me to take more breaks than I would have liked - but then we did continue.

If you pay attention, you'll see this log with the marker "AT" carved into it.  I suppose this is a fairly common thing, but it's the only log we noticed was carved on this section of the trail.

We stopped for a little while at the campground and fire pit as we got closer to Wesser Bald.

The Fire Tower

And finally - we made it to the top. 

The dogs are all for taking a relaxing break - we all did.  It's much cooler up on top of the mountain and there was a nice breeze coming through to help make it nicer.

These are our mixed breed 'twins' (they are little mates).  Rue on the left, Ollie (short for Olive) on the right.  They were champs on getting to the top of this mountain climb.  Probably totally having the time of their lives. Abby, while grayer, is only 5 years of age, and much bigger than our twins.  She took to resting just fine - enjoying the time.

Let me tell you - this hike was well worth it.  360 degrees of beautiful mountain top views.  To see all 360 degrees, you must climb the fire tower.  Yes, you may be tired, but take that break at the mountain top and when you're ready climb that fire tower.  You won't regret it.

The View

Here's a few photographs that probably don't do this view justice - but you want some clue what you will see when you get there right?  And it's so pretty!  You'll want to do this on a nice day where you can see for miles - don't do it on a rainy bad day if you have any choice (I wouldn't have done this drive on that dirt road).  But, what can I say, it's beautiful.

The trek down

Eventually, after talking with a couple of men that were hiking on the Appalachian Trail - one was pretty young and had been on the trail about 8 days now.  The other was a little older (maybe closer to our ages) and had been on the trail for about 10-11 days (not sure I recall exactly how many).  But they were both having fun doing the multi-day hike.  The younger hiker said he hoped to do the entire trail and end up in Maine most likely in October time period (It's mid May when I am writing this).  Looks like a trail to me, wondering how it could be a 'forest road' - but I guess if they have to get to the top, maybe they use a four wheeler.

A quick look shows that the other trail (forest road) doesn't look to bad and within an hour we were back at the parking lot.

Heading back

Jim talked to many of the people that drove up to Tellico Gap and wondered how they got there without any 4 wheel drive - so having said that we decided to take the 'other road'. The one that went down the other side of the mountain and soon we found out that road was a much better road to travel on then the one we came up.  If you come in from the other side, you'll travel on Wayah Road and turn on Otter Creek to head up to Tellico Gap.  For us, this made for a longer drive back - but it was almost all paved roads and another adventure!

I also found this link that is helpful with information about this particular hike should you be interested.  Hopefully it will stay alive and not become a dead link. https://www.hikethesouth.com/hikes/wesser-bald-via-tellico-gap
 

Researching the internet shows that there are two common varieties of the pitbull breed.  The red nose pitbull and the blue nose pitbull.  These two dogs are very similar, the end of the nose is different colors and often the fur will be different based on the nose color.

Both the red nose and the blue nose pits are intelligent, loyal, loving and full of fun.  They are medium sized dogs that can weigh up to 60 pounds, standing about 20 inches tall.  Males generally weigh a little more than females.

Sadly, the pitbull is often considered to be a dog known for fighting or bullying.  Training, socialization are extremely important with this breed to help ensure they are friendly and make great pets. 

The difference between these two types of pitbulls is primarily the color of their noses.  A red nose pitbull will often have different fur colors that blend well with the red nose (light brown, reddish color, etc). 

The blue nose pitbull may have different fur colors.  The blue nose pitbull is created by a gene that ‘dilutes the color black’ thus causing the dog to have a grey or dark color coat of fur.

Recently, we had the opportunity to meet two very friendly and loving pitbulls.  They came into the rescue because their owner died and they had no place else to go.  Every effort will be made to find these two a home together since they came into the rescue together and have been in foster care together.

Red Nose Pitbull

So, let’s meet Chubbs.  Chubbs is a male red nose pitbull.  He has a cute little underbite which makes for an interesting look while we photographed him.  He was a bit unsure what was expected of him, but he was all for getting attention and treats.  Chubbs is giving us his ear to ear grin.  I'm sure after hanging with us for almost an hour he might have been getting a little warm (it was still in the 70s and we gave them water).  But, then again, he might just be a happy boy.

Red nose pit bull - Maxx and Me Pet RescueRed nose pit bull - Maxx and Me Pet Rescue

Here's a photograph that shows Chubbs with his underbite along with a cute little row of teeth.  This was at the beginning of our shoot and we had to work hard with getting ears to come forward - they just didn't want to perk up a good portion of the time.

Chubbs, red nose pit bullMale red nose pit bull

Blue Nose Pitbull

Sadie is Chubbs companion.  Sadie is a female blue nose pitbull.  She was a little more timid when it came to the flashes from our lighting equipment but totally in to all the attention and treats.  Strangely neither of them really cared about any strange noises we made, so we did resort to bribery with food and love.

Blue nose pit bull - Maxx and Me Pet RescuePortrait of blue nose pit bull

Sadie was having a little more trouble with this whole modeling idea.  I asked if she liked blankets, the response was yes - so we got a little furry blanket out and let Sadie check it out.  It was definitely a hit and we started getting some great photos of her.

Maxx and Me Pet Rescueblue nose pit bull, Sadie

These two dogs did very well on a leash so we were able to take them to a local park and take photographs of them (we had the park to ourselves on this work/school day).

Sadie and Chubbs, bonded pair of pit bullsMaxx and Me Pet Rescue - bonded pair of pit bulls looking for a home after owner dies. Pit bull dogsPit bull dog buddies That's it for this week's pet photography blog.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to visit Terri J Photography, Toronto dog and family photographer.

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

1) Harney Dog Park (officially known as the Temple Terrace Hilltop Park) is located at 9420 Harney Rd, Tampa, FL 33637.

This dog park offers an area for smaller dogs as well as a larger area for the large dogs.  Each area has a water hookup to provide water to your pup and unless it's changed recently - there is usually a small plastic pool for the dogs to cool off in.  There is lots of room to run, but not a lot of shade to hang out in - so during the summer months it can get hot.  Also, just a note, the large dog area can be prone to flooding when we get a lot of rain.

Abby hanging in the 'baby' pool at the park - it's a great way for the dogs to cool off if they like water.

Dog in kid swimming poolHarney dog park in Temple Terrace Florida - enjoying the swimming pool.

The entire park has a high chain link fence surrounding it.  In addition, there is a 'holding' area - double gate to prevent dogs from escaping.  Jimbo runs with another dog in his younger years.

Dogs running at dog parkTemple Terrace Hilltop Dog Park

The Harney Bypass canal is just to the east of this park outside of the fenced in areas.  Lots of grass and area to run in.  Plenty of trash cans for pickup of dog waste.  A small shelter with a picnic table for the humans.

Rescue dog having fun at dog parkDog playing at the dog park

2) Rowlett Dog Park is located at 8401-8549 N Rowlett Park Dr, Tampa, FL 33604. 

The website says it is open every day from 8am - 6pm.  There are a few holidays like Christmas that the Rowlett Park is closed.  This dog park offers an area for smaller dogs as well as a larger area for the large dogs.  This dog park has lots of shade trees along with picnic tables for the humans.  There is a water hookup to provide water to your pup.

This park is fenced in with a chain link fence.  There is ample parking for those visiting the park.  In addition to the area for the dogs to run free, there are several sidewalk paths that can be enjoyed while you walk your dog on a leash.  Abby playing with one of the other dogs in her younger years.

Dog playing at Rowlett Dog ParkTwo dogs playing at the dog park.

Plenty of shaded areas provided by the oak trees.  There is also a few pine trees within the dog park.

Dog running free on sidewalkDog running along the sidewalk at Rowlett Dog Park.

The large dog area includes an agility area with a few things to allow your dog to climb if this is a sport they like.

Dog hanging out at Rowlett Dog ParkShade trees behind, as dog stands in the sun watching other dogs at Rowlett Dog Park. 3) Davis Island Dog Park /Beach - this is located at 1002 Severn Ave, Tampa, FL, US, 33606

There are 2 different areas at the Davis Island dog park - one, shared by dogs of all sizes is along the water.  Dogs are allowed to swim in the waters of Tampa Bay.  There is a bathing area to wash off your dog at the entrance.  In addition to this dog park, there is another area for the dogs that is not including the 'dog beach'.  If your dog doesn't care for the water and would prefer to run in the grass, there is a small dog park area as well as a large dog park area for everyone to play.  There is some shade available around the outside edges of the dog park.

4) Picnic Island Dog Park is located at 7409 Picnic Island Blvd, Tampa, FL 33616

This park is open from 6:30am till 7pm at this time of year.  The hours are longer during daylight savings time.  The dogs have a long narrow strip of land to run up and down on the beach as desired.  In addition, they have access to the water.  Note, like Davis Island, this is salt water.  Several years ago when we visited, we had the park to ourselves.

Picnic Island Dog ParkPlaying in the water at Picnic Island Dog Park

Running along the beach at Picnic Island Dog Parklone dog running along the shore line at Picnic Island Dog Park 'My favorite photograph from this visit is this one of Jimbo and Abby playing - but it looks like they are dancing.  The look on Abby's face!

Dogs playing at Picnic Island Dog ParkTwo dogs playing on the sandy beach at Picnic Island Dog Park.

5) Ft. DeSoto Dog Park / Beach located within Fort DeSoto Park is located in St. Petersburg.

They are open at this time of year from 7am till 8pm.  There is plenty of sand for your dog to run in and go swimming in the salt water if they like to swim.

Abby loves the water - here she is taking a breather on the sandy beach after getting wet.

Black and white dog at Ft DeSoto Dog BeachBeautiful beach and water at the Ft DeSoto Dog Beach area - a dog park on the water.

Jimbo has longer fur and looks like a 'wet dog'.  His idea of being in the water doesn't stack up against Abby's.

Jimbo, rescue dog on the dog beachBeautiful beach and water at the Ft DeSoto Dog Beach area - a dog park on the water. Of course, humans can go swimming too!  And Abby watched Jim (Dad) going swimming and wanted to follow until she realized.....I need to turn around and go back - Dad can save himself!

Dog swimming at Ft DeSoto Dog Beach/ParkDog swims with her human at the Ft DeSoto Dog Park - complete with sand and plenty of sea water. That's some of the MANY dog parks in the area of Tampa - a Google search will include several that are in the downtown Tampa area as well as others through out the area.  We have a lot of them!

If you take your dog to a dog park - please be careful.  Dogs can get hurt at dog parks just like children can get hurt at the playground.  Always pick up after your dog. Know your dog and whether they are good with other dogs - and always keep an eye on them - especially those that have water.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to visit Dog photographer Tracy Allard of Penny Whistle Photography reviews three great dog parks in Coppell and Carrollton Texas.

Interested in a Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Heidi's Legacy Dog Rescue, Society of Tampa Bay and St. Francis Society.  This was an interesting search to see who was the top responses from Google based on doing a simple search of "Rescues in Tampa".

I've 2 different quotes that I have seen while writing this blog post.  The first one, is from the Humane Society of Tampa Bay "Leading the way because every life counts".  The second one is from Maxx and Me Pet Rescue, "It matters to that one" ....which is so true.  That one animal is depending on us (humans) to care about that one life.

As many of you know, we, VP Shoots Photography, volunteer to photograph rescue dogs (and sometimes kittens/cats if we receive a request) in the Tampa Bay area.  We have travelled as far east as Lakeland to photograph a beagle for the Beagle rescue, as far south as South Tampa and South St. Petersburg, as far west as the water's edge of Tampa Bay (Tarpon Springs, Palm Harbor, Clearwater, etc) and as far north as Spring Hill.  That's quite a large area that we have covered - and we have met so many dogs along the way.

I'd like to take a few minutes of your time to share with you the primary organizations that we volunteer with.

1) Maxx and Me Pet Rescue - this is the primary rescue that we provide photography services to in the Tampa Bay area.  Per the website for Maxx and Me, the "About Us" says: "Maxx & Me Pet Rescue is a Non-Profit founded in 2014 by Lea Haverstock in memory of her beloved rescue Golden Retriever, Maxx."  Their website is: https://www.maxxandme.org/

On September 18, 2017 we met "Irma" and her litter mates.  This little puppy just seemed to know exactly how to pose for the camera.  She was so small, about 10 weeks of age and the entire litter had been turned into a shelter without any parents.  Eventually, this little cutie ended up in our household along with her sister, Rue - and she is now known as Ollie.  (Irma was because Hurricane Irma was coming through our area at the time she was coming into the Maxx and Me Pet Rescue.)

Colt - a beautiful husky - needs someone to adopt him that understands the whole mindset of a husky.  He has been looking for a home for a while and hopefully will find that perfect match soon.

2) Polka Dogz - They are located in central Florida (Winter Garden/Clermont Florida areas).  We volunteer to provide photography services for special events like the Christmas pose with Santa Claus and home checks within the Tampa areas for dogs that are potentially being adopted in our area. Their website is https://polkadogz.org/ and they feature mostly smaller dogs and specialize in seniors, special needs and shy dogs.

In addition we have done photographs for other rescues including:

1) Heidi's Legacy Dog Rescue

2) Rescue Teamsters

and 3) Tampa Bay Beagle Rescue

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to visit Marika Moffitt of Dirtie Dog Photography shines the light on harder-to-adopt pets with The Limelight Pet Project in Seattle, Washington.

Interested in a Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Derby Lane, St. Petersburg

The Derby Lane in St. Petersburg opened by the family of Alexis Winning in 1925.  Now, after almost a century, dog racing has ceased at the Derby lane.  The final live greyhound racing was held on Christmas Eve and the weekend following in 2020.  The Derby Lane Greyhound Track located in St. Petersburg, Florida was the oldest continuously operating greyhound track in the country until it officially closed on December 27, 2020.  The Derby Lane does remain open (as of this writing) for simulcasting and has a poker room.

"After the races ended on Sunday, some of the greyhounds will continue to race at tracks outside of Florida, some will live on a farm with other former racers, and others will be adopted" said Winning.  Derby Lane worked with a group called "Greyhound pets of America" that has a 98% adoption rate for the former racing greyhounds.

Greyhound Pets of America (Tampa Bay)

This organization lists it's mission as "to find homes for ex-racing Greyhounds and to educate the public about this wonderful breed."  They are an all-volunteer, nonprofit chapter of the Greyhound Pets of America.

Beau

We photographed Beau at his 'retirement home' in St. Petersburg, Florida.  He was (is) the foster brother of another dog named Brie who is with the Maxx and Me Pet Rescue (www.maxxandme.org).  Beau enjoyed hanging out on the front porch on what appears to be the "dog relaxing couch".

Beau is a beautiful brindle greyhound with long legs and a slender body.

Greyhound - Former Derby Lane racerRetirement for a former Derby Lane, St. Petersburg, racing greyhound. Painterly portrait of Greyhound.

What's that you said?  As Beau perks up to see what is going on.

Greyhound - Former Derby Lane racerHead portrait of former racing greyhound from the Derby Lane in St. Petersburg, Florida

Beau with one of his favorite toys.

Greyhound - Former Derby Lane racerRetirement for a former Derby Lane, St. Petersburg, racing greyhound.

A painterly effect added to this head portrait of Beau - Beau was moving a little fast for the camera settings, but the cute look wins and we decided to share this photo.

Greyhound - Former Derby Lane racerHead shot of a brindle greyhound, a retired racer from the Derby Lane in St. Petersburg, Florida

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to visit Tammy Snyder Photography, photographing dogs and the people they love in Southeastern Pennsylvania and the tri-state region

Interested in a Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

What makes them happy?  Is it because they feel secure?  They know that they are safe?  Or maybe it's as simple as they live 'in the now'.  They don't think about what happened 5 minutes ago and they are not worried about what might happen in 5 minutes - it's all about what is happening now.

Did they just get my leash?

Did they just say the word "walk"? (do you have to spell that word when you are talking to someone other than your dogs?)

Did they just say the word "ride"? (oh boy, the tails start wagging, they start trying to herd us up like cows to get to that door - oh and which car are we taking? Do we go to the front door? or the garage?)

Did they just say "snack"?  which is anything other than the normal dry dog kibble (dog treats, carrots, beans, strawberry, banana, apple, cheese, the list goes on).

Well, just about any of these things will make our dogs go into a 'happy mode' of trying to figure out exactly what is going to happen next.  Each word invokes different actions with our dogs - and I'm sure the same is true for any dog owner.

Dogs playing and running

Audrey (available for adoption from Maxx and Me Pet Rescue, Tampa, Florida) enjoys running in the back yard of her foster home.

Pitbull mix puppy runningMaxx and Me Pet Rescue puppy playing and running

Audrey got the prize, her ball that was just thrown for her to run and catch.

Pitbull mix puppy catches ballFemale pitbull mix puppy playing with her ball

Jimbo playing at the dog park in his younger years.

Jimbo playing at the dog parkJimbo running and playing at the dog park

A big pit bull smile

Chubbs, a red nose pitbull, giving a big smile for the camera.  Chubbs and his sister, Sadie, lost their owner and are now looking for a new home - but in the mean time - they love attention and were wonderful in posing for the camera.

big pitbull smileHappy red nose pitbull portrait

Exploring with us - hiking

In North Carolina at Mingo Falls near Cherokee, we decided to hike to the waterfall.  When we got there, I noticed there were a lot of stairs (I knew there was some, but this was a good number of stairs).  Little Ollie has short legs and wasn't sure about this idea at all - her preference is solid ground and she just about said "NO" .....our idea of her walking up the stair railing didn't work - but we took a quick photograph with her smiling.

Happy dog standing on stairway

This was more of what the dogs were thinking....water, flatter terrain, yes this is good hiking.

Abby plus water = Happy

Of all the dogs that I have owned (and that's only a few), Abby loves the water. Our first vacation trip with Abby to the Fort Payne, Alabama area.  This is when we found out Abby had a love for water (something she can't do in fresh water here at home because of alligators).

Abby in the waterAbby loves water - we allow her to play in safe water areas

Happy is having a good (safe) pond to hang out in during the hot summer months.

Happy Abby sitting in the waterAbby hanging in the water in a small pond

A comfortable place to sleep = happy

Whether it's a hard day of hiking in North Carolina or a lazy day at home - having a good comfy place to sleep always seems to make our dogs happy.

Abby sleeping with her blanketsdog sleeping

So there you have it - the happy dogs that are either in our lives now or have been in our lives at some time.  But most of all, I think happy dogs are dogs that are with people that care about them, the dogs care about the humans and feel comfortable with.

Blogging with Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to visit Pawtraits by Nicole, photographing pets for their people in and around Las Vegas, Nevada.

Interested in a Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Color in the background using textures

Our first example features Abby sitting with crayons and a coloring book - no, she didn't have a clue what to do so she just sat there doing her 'puppy sit' and looked pretty!

This photograph uses a colorful texture as the background added in post processing.

Beautiful colors with dog portraitRainbow colors with dog portrait

Ok, let's sit like an adult dog and not on our butt - here's another one of Abby posing with lots of color.

Color surrounding dog in portraitUsing color with dog photography

Dog photography using colorful Florida landscape

When photographing a black dog, it helps to include some color in the image to help make the dog stand out from it's surroundings.  In this photograph, Gunner, a tripod (3 legged dog) enjoyed the Florida landscaping of our backyard.  While a good portion of our yard is primarily green, we do have a few plants with pink and red shades to add color.  Not to mention the colorful collar Gunner is sporting!

Maxx and Me Pet RescueBlack lab mix posing for the camera

Gunner had so much fun running through our yard that he picked up some of the water along the way from the plants.  We had about 5 inches of rain the previous day - so the plants were happy along with Gunner.  Here Gunner stopped next to one of the more colorful (not just green) plants in our yard.

Color at the USF Botanical Gardens in Tampa

This morning it was a beautiful sunny morning in Florida - more specifically in Tampa.  We decided to take our dogs for a special treat to visit the gardens and enjoy the nice weather.  We found several different pieces of colorful artwork through out the garden.  A beautiful sunny day doesn't really make for the best photographs because the camera does not do well with the sun/shade combinations (splotchy light) like the human eyes do.  However, having said that and knowing that our pet photography blog this week is all about color - we had our girls pose for us in a few places to share with you.

Our first color blast came from the large white cow that has lots of brightly painted flowers on it.  Ollie is posing under this cow.  To give you perspective on how big the white cow is....Ollie is about 30 pounds (so not a large dog - but very small compared to this cow).

Dog sitting by large white cowOllie, our little dog, sitting under the large white cow at USF Botanical Gardens.

Next, we walked over to the butterfly garden area.  Lots of butterflies - some bees - but none staying still long enough to capture great images.  Capturing good photographs of butterflies requires a lot of skill or them settling down for a minute to capture as they grab nectar from the flowers.  This is Rue - she has a hard time staying in a sit-stay command.  She will sit and then as soon as you stop telling her to stay she is coming back to you slowly because she didn't want to stay.

Dog sitting by butterfly garden artworkRue, our little dog, sitting by the butterfly garden at USF Botanical Gardens.

Last up is the outdoor patio area where all the chairs and table are brightly painted in colors.  At first, we thought, let's just put Ollie in a chair and see if we can get a photograph before a kitty walks by or something else and they are wanting to start off running!  But - well, let's just push our luck and see if we can get all three girls.  We promised them a snack - so they decided to be good for us.  Here's our girls (chubby and now all dieting!).  Rue (left), Ollie (center) and Abby (right).

Colorful outdoor furniture at USF Botanical GardensOur dogs sitting at the table full of color at the USF Botanical Gardens.

Blogging with other Pet Photographers

This is a personal project that I try to participate in each week (as much as possible).  This post is part of a 'blog circle' which is with several other Professional Pet Photographers around the world.  Each week a different theme is provided to the group and we, as pet photographers, interpret the theme in our own way.  Follow the link provided at the end of each of my blogs to the next pet photographer's blog - and when you arrive back at my blog - you've completed the entire circle of blogs for this theme.  For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to visit Tracy Allard of Penny Whistle Photography fetching pet and family portraits in Coppell, Carrollton and the greater Dallas - Fort Worth metroplex.

Interested in a Pet Photography Session?

If you would like to discuss or book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Hillsborough/Pinellas/Pasco/Polk counties in Florida).  We have flexible rates and packages to fit most everyone’s budget as we believe that having wonderful photographs of your pet is important to so many people.

Dogs facing away from the camera

Beautiful portraits can be created as your pet enjoys looking away from the camera - capture your pet as they admire something in our wonderful world. This blue nose pit bull wasn't crazy about any of our 'flashing lights' and decided to look away - something over that fence sounds more interesting!  If I hadn't taken this photograph I would not have noticed the usual markings on the back of her head.  Look at those little mountain peaks along with the big spot and a few small freckle spots - all things that make this girl, Sadie, unique in this world of dogs.

Back of blue nose pit bull on benchBlue nose pit bull facing away

This rescue dog, Bonnie, is thought to be a black lab mix but no one is certain.  She is very timid as she is meeting new people and they have big black things covering a good portion of their faces.  In addition, a new park with all kinds of things going on - birds, ducks, a few people all wandering around.  She took a few minutes away from the camera to see who was walking by on the nearby boardwalk at Riverhills Park in Temple Terrace, Florida.  For those not familiar, a dog that has it's tail down is usually scared or uncertain about their environment.  Bonnie is super friendly, just a bit shy with new things.

Timid black lab mix dogBlack lab mix dog standing at park

How about those beautiful ears? 

Often times when we are looking at a dog from the front, we focus on the nose or maybe the eyes - but the ears only standout when they are big or unusual.  This dog took a moment to see what was going on behind him in the middle of our photography session - the portrait is simple - just showing the shape of his head and the beautiful pointed ears.  The park environment shows a beautiful bokeh (blur) in the background.

Back of dog head with straight earsBack of reddish brown dog head with straight ears

I always laugh when people tell me about the big white spot that Abby (our beagle/coon hound mix dog) has on the back of her head.  When they comment, I say "It's so I can pick my girl out from all the rest of the mostly black dogs!".

White spot on black dog headBack of dog head showing white spot

Dog boating down the Suwannee River

Early morning we took the boat out and floated up the Suwannee river towards the Santa Fe river.  The water was smooth as glass and it's the start of a beautiful day.  Since it was smooth, quiet and we were the only ones on the river, Jimbo was allowed to stand up in the bow of our little bow rider (never allowed when going fast or other traffic is around).
 

How about Dog Tails?

Have you ever thought about all the different types of tails dogs have?  Long tails, short tails, cropped tails, long fur tails, short fur tails, solid color tails, there are a lot of possibilities here. A number of years ago I decided to take photographs of different 'pieces/parts' and it's nice to go back and see that wonderful curly tail of Jimbo's since the photographs my memories of this wonderful boy.

Curled brown dog tailJimbo's brown dog tail curling

How about those dog feet?

Big feet, little feet, extra dew claws, freckles, solid color, there are many different looking feet on dogs.  Abby has a small black freckle on her toe of her front foot.

White dog paw with freckleAbby's white dog paw

Or Dog Legs?