Studio Contest Winner | Sadie
I’m so excited to introduce the second of my two winners from my Studio Session Contest. I am so grateful to everyone who took the time to enter and expressed excitement about my studio announcement and my passion project.
If you’re new here, you can read my announcement here and learn more about the project:
Blog Post: Now Booking! Studio Dog Photography Sessions!
And if you’d like to read about my first studio contest winner click here.
I received almost 60 applications for the contest, and I loved reading through all of your stories and learning about your dogs and why you were excited about the With Love & Dogs Project.
So many of your stories touched my heart and I hope I have the chance to meet all of you and work with all of your dogs someday. Today, I’m introducing Sadie, who was one of two winners of a free studio session. She was such a sweet girl and I loved getting to know her and cuddle with her. She was amazing during her studio session and I had so much fun working with her and her parents!
MEET SADIE
Sadie’s story touched my heart so much that I knew I had to meet her and photograph her for her family. She was rescued from a life of abuse and neglect in San Antonio, TX. When she arrived in Connecticut she was pregnant, had mange, and was scared of men. Her puppies all got adopted quickly and she was the last one left. Amy saw her online and convinced her husband Jason to go and see her. Amy said that when Sadie’s beautiful brown eyes met hers it was love and first sight, and they brought her home the next day. Since her adoption four years ago, she’s warmed up to men and gives love to everyone she meets. When Amy’s mom passed away unexpectedly, she wouldn’t leave Amy’s side and got her through the toughest days. She continues to sense when her mom is sad and comfort her through the difficult moments. Even after all see went through as a young pup, she exudes so much joy and love and is truly one of the sweetest dogs I’ve ever met. She plays like a puppy, loves giving paw and kisses, and poses perfectly for treats!
She was so much fun during her session and was a star in front of the camera. Congratulations to Sadie, Amy and Jason for winning the Studio Giveaway!
Sadie had so many adorable, happy and goofy expressions and was just a star in front of the camera!
I was so excited that Amy and Jason were game for a whole bunch of family photos. They even coordinated their outfits perfectly! I love including dog owners in images, and these ended up being some of my favorite family photos ever.
It’s nice to do both family photos and individual ones with each parent. If you’re considering a pet portrait session, I hope you’ll also consider joining in on the action! Aren’t these just so adorable? Sadie really loves her parents :)
Honestly I couldn’t choose between these so I had to include them all. Sadie was so cute and perfect - she looked at each parent, at me, and kissed their hands. Is this girl not the sweetest little thing?!?
I love to capture images of your dog’s tails and paws if possible. As a dog photographer, these are my version of what wedding photographers call “detail shots.” They make wonderful additions to an album and if you’re anything like me (and like Sadie’s owners) you absolutely love every little feature of your pup. Someday you may really love to have a close up image of those things you don’t ever want to forget.
Sadie’s dad Jason is in the military so we ended our session by taking some photos of Sadie posing with his uniform and the flag. Thank you so much Jason for your service to our country!
the making of art-worthy images: composites
For Sadie’s image for the With Love & Dogs Project, we chose this beautiful quote that had special meaning to Sadie’s mom, whose own mom passed away recently and this was a quote she had hanging up in her home. I wanted to incorporate confetti, but it’s usually a tricky element for most dogs because they often want to eat it or are confused by what it is! I took some photos without the confetti first to get a cute look, and then used several confetti images to create the one final image for the project! The “blooper” images ended up serving a dual purpose. I used the confetti from the various images to create a composite that became the beautiful final image, but Sadie’s parents also loved the blooper images so much that we made an entire album spread out of them!
Here’s the final image of Sadie for the With Love & Dogs Project! Her parents were thrilled about how it came out and ordered a large print of it for their home. I’m really excited about how it came out. Sadie was such an amazing studio model!
Sadie is an incredible dog. I had so much fun working with her and her parents and creating beautiful images, prints and an album for them. It was truly such a pleasure and I hope to work with all of you again!
hEIRLOOM aRTWORK
Sadie’s parents ordered some beautiful prints and my Signature Album, which is an absolutely gorgeous 10x10 album with thick pages and stunning cover options, plus it comes with its own album box. Amy is a graphic designer and was really excited to design a cover for her album, so she created this lovely paw print with a heart and Sadie’s full name. They chose the Plum linen cover with Silk pages, and I am OBSESSED with how this album came out (like I really had a hard time giving it to them and not keeping it for myself!). This is the upgraded option of my two albums and I love creating these for clients. I also offer a less expensive Signature Book (a great option if you’re also investing in wall art), but the Signature Album is truly a gorgeous heirloom to cherish forever, and I love creating these for clients. If you’d like to learn more about artwork options, click here to view my artwork page, or click here to contact me with questions!
Check out the video below to watch me flip through Sadie’s full album!
Interested in booking your own studio session and being part of the With Love & Dogs Project? Contact me today and let’s chat about your dogs and how I can help you capture them in photographs that you can cherish forever. I would love to work with you!
