I do believe that the eyes of animals are much more expressive than us humans.  While the eyes may be the windows to the soul, humans have learned to hide their feelings and manipulate their expressions to suit the circumstances.

Dogs, on the other hand, really hide nothing.

I had to throw this green grass photo in here, because right now we are covered in snow which is covered in ice, thanks to the rain we had today.  I am thinking about dragging my ice skates from the attic just to go to my car.

Yes, that's Lilah, above, as happy as a dog could be rolling in the grass.  I think once the grass comes back, I will try doing the same.

As a photographer, I am always focused on a pet's eyes.  They tell me a lot about how that pet is feeling at the moment.  I usually let pets get comfortable around me before taking any photos of them.  After years of watching, not just the eyes of my own dogs, but also the eyes of my clients' pets, I have a good handle on when it is safe to begin to photograph and get the best expression we can.

Before you read the next paragraph, what do you think Lilah's eyes are telling you here?
GIVING
YOU
TIME
TO
THINK

Answer:  She is a little nervous thinking way ahead of the game to the treat she will get once we are done with the photographs in the studio. She is actually looking toward where I keep the treats in a drawer in the studio.

I do think that Lilah, and our dog, Danny, have the most expressive eyes of all of our dogs.  Our dog, Moe, has the most expressive nose, and can imitate Elizabeth Montgomery (Samantha on Bewitched) really well.

Of course the optimum photo is to have the subject look right into the camera with a very relaxed expression, just like Floyd did for the photo  below.

When lighting dogs, you have to be careful how the lighting will reflect off of their eyes, as the structure is different than ours, and it is easy to have too much light reflecting through them.

And what about CATS you ask?  Well, that's a whole other blog post.

To see more expressive pets, the blog circle today is all about EYES!  Forge ahead and have a LOOK!  Start here with Colleen of Simply Col Photography - for the love of photography and pound pups.  Have a great weekend!

This is me.

I don't go anywhere without that headband.

Well......okay, I do. But only on Sunday.

If you blew this photo up, you would find dog hair on my shirt. That's because we have seven dogs, all rescues.  We also have five cats, five horses and seven chickens.  Plus, I am usually working around a dog or cat or various other animals most of the time.  I have a small spot in my closet that contains "hair-free" clothing, which I put on in a plastic bubble when I have to go to a function where I know dog hair will be misunderstood. Since I spend most of my time crawling around in the dirt or on a studio floor, I also have a full hamper.

Needless to say, I love all animals.  As far back as I remember, I have loved all animals. I recently found a photo of me when I was a little girl visiting the zoo.  I was as happy as a clam, standing in front of a zebra in its enclosure.  I was probably trying to figure out how to release it.

This head band is very fitting, because May through October I raise monarch butterflies.  Last year I released 38 healthy monarchs into the world.  Since the monarch population has been steadily dwindling, it's the least I can do, especially since I could not release the zebra.

I think I was always meant to end up on the path of pet photography. That path was PRETTY winding leading here.  I did not study photography in school or in college, but I did take many photos during these periods in my life.  I worked for many years (23) in higher education.  That link to higher ed has given me a mindset that doesn't allow me to just JUMP into anything.  I tend to do quite a bit of research and devote time to studying what I need to know.  It's that mindset that led me to study many aspects of the art of photography, and over the course of the last seven years, I have taken many courses geared to portrait work.

My husband is an extraordinary builder. Besides building our barn and our Fort Knox of chicken coops, he built my studio over a year ago.

It's a lovely space to work in.  One of my goals this year is to develop a video about the studio and my work with clients.  I shoot both in my studio (for portrait work) and on location (for action, event, and lifestyle work).

I am a member of Professional Photographers of America (PPA), and I have passed the written exam portion of my Certified Professional Photography work.  My second goal this year is to complete my certification, by submitting my images for review. I am also a member of the Professional Photographers Association of Pennsylvania.  This year I will begin to compete in their print competition (Goal #3).

I L-O-V-E my clients!  They all love animals too.  I love making them happy and seeing their faces light up when they see their photos!

Below is a small slideshow sampling of my portrait work, taken in studio, on location, or at covered events.

If you would like more information about a photography session, you can hop out of this blog and head to the contact portion of my website, email me at elainetweedy@gmail.com, or follow me on my business page on Facebook.  I am also on Instagram.

I loved this week's theme, because now I get to join you in learning more about the photographers participating in the blog circle! Starting with Kim of BARKography photographing dogs in the greater Charlotte NC area and other cities around the US and Canada.

We have a snowy weekend ahead.  I am looking forward to taking some photos of dogs in snow. Enjoy yours, whatever it may hold!

Happy 2019!  It's another New Year. Before we know it, it will be summer.  I can't wait for that!

I have done a lot of preparatory work for another banner year of photography.  I took some classes between Christmas and New Years Day, ordered some new props and backdrops for the studio and built a platform for photographing larger dogs.

This year I have a number of goals on my agenda, which I will cover at some point during the blog cycles.  Suffice it to say, it's going to be a great year, if I can stick to my guns and get it all under my belt.

One of the reasons I love photography, is that if you study and practice your art form, you can tell a good story, and save an image that might not otherwise look saveable.  The post processing (edit) tricks used by individual photographers are often a matter of taste.

To illustrate, I've used a somewhat lack-luster image of our dog Lilah, intently watching birds and squirrels at our bird feeders after our one and only snow event so far this winter.

This unedited, raw image was taken with a quick grab of the camera (which for once was actually nearby) to capture the intensity of Lilah's gaze in her usual hang-over-the-couch position.  I didn't have time to fool with settings, and, luckily, they were close enough to what I needed so that the image was not in total darkness.  The problem with shooting a subject in front of a window is the light.  Window light will not do an adequate job of lighting the side of the dog that isn't in that light.  You can see here how Lilah's features are darkened on her right side.  Plus, there are too many "extras" in this photo's story.  It needs to be edited (cropped) down, to focus more on the subject.

The great thing about shooting in Raw is all of the valuable data that accompanies a photo is attached to that photo, and can be recovered.  Above is the final version of the image, which really does highlight the subject (Lilah) and her intense gaze on the world outside.  She loves snow, and birds, and squirrels.  All three together are like a "you've got to be kidding me!!!!" doggy smorgasbord.

I am so happy to have caught her in this very Lilah look, and in one of our everyday life happenings.

I enjoy taking my time with every client photo to seek out the real story, and make beautiful afters of all the befores!

For more BEFORE and AFTER, a blog circle of photographers is waiting for you to just click on the links at the bottom of each page and travel around to see their take on this week's theme.  We have some new additions this year and I am looking forward to reading their blogs and welcoming them to the circle.  To begin, start with Kim of  BARKography, photographing dogs in Charlotte NC and other cities across the US and Canada.

I hope AFTER your weekend is over, you will be able to say you accomplished everything you wanted to do BEFORE it began!