Agility Photography and a Special Cocker Collectible

In between processing photos from the Su-Et's Kennel Shoot, I popped up to Murrieta for a Temecula Valley Agilty Club Trial and met some great folks! I am thrilled to announce my accepted membership in this club - another place to regularly practice my canine sport photography - YAY! This handsome boy is Charlie the Border Collie. He was being run that day by Lynn Hummel. BC's have such intensity when they are enjoying their runs, and Charlie is no exception! Sometimes the best shots are the ones that are just not quite perfect. This one of MacKenzy shows the Sheltie flying thru the air, already taking a look at what is next on the course. I'm new to the sport, but I would bet that this means her owner/handler Nancy Edwards was doing a great job coordinating the course with MacKenzy! My photograph just didn't get the crispness and sharper edges that I am going for. But it sure does translate to a beautiful piece of artwork. Printed out you can see the crosshatching details and mesmerizing texture! I have a strong art background and I like to think it came out in this next shot. Gigi, a happy little Rat Terrier and her mom, Deborah Davidson Harpur, reached their Agility Championship and were presented their pole and ribbon this day. Agility Judge Jim Hibbard said it was his first time awarding a Championship - so it seemed like an extra special occasion to me! This shot shows Jim signing his first Champ pole. After you check out my Agility Photo Gallery (hint - click on the blog post title!), take an e-stroll over to look at the photos Marty, my new photog friend, took on Sunday as well. Photography by M is his web site. We ended up making a pretty good team, even being with two different photography studios. I'm looking forward to seeing him at more trials! I am a strong supporter of animal rescue and one of my two main Rescues that I support is San Diego Spaniel Rescue (the other is English Springer Rescue America, in case you were wondering!). SDSR has come into possession of the ever elusive Danbury Mint Cocker Spaniel Christmas Tree - out of production for a few years and extremely hard to find. People who were lucky enough to score one usually hold it close! SDSR is offering their's up in an online auction hosted by Life's Little Paws. Check it out!

Shoot News and San Diego Photographers

Take a look at these cuties! Jackson and Atticus are two Pomeranian puppies who joined me at the most recent photo shoot. We met at Su-Et's Kennel in Santee and raised some bucks for Scottish Terrier Rescue of Southern California. These pups have a great life ahead of them - only 4 and 6 months old and they already have such great manners (way to go Pom Parents)! The day brought something new my way. Sylvia is the grand matriarch of the kennel, she makes sure things run smooth and that everyone takes a moment to send some adoration her way. You can't tell from looking at this beauty, but she is going to be TWENTY YEARS OLD in August! Wow! As I was surfing the search engines, checking my web sites' placements, I came across an interesting surprise. There's another Mundell in San Diego - and he is a photographer too! Mike is a dog lover as well, but his photography is usually centered on the humans around us rather than the four-leggers. If you are looking for a wedding or event photographer, you might want to check out his website at MundellStudios.com. While I'm tossing about local photographer names, I have to include Julie Edwards, Alicia McGraw and Jen Petit. I first came across Julie's photos when I started my relationship with Dogs and the City Day Care in downtown San Diego. She also does doggie shoots there and has a great style. Her human shots are just incredible! Take a look for yourself at her website: JEdwardsPhotographer.com. Alicia is a fun photographer! She is incredibly patient, as she didn't blink when *my* Indie went on a 40 minute run in the middle of a park shoot. She had Bennett, Spencer and Tara to keep her company while I went to corner and collect the Diva. Alicia does some great "retro" work too. Check out her site at AlishaMcGrawPhotography.com. My all-time hands-down paws-up favorite pet photographer (other than myself, of course!) in San Diego is Jen Petit at Fuzzle.info. Jen is a wonderful supporter of local animal rescue and takes some awesome luring photos as well at LurePix. I have some great role models and someday hope to see my name on a photographer's list of "faves"!

Greeting Cards are HERE!

Imagine an image like this on full color, glossy greeting cards. Then click the linked title to this post and you are there! My new greeting card store features my favorite photos from each shoot - which means it's growing every day! Happy Shopping!

Ups 'N Downs Agility Club at Skydance Ranch

This is Kora. Kora's human mom hosted a shoot in her beautiful back yard last month that featured the Chinook breed. What fun that afternoon - wonderful dogs and some new friends! It turns out that Kora is in Intermediate Agility Class at Ups 'N Downs Agility Club. When Kora (and her mom) found out that I was searching for opportunities to improve my agility photography, she arranged for me to join in and watch a class this week. It was an easy drive to Oceanside and Skydance Ranch, home to the classes, is an awesome destination! While the evening light was disappearing too quickly for me take any decent photos, I did get a feel for the class and met the Club's VP. I can't say enough nice things about this organization from what I saw that night. I am lucky enough to now be invited to do my practicing at any training, fun trial or competition trial they host. THANK YOU Ups 'N Downs! I hope to improve my agility shots enough to provide you with some great shots soon! In the meantime, here is an unknown Bearded Collie - one of my successful shots from a Trial in Rohr Park, Bonita, CA last year. I can't wait to nail the moments like this consistently!

May Special at Photo Site

For the month of May, I've chosen custom JIGSAW PUZZLES for the super secret special (click on this post's link to get to that gallery). I've picked my favorite photos in a horizontal layout (landscape layout, in photographer-speak) to be included in this gallery. Large, 252-piece puzzle measures 14 inches by 10 inches and has a glossy finish. It comes in a black box with a 5 x 7 print of the image on top of the box. Box measures 5.625" x 7.625" x 1.2". Color reproduction is excellent.

Imagine suprising your favorite dog owner with a photo of their beloved breed on one of these puzzles! Normally priced at $41.72, you can get your custom puzzles this month from this exclusive collection for only $34.99.