The morning I met Laura & Jackson at one of my favorite mountain top trails a Summer storm rolled menacingly through the pass. I always have mixed feelings when I see clouds in the forecast the day of a photo session. I know that it's probably going to stress my client out a bit. And some dogs are very sensitive to bad weather. BUT I also know that overcast days create the most beautiful lighting not to mention adding a bit of drama to the images.
Fortunately for me, there was no actual thunder in those clouds and Jackson was unbothered by them. In fact, like a lot of senior dogs I photograph, Jackson was unbothered by most things, including me, lol. The adorable senior Schnauzer mix was, instead, far more interested in taking himself on a a little forest outing.
With senior dogs like Jackson, my task as a photographer becomes less about directing the action and more about just following along with what he's doing and trying to be in the right place at the right time to capture the perfect shot. On bright, sunny days I always have to be aware which direction we're shooting in relation to the sun. And make dozens of quick camera adjustments to compensate for the changing light. A task that can makes photographing a senior dog extra tricky. But with the cloud-cover bouncing the light around to create beautifully diffuse light in every direction gives me the opportunity to set it and forget it on the camera and focus on what's in the viewfinder, mainly handsome Jackson.
Jackson had a tough start in life. The product of a hording situation he never really knew affection until he found Laura. And while Laura very much wanted images that would reflect the close bond they share, she was concerned that Jackson wouldn't tolerate cuddling in front of the camera. It's only been the last couple years that he's even come to allow and appreciate being petted.
While he tries to play the independent cool guy, with that awesome punk hairstyle and all, he's clearly very much a mamma's boy.
Despite his slight resistance to the doting, his expression said everything I needed to know about how he felt about Laura...that and his refusal to be coaxed more than six inches from her. Having moved to Denver for a fresh start right before the pandemic, Laura and Jackson had lots of time to become each-other's everything.
Jackson's actual birthday, and even his actual age, is a mystery. But I'm a firm believer that every dog should get to do a cake smash at least once in their life! So at the end of our long and winding wilderness adventure I had a special surprise for the sweet senior.
He was intrigued by the cake smash, though his history showed itself in an unexpected way. Jackson didn't seem quite sure how exactly to tackle the giant cake. And instead took a piece of cookie at a time trotted off with it and ate it in the tall grass. Never have I had to coax a dog so much to eat his cake. Though Laura and I joked about how tasty the frosting looked, Jackson definitely seemed to enjoy it. Though he also wasn't sure if he was actually supposed to have it.
And when it came time to turn our adventure into an art installation, Laura's beautiful craftsman renovation in progress presented one more challenge, plaster walls. For those unfamiliar with plaster walls, you can't simply pound nails in to hang things like you do drywall. Fortunately for us there was a picture rail installed and Laura even had the proper hooks for it. A little bit of creativity and some extra picture wire and we've assembled a gorgeous canvas collection to bring joy for years to come.
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