We are super excited – our relationship with Greencross Vets has just gone National!
We have been working with Greencross Vets for the past couple of years in Queensland, in particular clinics throughout Brisbane and the Gold Coast area. In fact we have visited and photographed over 30 clinics and have had loads of fun meeting the wonderful Greencross staff and their pets along the away. Dogs, cats, snakes and birds it’s been fantastic to see the bond that the staff share with their own furry and not so furry critters and we feel privileged to have had the opportunity to capture these special moments for the Greencross family. You can check out some of our work with Greencross Vets here
This week, Zoo Studio signed a 3 year national alliance agreement with Greencross Vets extending our photography services to Greencross clinics and Greencross clients in NSW, VIC and the greater Queensland area.
Awesome news for us, Greencross Vets and Greencross clients we think! The national group have over 14 clinics located in VIC and NSW and have big plans to expand their network of hospitals significantly in 2011 and beyond.
We are doubly pleased given that our own pets are part of the Greencross family too! Thanks Michelle, thanks Josh and thanks Esther for your wonderful care of Bollo, Sophie, Clarence, Christian and William!
So you see, that’s why we are super excited and we hope you are too — stay tuned for further information and key dates for Zoo Studio visits to Sydney and Melbourne in the coming months.
Oh… and more news to follow on some exciting raffles and competitions we are about to launch soon! So join us on facebook for some of the very latest updates and announcements
From the Barkives — Holly
We have had some big personalities in the studio before, every pet we photograph has something unique about them that I want to bring out in my photos. Not often though am I immediately reminded of both an historical figure and one of my own furry family. Meet Holly!
Straight
off I could tell that we were going to get along, just as long as I played by Holly’s rules. These rules pretty much revolved around not stopping, whether it was giving belly rubs or treats — just keep ‘em coming! She has this ability to turn a huge smile into a disapproving frown with just the lift of an eyebrow, and I have to admit to teasing her just a bit to get this look for the camera. All this reminded me of our own best girl, Sophie, who runs our house with a paw of iron (especially keeping those pesky kittens under control). I felt so at home photographing Holly as a result.
Holly was by turn playful, smiley, bossy, hungry, inquisitive, impatient, serious, giving, demanding, did I mention bossy? Just as all senior dogs should be. Puppies can be like a blank canvas, just waiting to gain life’s experiences to fill out their personalities. Old dogs are like an old master painting, maybe peeling a bit at the edges but they have survived the test of time, and their experience is written in their faces. I just love photographing old dogs.
My favourite photo is the first, with Holly staring domineeringly off into the distance over the top of the camera. I photographed her from a low position to emphasize the scale of her personality, and suddenly she reminded me of Maggie Thatcher, glaring down her critics at a political conference in the early 80s, giving her famous “The Lady is Not for Turning” speech. I asked her mum to stand behind me and call her, Holly gave that look, and its captured forever.
Old dogs are the best dogs.
Why I Photograph Pets
When I was growing up, my Mum always had two dogs. I loved every single one of them, from the grumpy old Westie called Lassie, who would only put up with my toddler probings because she was too arthritic to move; Sherry the bossy Lhasa Apso who just knew she ran the house; Polly the Staffie cross who would wee when excited and would play ball with me for hours in the garden; but especially Heidi the Golden Retriever who we got as a puppy when I was 5, and was my constant companion when I was growing up. I don’t have a single photo of any of them.
How attitudes to animals are changing. As a kid I remember the first time I stood up to my Dad, we were going on holiday and Heidi and Sherry were due to go to the kennels. I thought this grossly unfair, and told him so. I saw them as members of our family who wanted to be with us, I clearly remember their agitation every time one of the family would walk off on their own. He, along with many adults of the time, saw them as just dogs who wouldn’t care where they were so long as they were fed. Was I being anthropomorphic and putting human emotions on to mere animals? Or was I recognising common emotions that we mammals share?
Whenever I photograph pets, its so plain to me that we do share many common emotions and characteristics. We are more to them than just a food source, and they are more to us than just beasts to keep out intruders. Dogs are unique in their ability to read human emotions, they are so in tune with us in a way that mere domesticated wolves can never be. Over the last 80,000 years we have evolved emotional bonds that amaze scientists, but just confirm what dog lovers have said and thought for decades.
Every time I pick up the camera I am looking to capture these common connections. I’m not sure if its the humanity in the animal I am trying to portray, or a reflection of the animal in us humans, but I do know we humans are closer to the animals than some of us like to think. Fear, happiness, greed, contentment, excitement, boredom, playfulness; we have these emotions in common, and these are the common threads that I pick at in my photography.
Traditionally, pets have been portrayed in art as either soft and cuddly, or hard working and loyal. Think of the cutesy pastel puppies in baskets, or the loyal gun dog standing erect with bird in mouth. This doesn’t represent my pets, how I interact with them or how I see them behave from day to day. For most of us our pets are key family members, our best mates, and this is how I aim to photograph them. I use human photography techniques more in line with human portraiture and fashion photography to emphasise our commonality.
In the studio, my first job is to create an environment where your pet can relax. These days I spend more time reading about animal behaviour than photography; the better I am at interacting with my subjects on their terms, the better a photographer I become. Whilst unveiling their characters, I sculpt with my lights to emphasise their unique attributes. An ear here, a quiff there, noses, paws, tails, brightly coloured feathers and leathery scales, we build up the portrait one exposure at a time. As we play, my camera ready, I wait for the moment I feel the character and pose are ideal; I press the shutter as the final portrait is revealed before my lens.
Many people ask why I photograph in a studio rather than outside in a park or beach, or in someone’s home. I prefer the freedom of the studio; my subjects have no distraction other than me and their family, and are free to behave as they wish. No strangers getting in the way, no other animals disturbing our connection, no leash to constrain them, no bad weather to spoil the light. The light, my main tool, is always perfect in the studio. Of course special moments happen in their own home, but people have their own cameras these days for those types of photos. What we strive to create is unique and special and can only happen in the right conditions. Our portraits sit on the walls and coffee tables, beside your own personal photos.
Photographing pets in a studio, with human lighting techniques and human emotions; that’s what I love.
From the Barkives — Cadbury
Cadbury came bouncing into the studio in June, with her older sister Elly. She immediately settled in, checking it all out and getting her nose into everything (including my bag of treats!). Its always great to get a bit of puppy love in the studio! These are my favourite photos from the session, I hope you like them.
Although she loved the liver treats, she responded especially well to noises and a squeeky toy got us the lovely head tilt in the first photo. The other inquisitive expressions followed as I went through my farm yard repetoire, but I definately think the cat noises were her favourite. They learn so young…!
Thanks to Cadbury’s Mum and Dad for bringing Cadbury and Elly in, we will have to do a special on Elly to!
Photos from our Mini Break!
We just spent a few days camping at Aratula, near Cunninghams Gap, and of course we took the dogs with us. It was great to get away, and we really were away from it all without the usual running hot water and toilet block on hand. Wonderful! It was REALLY cold so we slept all cuddled together in a heap in the middle of the tent, hoping not to have to go for a walk in the middle of the night.
It was a few days of ‘firsts’, especially for our new boy Bollo. First time camping for Bollo, first time sitting around a camp fire for Bollo, first time swimming for Bollo, first time pulling Beck headfirst into the water for Bollo. Yes he had lots of fun 
Sophie also enjoyed herself, getting in the water and rolling in mud, as well as seeing off a wandering Staffie (she looked so tough in her pink pyjamas!). We decided that she was finding her ‘inner dog’ (too much time spent sleeping on the sofa, sometimes she forgets she isn’t human!).
Bollo has also just completed his Urban Basics training course with our friends Danielle and Paul at Urban Dog Training. When he arrived a couple of months ago from the RSPCA he didn’t even know sit, now he can walk on a loose lead, sit, stay, and my favourite of all ‘leave-it’. I dropped some chicken on the floor yesterday RIGHT under his nose, and before he could wolf it down I said ‘leave it’ and he just sat and looked at me. Such a proud dad! Had to give him the chicken anyway of course, plus a bit extra for being a good boy. He still can’t fetch beer though so more work to be done.
If you get a chance, please vote for us in the Paws and Claws Awards for best pet photographer! We are running a competition as a way of saying thankyou for your vote, more details here, you could win a fantastic Canon DSLR camera, with a lens, and a lesson on how to use it from yours truly. Fantastic!
Win a Canon EOS 1000D & Private Photography Lesson
Zoo Studio is very excited to announce that we have been nominated for the 4th Annual Paws and Claws Awards 2010 - as First Class Pet Photographer.
To celebrate we thought it would be a great idea to run a fabulous competition in conjunction with these Awards. That way all our clients and supporters get a chance to win something too, when you vote for Zoo Studio as First Class Pet Photographer!
It’s the Peoples Choice Awards and EVERY Vote counts. So, if you love what we do and would like to be in with a chance to win one of two great prizes, please get your vote in now. Oh and don’t forget to tell your friends and family to vote too! Voting is online, fill out the Paws and Claws voting form here Voting closes on 26th August 2010.
See Terms and Conditions on this Competition for further information
Our girl Tian
Some of you might be wondering why I haven’t posted for a while, we lost our beautiful girl Tian a few weeks back to cancer. I wanted the next blog post to be about her, but have found it very difficult to write up until now. I know many of our clients have met her, and as you all know she was a gentle, playful, loving girl. We still miss her so much.
Travel well Tian, our wonderful smiley dog, we will never forget you.
Photo Session Update
Now we don’t get many Guinea Pigs in the studio… which is a shame, because as I found out today they are very photogenic! Its great when we get something a bit different in the studio, whether it is Guinea Pigs, Snakes, Lizards, Rats, Birds… we love a bit of variety.If you have an exotic pet, why not give us a ring to get a session booked?
We also had some beautiful dogs in, and an especially cheeky bunch at that. Makes the sessions lots of fun, thats for sure.
Beck and I also had a wonderful mini break in the Sunshine Coast hinterland. It was nice to get away for a couple of days, and for once I think Beck took more photos than me! I am normnally up and about early when on holiday to get the morning light, but I guess I just needed my beauty sleep.
Hope you enjoy this weeks photos! For all you Facebookers out there, they will be going on there soon too. From now on we will do the sneak peeks on Facebook, and save the blog for other interesting items and important news.
Photo Session Update
Another week’s worth of photos for you all! A week full of Cavaliers, Pugs, a Border Collie, a Boxer, PUPPIES!, a Birman kitten and a black cat called Timmy — some of my most favourite things to photograph. Who can resist a Cavalier in a hoody? I hope you like them.
Client Session Update
Last update for the month of March already, where is this year going?
I’ve been on my travels a bit this week, its been good to get out and about especially seeing as Beck has been away (I’ve really missed her, but she’s back on Monday, ace!). Monday we had another day at the RSPCA, this time getting some photos for their education department. You know what they say about working with children and animals? They are wrong! We had a brilliant time, and thanks go to Kellie and Leah for helping out on the kid and animal wrangling and getting the shots they need, and Yvette for looking after me (again!) with lovely sandwiches. I get spoiled when I go there! Hope you like the pictures. By the way the Rooster’s name is Mr Perfect, and he is, well, perfect!
I have also been out getting more photos for various Greencross Vets clinics. If you didn’t know, we are going around all their clinics in Queensland getting photos of their staff with their own pets to put on the walls of their clinics. We have been getting a really good response, what do you think? Don;t forget to let us know if you want to be photographed with your pets!
We also managed to find some time for clients back at Zoo Studio base …
And its another full week coming up… we have a week full of Spaniels, Pugs, a Labradoodle puppy, a Burman kitten… the blog update might be a little late, we are celebrating Easter and our second wedding anniversary, but hopefully this extra large blog installment should keep you going for a couple of weeks!
Right I’m off for a beer. I’ve been painting our new specialist cat photography platform all day and I think I deserve it!