Diane Jarvis-Schuller

Good samaritans abound in my circle of life these days.

Because I’m so busy lately and because my dogs are not getting the kind of attention & exercise they’re used to, I’ve hired someone to help out with the dogs. On Monday, the fellow who had my male Australian Shepherd, Austin, ended up losing him. When he finally phoned me, Austin had been missing for quite some time already. I immediately came to the area where they were to help find him. I won’t go over the long involved story but needless to say, despite my recent frustration with the dogs, I was still incredibly desperate to find Austin.

During my search I met a woman biking on the forest trails with her two dogs and she spent a couple hours helping to find Austin, plus a few others who willingly joined in. I looked and called, and walked, and cried, and called until it was so dark that I couldn’t see anymore. Then I received a phone call (on my husband’s cell phone that I had borrowed) saying Austin had been found. Austin had been seen on a busy bypass wandering aimlessly down the middle of that highway with vehicles just barely missing him. Two separate men stopped to try and get him off the road. The end result, after much determination, was that one of the men was finally successful in getting him off the road and into his vehicle. He lives out of town but, again through the efforts of many good samaritans, one person called another and another and this fellow was connected to call me. I would have been devastated had Austin been hit by a vehicle. To me, an animal being put quietly and gently to sleep is the most humane way for their life to end — not in some painful, tragic accident after hours of fear.

So, the old boy is back home and back to his old self. Though I will say he had a very restless night Monday, up numerous times to go potty and to drink water. He’s not used to eating anything but real food and I suspect he must have been given some dry dog treats by his loving rescuer, which would explain his desperate need to drink so much. By morning he had worked through that and all is well once again.

I can’t tell you how grateful I am for the multiple good samaritans that came our way on Monday. Tell me about a good samaritan you’ve come across recently.

 ”Act as if what you do makes a difference.  It does.”  ~William James

I had some very willing canine models on Thursday. What a delightful way to spend part of an afternoon. The light was just how I like it too.

Seems they were most interested in playtime — look at that snow fly! It’s like watching toddlers at play!

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Diane specializes in photographing dogs, pets, and horses. She comes to you or a location of your choosing. She will capture the true essence of your pet so you have some beautiful and memorable photographs. If you have a dog kennel and need professional photographs for your website or for advertising, Diane is the one to call!  Visit Diane’s website to find out more.

A few days ago, after reading a poignant post over at Shutter Sisters, I made the decision to begin my own 365 project.

For the photographers who pop by and visit here, you’ll all know what a 365 project is, but for others here is the simple explanation of what it’s about. A 365 project involves taking at least one photograph each and every day of the year. It has different purposes, among them: incentive to take photos of your daily life or the life around you; to help photographers grow; to be sure not to miss recording important moments in your life; to keep the creative juices flowing, for some it’s a chance to begin building a body of work; and so on.

For me however, the main reason for commencing this project was something Meredith said, “There is something important and beautiful to remember and be grateful for every. single. day.” That statement, in particular, is what set off a spark in me. Although I don’t plan on limiting myself to only photographing that which I’m grateful for, the reason is truly worthy of embracing. And if I’m being truly honest, there was one other thing she said that nailed it for me. She said, “… if I were able to pick up the phone and call my mother each day to share one thing that happened that day I would. But I can’t.” Well I can’t either and I wish I could. This project then will be moment(s) in my day that I would share, if I could, whether they are moments worthy of celebration or moments of the mundane things we need to do during our day-to-day life. A snapshot within my day.

I’ve begun my project, though not on the first day of the year, as most photographers tend to commence this type of project. I also won’t be posting most of the images here (at least I don’t think so). For now, I’m posting them quite informally over at my Flickr account, though I will likely share an occasional one here. Since this is my business-related photo journal, I didn’t think it was the venue for my casual 365 project.

Have you taken on some form of ongoing project? What did you learn or how did you grow as a result of participating in that project?

(okay, so I get desperate for titles!) … Our aging Springer Spaniel Maggie had surgery on her eye this week. Good old Pearl went immediately into protection mode the moment I brought Maggie home from the animal hospital. That was a few days ago and all is well and normal again. (This photo is neither Maggie nor Pearl but thought you might enjoy it anyway.)

A dog can express more with his tail in seconds than his owner can express with his tongue in hours. ~Author Unknown

So are you well on your way to getting ready for Christmas? I got all my personal Christmas cards done today; tomorrow I plan on doing all my client Christmas cards. The boxes of Christmas decorations are all in the house waiting to be sorted out and hung. That’s a job for tomorrow as well. Since we never get to go to any Christmas parties ( I really miss those great social events ), I’ve decided I’m going to have some girlfriends over for a pre-Christmas lunch in a week from now and then my husband and I are also going to have an open house at some point likely just after Christmas. Something to look forward to! What about you? What social events are you looking forward to during the holiday season?

If I were to try and put a caption to this photo of an 8 year old puppy it might go something like, “Is that my youth down in there somewhere?”

Next post is a pictorial of Rocky Mountain Sheep I encountered a few weeks ago.

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Diane is an experienced dog, pet, & horse photographer serving Grande Prairie and surrounding regions. Visit Diane’s website to view her portfolio and to learn more about getting beautiful and candid photos of your dog, pet, or horse!

Photographs Never Forget!

If you’re a regular visitor, you’ll know the reason why I’m not posting as often as I usually have been. Due to a shoulder injury, my posts have necessarily become quite infrequent. I just returned from a trip to see my dad. I was unable to be at he grand opening of the new airport terminal that is now named for him so I got down there as soon thereafter as I could.

{Driving home on Highway 40 a few days ago.}

This post will be entirely non-photography related because I want to step up on my soapbox for a moment. Since I returned from the south, a winter storm has blown in and last night at supper hour it was already 23 below zero. It went down to 25 below zero overnight. Every winter I worry and cringe because I know there are so many suffering animals outside in this weather. The ones that I worry the most about are dogs, in particular, especially the poor dears that are tied up. Tying a dog up, in my mind, is cruel to start with. It seems that most people who won’t bother to fence in an area for their dog are the ones who never take that poor dog for daily walks — some dogs never get off that darn chain. Okay, that’s not exactly where I was going with my soapbox even though it’s a sad fact. What concerns me so much are those dear dogs that are left outside without any shelter or no proper shelter. Especially when a dog is tied up, they can’t even move around enough to get their circulation working sufficiently. Some people don’t even give their dog a dog house. And those plastic or fibreglass doghouses may be cheap but they are totally ineffective. The only ones benefitting from those excuses for a dog house are the manufacturer and the retailers that sell them. A dog needs an insulated wood dog house to withstand the frigid winter weather. It should also be placed where it is further protected from winds. The dog house also requires some form of bedding, whether it’s a cushioned dog bed, a thick old blanket, or fresh straw (NOT hay). When straw or shavings are used, they need to be replenished frequently (weekly) and should be used in large quantities. I prefer providing a thick cushioned dog bed — and so does the dog.

Before I continue on this soap box I should also mention something else. Absolutely no lap dog (those are the little breeds, primarily) should ever be left outside, ever! They were bred to be INDOOR lap dogs, not to withstand cold weather particularly harsh winters. Also, any short hair breed regardless of how big it may be, is also not well suited to bearing winter. And when those poor dogs are not given proper — or any — shelter, they suffer intensely. Imagine if you were made to stay outside, with only your street clothes and a sweater and no extra coat, tethered to the back fence and the weather plummeted to minus 10, minus 15, minus 20, minus 30! It is exactly the same for the dog — they suffer and suffer greatly.

I’m one of those people who reports  people to the SPCA. And because they often only give people a warning especially if it’s the first call they get, it’s necessary to keep reporting people when they don’t provide shelter or appropriate shelter to their dogs. Those poor dogs have no one to defend them, speak  for them. If we don’t speak up for them, we are just as guilty by letting them suffer. (And yes, if I know a child is being ill-treated or suffering in some way I would have no problem reporting the situation, so it’s not just dogs that concern me.)

I feel that most people who have dogs, shouldn’t have them. If a person has a dog and it’s tied up all the time and does not get at least daily exercise (to a park or anywhere but the yard), they should not have a dog. And double that thought if they also don’t provide proper shelter for the poor thing. Those people don’t need or deserve a dog; they should get a stuffed dog for all they do to provide for its needs.

If you’re still reading, thank you. I know that you must be a concerned and conscientious individual. I hope you’ll find it in your heart to report anyone you see who has a dog that is suffering in the backyard.

{English Springer Spaniel on one of her daily winter outings.}

… with a nod to James Herriot’s book of a similar title. This weekend we spent a great deal of time outdoors, cutting down perennials, walking the dogs, and a few photo lessons for my husband. He’s heading out in a couple weeks for his vacation and wanted me to teach him how to use our old digital camera. The old one is the one we use for ‘knocking around’ and it’s the one that gets carried around in the car all the time. Besides it’s a LOT lighter than my regular camera. Anyway, I got off track. I took a few photos this weekend, just for the fun of it (are you noticing a trend lately?). There is no better light than at this time of year. THE . BEST . LIGHT.

The reason for the title is because when I was picking 3 photos to post for the end-of-the-weekend, besides the light, the other connection is that the subjects are all small, I’m down low, and yet the subjects are really quite great, are they not? Okay, so maybe I’m stretching connections, but here they are anyway. Enjoy.

When I downloaded the last photo below, the first thing it reminded me of was Velvia film. Do you remember that old Velvia film? It always resulted in real strong vivid colours, especially the yellows and blues. And, if I’m remembering correctly, the reds were pretty saturated with Velvia film too. One thing I did to this image, as you can see, is add some vignetting. There was some natural vignetting already but I specifically emphasized it a bit because it really added to that old Velvia look.

Some of you may recognize the gal in this next photo. She’s our 11 1/2 year old English Springer Spaniel, Maggie. I love when one or both of her floppy ears is flipped back like this one.  You’ll likely also notice her right eye — to your left — looks a bit off or different from her normal eye — the one on your right. She has a small tumour that is causing her eye to be infected and she’ll soon have to have surgery for the tumour to be removed. We’ve been holding off having it done for a number of reasons. She has a non-malignant form of cancer but she’s been having some sporadic health issues that cause her to become very ill for a day or two at a time and then she gets completely well again. We were so afraid of her having surgery in case it causes everything to become worse, but that eye is really getting worse. So this weekend we both made the decision our old gal is going to get the surgery.

I bet she can outrun and out-hunt any of your dogs The vet is always amazed at what fantastic condition Maggie is in. The one vet said she has never seen a Springer Spaniel that isn’t obese, except my dog.

Oh and I nearly forgot, we also had our Thanksgiving dinner today, a week early. Since I will be in Edmonton next weekend for Thanksgiving, I decided to do turkey and all the trimmings — including pumpkin pie — today. I really don’t know any good reason why most of us only cook turkey on holidays. I’m going to try and ‘fix’ that and make it more often.

I haven’t forgotten — because I got way behind this summer with posting previews from some of my photo shoots, I am definitely going to post a few photos from that last wedding. I’ll try and get a few up later this week. I hope you are getting out and photographing your family in this amazing autumn light — and don’t forget to get them printed!

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Photographs Never Forget!

Don’t forget my upcoming workshop in Grande Prairie, “How to Take Better Photos of Your Children.”

As I’m getting ready for the wedding I’m photographing tomorrow, it seems a good time to pull out some canine photos taken a few weeks ago.

These are our two Australian Shepherds, Austin (the red merle) and Pearl (the blue merle). This first one is a common type of portrait, as you can easily tell.

But I don’t always stick to the standard. My eye is often drawn to details, different perspectives, and something that may tell more of a story. This next one shows how strong the wind was blowing as Austin took one of his rare moments to stand still and see what the other two dogs were up to. I get the dogs out in the field at least twice every day and sometimes more. My husband also always takes them out once in the evening after we’ve had dinner. Having dogs is a big responsibility since they rely on humans entirely for their exercise, mental stimulation, and food.

This third one is my favourite of today’s images. This is Pearl and I love the perspective as well as how the wind was blowing her hair. The contrast of her hair against the background also appeals to me. I’m usually not at all any good at titles but I’d call this one, “Who Has Seen the Wind?”

“We have the Bill of Rights. What we need is a Bill of Responsibilities.” ~Bill Maher

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Photographs Never Forget! Keeping memories alive with custom albums and portraits.

Diane loves to photograph pets of all kinds (dogs, cats, horses, …) as well as the bond between humans and their pets. Contact Diane for a custom on-location photo session before the trees are bare and the weather turns bitter.

I had the pleasure of photographing a truly wonderful couple and their two dogs. Although there are some incredibly fun photos of this playful couple, I’m posting some of the quiet moments first.

This first trio of photos I put on a sample storyboard — just thought these three fit nicely together. I wish I had more ‘play’ time because I love creating storyboards and putting together design pages. For some I use templates I have purchased and others I design myself. This is a nice little sample though, don’t you think? The perky little dog is Chewy and that noble looking Great Dane is Eva. The handsome couple are A & S.

I had such an enjoyable time with this couple. They were also a delight to photograph. I’ll likely post a few more from their session in a day or two. For today, here is one more photo of Chewy and one artistic photo of Eva.

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Photographs Never Forget! … Keeping memories alive with custom portraits and albums.

It’s already time to start booking for fall photos. I will be taking a very limited number of bookings this fall so contact me today to ensure you get a spot. I will also be running a special for all 2010 clients who wish to order Christmas cards for this year. Watch my newsletter and this photo journal for details.

I enjoy putting storyboards together. Partly because it’s another creative outlet but also because I like to see how some of the images I’ve captured come together. This is simply a sample of a 10×20 but I really like the idea of featuring the 3 dogs on their own. This storyboard configuration would work well for a family and children or for a couple and then featuring some detail images on the side. Lots of possibilities.

Of course, we can turn things a few degrees changing it right up. No one says a 10×20 needs to be created or hung horizontally; vertical works quite nicely too, especially for those narrow spaces on certain walls. Don’t you love how that brilliant orange makes a statement?

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Photographs Never Forget!