photographing my own dog

I usually photograph other people's dogs, but I recently took some time to photograph our Mr Coco. 

Being 14 and basically blind and deaf, I've been meaning to get some portraits of him because I know all too well, time isn't always on our side. Plus, he's not a superfan of my camera, it's easy to put off.

But I've been doing more palliative pet photo sessions lately so I figured if all went well, it would be a chance to work on the photo I wanted for our wall, as well as be a bit of an experiment -- to see if I could capture him as I do for other people's pets.

It was just me and him in the studio, and if I'm being honest, it was kinda tough.
Partially because he's not really comfortable in my studio anymore. He used to love it because he'd get treats and had a special bed, but that's no longer enough and it's now just kinda confusing for him. And he doesn't like the slippery paper of the backdrop so he didn't want to stand on it for very long.

And all that got me thinking...

Am I capturing him how I see him? Like really see him? Or am I capturing some other, more fearful part of him? Do others see him as I do, or how he appears in the photos? Are those the same thing? Is he enjoying this in any way?

And that led me to ponder... 
Do I capture other people's pets as they see them? How much do other people want to see their pets as I see them?

Really, this experience opened a bit of a can of worms in my brain, but at the end of the day, that's part of what being an artist is. There's self doubt, there are questions that may never be answered, but I know this: 1) I love photographing pets, including my own, and 2) I consider it an honour to be able to share someone's pets through my lens and my eyes.

So, here are a few more photos from my session with our Mr Coco.
Thanks for stopping by, ~w