Where's the Jelly?

Fine Feathered Friend

Dog Blog Post #734: The vast majority of the time I'm able to stretch, mangle, finagle, or talk my way into having one shot meet multiple challenges.

And I probably could have done that today, as well.

But I liked both the shot above, for:

Our Daily Challenge - June 29, 2012 - "Feathered"

From the AKC Golden Retriever Standard, under coat:

"Untrimmed natural ruff; moderate feathering on back of forelegs and on underbody; heavier feathering on front of neck, back of thighs and underside of tail."

In this shot, the long hair on the floor framing his face are his feathers, from his leg the left side and his ruff on the right.

And I also liked the shot below for:

Daily Dog Challenge "242. Tasty - It's true, our dogs have different palates than we do sometimes. Show us what your dog thinks is tasty today!"

Peanut Butter, what else?

So off they went to their respective groups.

So there.

Zachary: "Mom, you forgot the jelly!"
Henry: "Cookies ruined."

Jelly will rot your teeth, boys. The cookies will be yummy. Try them.

Zachary: "They sure smell good - and they are loaded with peanut butter..."
Henry: "Not the same without jelly."

Fine. Then I'LL eat the cookies.

Mmm Mmm Mmm

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© 2011 BZ Training - All Rights Reserved

Puppies, Pastries, and a Movie

Dog Blog Post #733: Well, what have we here?

An...

Daily Dog Challenge "241. Obstructed View"

… of the boys peering at some…

Scavenge Challenge June 2012 "12. Pies, croissants, rolls, brioches...pick your pastry and photograph it in warm, soft light."

… sitting...

Our Daily Challenge - June 28, 2012 - "On the Shelf"

Sorry boys, not today.

How about a couple of your favorite dog cookies instead?

I couldn't seem to come up with a narrative to caption today's pictures. I think it's because I spent all my time trying to get the shot set up and no time thinking about what I was going to say about it afterwards.

Bad blogger.

No buiscut.

Errr... pastry.

The incredibly observant might notice that there is a black background behind the top shot, which is the boys staring at the pastries on my kitchen table. Shots of this nature typically include a really distracting background - a jumble of walls and doorways and bright lights and the TV (if I forget to turn it off)

-or-

It looks drab and dark because I've had to spend hours in Aperture burning (darkening) and vignetting and pushing a bunch of sliders around to hide that really distracting background.

But not today.

Nope, today I spent less than five minutes setting up the background stand from my Photography Studio in a Bag, draping my black stretchy velvet over the crossbar, and holding it in place with some little plastic clamps.

Why in the world didn't I think of that sooner???

Editor's Note: The other day Colby over at Puppy in Training asked about the "Leave It" command. Yup, the boys are well acquainted with it and it is a mainstay of photo shoots. You can see Henry's first experiences with it below (skip to 1:15 to see the "Zen" part):

Awww... what a sweetie! Was he really that small???

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© 2011 BZ Training - All Rights Reserved

The Professors

Dog Blog Post #732: Today we had...

Professors Zachary and Henry, both looking quite cheery. Zachary has his…

240. "Something Transparent"

… glasses perched…

Our Daily Challenge - June 27, 2012 - "Over and Under"

… over his nose and under his hat as they each sit for their...

Scavenge Challenge June 2012 - "17. Make a formal portrait ("head shot") of a companion animal (yours or a friend's)." (spare)

… portrait.

Yes folks, believe it or not, Henry can be serious...

Just not for very long!



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© 2011 BZ Training - All Rights Reserved

Framed

Dog Blog Post #731: Today we had...

Daily Dog Challenge "239. Low Horizon"

Our Daily Challenge - Jan 26, 2012 - "Geometry"

Scavenge Challenge June 2012 - "23. Use an empty picture frame to set off your subject (i.e., frame something with the frame)."

Yep, he was framed. :)

... and not framed...

Zachary: "Anybody know the number of a GOOD photographer?"

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© 2011 BZ Training - All Rights Reserved

Send Help

"Hello?"

Dog Blog Post #730: What makes one shoot more satisfying than another? Well, it's certainly more satisfying when the boys are listening and cooperating.

Usually.

Sometimes, it's those very times when they are not cooperating - that is, when I'm not doing a good job explaining the task at hand - that ultimately lead to the most satisfaction when things finally "click" (pardon the pun) and the shot comes out.

Today, it was my least favorite shot of the "usable" bunch that gave me the most satisfaction...

Why?

Because I find it very difficult to get One-Up-One-Down shots, as the shoot quickly devolves into a game of whack-a-mole, with the boys popping up and dropping down, seemingly at random, as I call out directions and wave my hands about ineffectively.

The pigeons in the park are more orderly.

It's not a pretty sight.

Today, in a fit of madness and with a few extra minutes to spare, I decided to give it Yet Another Go.

I had the camera remote trigger by my side and cookies in each hand. The boys were both in a down. With one cookie filled hand pressed up against Henry's nose in hopes of gluing him to the floor, I used the other to lure (yes, lure) Zachary up.

Not a word was spoken. No hand signals were given.

And suddenly they were there. It was effortless. They actually stayed. I almost forgot to trigger the remote.

So while the picture itself isn't anything to write home about (or post!) it was certainly most satisfying.

Well, that and the picture at the top. I just love it when Henry gets all wrinkle faced. :)

--- Oh,  what were the challenges? From flickr:

Walked in to find the kitchen in total…

Daily Dog Challenge238. Chaos"

… with the boys on the verge of being buried under a…

Our Daily Challenge - Jan 25, 2012 - "Pile/Stack"

... of paper. Good thing they could reach the…

Scavenge Challenge June 2012 - "16. Old-style telephones are becoming uncommon. No cell phones allowed here!"

Darned elevator music...

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© 2011 BZ Training - All Rights Reserved

Kick Up Your Heels

Dog Blog Post #729: Seeing as it was Sunday, and the weather was perfect, the boys decided to…

Daily Dog Challenge "237. Kick Up Your Heels"

… kick up their heels and have a lively game of fetch.

Well, at least Zachary did, as we all know he's the Lacrosse Ball's biggest...

Our Daily Challenge - June 24, 2012 - "Fan"

While Henry might not be as big a fan as Zachary, I think his tail just might qualify as a fan!

As for Monday Mischief? I think the culprit is the Lacrosse Ball itself this time, managing to elude Zachary...

... but only for a moment!

Can you spot it in the shot above? (Hint - it's not the one at Henry's feet.)

And now, as promised, a few outtakes from yesterday's Spinner shots...

Zachary's tongue fluttering in the breeze or a huge raspberry? You make the the call!

Love the fur, but the drop of drool on the end of Henry's tongue? Ewww!

And finally, a mosaic showing the effects of Exposure (Shutter Speed)...

You can click on the links below to see the full-sized version in Flickr.

1. Wind Spinner - 1 @ 1/250s
2. Wind Spinner - 2 @ 1/50s
3. Wind Spinner - 3 @ 1/20s

4. Wind Spinner - 4 @ 1/13s
5. Wind Spinner - 5 @ 1/6s
6. Wind Spinner - 6 @ 0.8s


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© 2011 BZ Training - All Rights Reserved

Wind Spinner

"Oooooo"

Dog Blog Post #728: Ok, I admit it, I rather liked how this came out - and it was fun to shoot, to boot!

So, we have, on a...

Our Daily Challenge - Jun 23, 2012 - "Warm"

… day, Henry spends much of his time sitting in front of the fan. You can see how fast it goes, by looking at the…

Scavenge Challenge June 2012 - "5. Wind chimes and wind-spinners are the subject of this assignment."

… wind-spinner...

Daily Dog Challenge "236. Spinning"

… spinning away!

I picked the spinner up this morning at Party City, as well as few more props that might very well make their way into the photostream in the near future. Gotta love that store for props: huge selection, inexpensive to dirt cheap, and many thing in kids (read "dogs") sizes.*

Here's Zachary looking entranced...

"Ahhhhh"

But for the out-takes, you're going to have to wait until tomorrow's Mischief Monday post. :)

1/20s, f/5.6, ISO 400, 50mm

Editor's Note: Jet asked about "Golden Slippers". You see all that fluffy hair on the boys' ruff and ears and tail and legs? Well, they ALSO grow it on their feet. And if you don't trim it off until they look like "cat feet" (assuming a short haired cat!) pretty soon your golden looks like they're wearing grandma's shaggy house slippers.

* Just a happy customer - I have no affiliation with them what-so-ever.

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© 2011 BZ Training - All Rights Reserved

Big and Small

"One... Two... Three..."

"Stay."
"Stay."
"Good Stay!"
"Leave it!"
"Stay."

"... Eleven... Twelve... Thirteen..."

"Good Stay!"
"Stay."
"Leave it!"
"Stay."

"... Twenty Four... Twenty Five... Twenty Six..."

Dog Blog Post #727: Yes, I'm once again torturing the boys.

For the Daily Dog Challenge assignment of:

235. Big and Small - Take a picture of your dog with something much bigger or smaller than they are.

So close, and yet so far.

Thankfully, the moment was brief, and they were rewarded 30 times over for their patience.

Our Daily Challenge - June 22, 2012 - "Negative Space"

I'm sure Zachary would love to help the little cookie escape from its sea of negative space.

Hmm.... I wonder how many saw Zachary's (negative space) cookie first vs. Henry's visually larger and brighter cookie in either of the top two pictures?

Inside the circle of paws, the cookie is safe!

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Editor's Note: The topic of grooming the boys comes up every now and then in comments, and I'm somewhat embarrassed to admit I personally do very little outside using an undercoat rake (frequently!) on Henry when he is shedding.

They go to the day spa every 2-3 weeks, which certainly helps to keep them fluffy, sweet smelling, and clean. But part of it is just the nature of their coat. Goldens (at least all of mine) have Teflon fur - and even mud, once dry, seems to fall right off it without leaving a trace.

On them.

My floor? Well, that's another story!

In addition to a wash and dry, the groomer brushes teeth, cleans ears, trims nails, and clips paw fur (to prevent Golden Slippers.)

He also trims around Henry's ears, which are quite thick with fur. For reasons unknown to me, he don't trim Zachary's ears, although Zachary lets me trim them without issue and I can't imagine, at all, that he gives the groomer any problems. One of those strange oddities of life, I guess!

I used to fuss over Beau's fur all the time, a surrogate daughter I suppose. :)

Perhaps I'll have to take that up again with the boys!

© 2011 BZ Training - All Rights Reserved

Sliced

Dog Blog Post #726: Yup. Sliced. That was the prompt for Our Daily Challenge.

Combine that... somehow... with the Daily Dog Challenge of...

234. Having Fun - What does your dog do for fun? Take a photo and show us today!

... and you get a picture sliced clean in half with the window jam (what will the Rule Police say about THAT one???) with Zachary thinking...

Chase the Lacrosse Balll…
Fetch the Lacrosse Ball…
Sleep with the Lacrosse Ball…
Chew on the Lacrosse Ball…
Carry the Lacrosse Ball…

-OR-

You can have...

Henry playing spoiler again today, trying to snatch the Lacrosse Ball from the air before Zachary (behind him) has a chance to get it.

You can tell he was Having Fun at Zachary's expense by the way his tail Sliced through the air with excitement, daring me to try to throw it past him.

"Finders keepers?"

"But... but... but..."

"My ball."

And finally, Henry wanted to me to show everyone that he can do "soft", too...

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© 2011 BZ Training - All Rights Reserved

Perchance to Dream

Dog Blog Post #725:

Daily Dog Challenge "233. Relaxed - Take a photo of your dog in a relaxed pose or position today."

Zachary was laying on the sofa beside me, his head resting on my leg, in the early evening hours. As I gently petted him, I watched his eyelids get heavier and heavier.

While the camera/lens were rather bitter about taking a shot this close, I did get a pair in the end.

For kicks, I threw an edge blur on them, trying to achieving a "dreamy" look.

Our Daily Challenge - June 20 2012 - "Mystery"

Do dogs dream?

I've seen Zachary's whiskers twitch and the tips of his paws paddle as though running, so I'm going to guess the answer is yes.

But about what will forever be a mystery.

Scavenge Challenge June 2012 - "17. Make a formal portrait ("head shot") of a companion animal (yours or a friend's)." (spare)

They reminded me of the glamour shots of Hollywoods Golden Age. Of course, around my place, it's always a Golden Age. :P

Windows of the soul, or simply reflecting the window?

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© 2011 BZ Training - All Rights Reserved

Sea Turtle?

"What have we here?"

"Not much of a conversationalist, are you?"

"I'm pretty sure there aren't any cookies down there, if that's what you're wondering."

"Did somebody say cookies?"

"No cookies."
(sigh)

Dog Blog Post #724: The month is slipping away...

Scavenge Challenge June 2012 - "6. Cute critter of the month: turtles (bonus for the Teenage Mutant Ninja variety)."

Totally forgot about this little guy, who sits on the rocks on our (sadly inoperable) waterfall.

Our Daily Challenge - June 19, 2012 - "Critter"

Turtle?
Zachary?
Henry?

Take your pick!

Daily Dog Challenge "232. Textured Background - Take a photo of your dog in front of a textured background today."

The mesh fabric, purchased some time ago to serve as Henry's "Once and Future King" chain mail, was repurposed today as fishing net.

Or something like that.

What does it have to do with a turtle, a nubby blanket, and a wicker basket?

I haven't the slightest idea, but I thought it came it rather nice. :)

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© 2011 BZ Training - All Rights Reserved