"dog & mom" photo-shoot

1. The Labradoodle objects

Hmmm? Two dog-themed posts in one week; this may be unprecedented. But Saturday evening was our annual ”Try to get a ‘Christmassy’ photo-op portrait with Scout and her mom,” so I couldn’t let the fun go by without comment.

I may be a decent photographer, I may also be a very good dog-owner, and Scout may be a well-trained pouchie; but those three facts don’t necessarily add up to guaranteed success when it comes to putting a Labradoodle in front of a camera and then making her wear a Christmas hat.

#2. Both subjects fall to the ground, laughing

“THE SHOOT:” (Otherwise known as “The fiasco.”)

I’ve posted the entire shoot in a facebook album, as the whole thing really is pretty funny. But I’ll just share a few choice examples here.

Scout really likes the hat. But it’s more along the lines of “this hat is fun to chew,” or, “I can throw this hat up in the air and then catch it,” or, “watch me get mama to run around the room chasing me and the hat.”

So there are a lot of scuffles, some bona-fide dog-wrestling, flash photography that never quite keeps up with the action, and the occasional half-way decent shot when they’re both – by chance – looking my way. I’m thinking maybe I should have shot the entire action-packed three-minutes in HD-Video; we could have become a You-Tube sensation.

#3. This is not working!

TOO MUCH FUN: By example number three the Christmas tree was beginning to make its way out of the picture. Scout even covered her eyes with her paws!

Then it was “let’s steal the hat and run.” On the way Scout tossed the hat high and it got caught on the tree. After she grabbed it and took off again we cornered her behind the easy-chairs and decided to try a couple of photographs while everything was momentarily calm.

Of course, this was way too much fun for everyone. But there is A)what you planned to capture in a photograph, and then there is B)what’s actually happening. And the longer I’m in this business of capturing images and writing, then the more I understand the beauty and the art of simply paying attention to the story that plays out in front of my eyes.

#4. Go with the flow

…the longer I’m in this business of capturing images and writing, then the more I understand the beauty and the art of simply paying attention to the story that plays out in front of my eyes….

Behind the easy-chairs we got one of the best pictures so far. Scout took a breather from playing “hard to photograph,” and we all relaxed. I caught Rebekah enjoying the moment.

THE REAL STORY: The best moments in our lives are, typically, the moments that fall between the planned events; they’re the serendipities, the “oh-my-goodness’s,” the “oops’s,” and the “ah-ha’s” that sneak up on us.

#5. That’s more like what we were looking for!

Fact, it, we can make the best of plans, arrange for all the contingencies, and have everything programed to the “t….” But we’d better keep our eyes open for reality, because it can – quite simply – be the sweetest.

There’s another word for my Advent collection. Let’s add serendipity to the traditional Hope, Peace, Love and Joy - DEREK