Did I just tag this post as Raleigh Cat Photographer? I certainly did. I only get about one cat-centric shoot per year which is super disappointing so I need to try and up my numbers. I’m so glad that Amanda and David didn’t let me down in this regard. I photographed them a few years back in downtown Raleigh but their cats were not present, so this was our attempt to rectify the catless situation. Amanda and David are also expecting (!!) so having a shoot with their cats was a lovely way to commemorate their pre-baby family with the kitties. Gillian is the short-haired tabby, and Genevieve is the long-haired beige-orange cat. Despite Gillian often looking grumpy, she was absolutely THRILLED to be the center of attention and followed me around to meow at me and ask me constantly to get her toys down off the bookshelf. She only looked grumpy when she’d be picked up because that was the only moment when she wasn’t receiving treats or killing a toy wand. Genevieve, however, is afraid of strangers, so she wasn’t thrilled with my presence, but did start to think of me as a walking treat dispenser and eventually her attitude turned from “hiding constantly under the shelf” to “I will come to within 4 feet of you and wait for you to toss a treat in my direction.” It was progress. They are both extremely sweet girls and exceptionally cute. Amanda and David are also sweet and exceptionally cute, and I had the best time reuniting with them to talk about submersibles and camera gear and bird apps. I know their baby will be a cat-lover and I’m very excited for all of them.

This is going to be split up into two sections with Sabrina the Dog first and Pookie the Cat second. Because while Sabrina and Pookie are familiar with each other, relations are tense and their shoots were done in separate rooms to avoid any possible animosity. ;)

Sabrina is a very kind mutt of a few different breeds and one of the sweetest I’ve met. She’s of a somewhat indeterminate elderly age. When they adopted her she was anywhere from 1-5, but they’ve had her for thirteen years, so she’s thirteen or older. She is very sweet and has gone through a tumor surgery but is doing very well. Despite her looking very ferocious in a couple of her barking pictures, she’s really just talking. :) Sabrina likes dog biscuits, belly rubs, and sitting by the fire.

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Sabrina’s ferocious guard-dog shot:

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Then back to your normal programming:

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Happiest dog ever!!! Look at that face. :)

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Now on to Pookie the cat! So I have a bride and groom next year who are so awesome and nice and are flying Geoff and I up to their wedding in New Jersey to photograph it. Sabrina is the family pet of the bride who lives at home with the mother-of-the-bride. Pookie is under joint custody of both the groom and the bride and was a visitor in the house. Pookie and Sabrina know each other, but Pookie’s still kind of unsure. So we did her photoshoot in a separate room. :) Gotta keep the furry clients in good moods, you know?

Pookie is an adorable little cat!! What was so strange about Pookie is that she has the coolest and most unique eyes of any cat I’ve ever seen. Annie, the bride, commented that her eyes usually photograph purple, and it’s true. They’re kind of a seafoam green/pale teal that also kind of come across as purple. You’ll see. It’s pretty strange, but really adorable. Pookie wasn’t a huge fan of the camera, but she really didn’t dislike it either. She was more curious. Cats don’t take direction nearly as well as dogs… and you kind of just have to follow them around into whatever lighting situation they happen to walk into because they’re totally their own photoshoot boss.

Pookie enjoys playing with twist ties, looking out the window, and toy mice. She also shakes when she gets excited (the first cat I’ve met who does that besides Buckles, our cat) and I’m relatively suspicious that she may be a close relative of Dolfy, our other cat. They were both homeless on the mean streets of Durham, look very similar, both talk a lot, both like water, both are runts, and both are two. Dolfy will be three next month, so Sabrina might be like the equivalent of his really young half-sister or something. :)

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LOOK AT THIS FACE!!! Ohhh, Pookie, you are nothing but love.

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Below is a series that I may print out in a small series of 4x6s and frame them all next to each other on the wall. No, it’s not my cat, but it’s hilarious. I now have a bad habit of loving other people’s photographs to the point where I’m printing pictures of their pets and family members to hang around my office. A little weird? Maybe. But I guess it also means I love my job. :)

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See what we mean about those eyes? I have never seen a cat with eyes like that before. They look great with her little pink nose and purple collar. :) She’s basically a series of nice Easter pastels.

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