The Photographic Journey Part Four

I've said many times since Tom died that Zora saved my life.  She was the only reason I got out of bed the next morning, and every morning after.  She couldn't lose both her daddy and her mama.  She needed me.  And I needed her. She has made it her mission to protect me, to take over for her daddy.  She has taken her responsibility very seriously and done it very well.  I wanted to honor her and do a photo session--a professional one since she isn't a big fan of Mom behind the camera.  Zora's walker had told me about a photographer who does amazing pet photography and I had been following her page on FB.  I loved her work and reached out to her to talk about a shoot. I told her I wanted to capture the many personalities of Zora and our interaction together.  Barbara had us come over to her studio to talk and to see how comfortable Zora was in the environment with the lights and camera.  Zee was a trooper and did great.  We scheduled a date, which we had to reschedule at the last minute.  Then a coveted Saturday date opened up and I jumped at it.

So on a Saturday evening Zora and I jumped in the car and made our way over to the East Bay spending way too much time sitting on 37.  Once we arrived Zora quickly set about checking out the space which was all set up and ready for her.  We started the shoot and Zora did great. She listened well, did as she was asked and was easy to bribe with Charley Bears.  Barbara said that Zora was part of the 1% of dogs who get to be in the studio without a leash.  After we finished in the studio we headed to a local park for outside shots with both of us.  I was much more comfortable in front of the camera this time.  The photographer said she should send all of her clients for their goddess shots before coming to see her.  I was easy to direct and she could focus on the dog. Again Zora did great, even with all of the new smells.Barbara noted that Zora wouldn't take her eyes off of me.  When we are at home she either ignores me or runs away because she thinks I'm going to do something to her ears or her toenails.  I didn't realize how much she focused on me until we had this experience.  I saw a few of the shots in the camera and they looked fabulous. After two hours of shooting we got back in the car and Zora conked out--she was exhausted.  I was so very proud of her and how well she did.  And I found the experience with her bonding.

A week later I received the proofs.  They were awesome.  And it was so amazing to see how much Zora kept looking at me.  The photos of us together were so sweet and loving, you can see the connection.  And the studio photos of Zee were great.

The first finalized photo is so dramatic.  As I was reviewing the images with Barbara, she described what she saw in this image as this "What I see in this image is a devoted pup looking so lovingly at her Mom who is recovering from her horrible loss and has begun to spread her wings in a life affirming and sassy way! Sniff...."   I fell in love with the image in an entirely new way.  Remember, one of the things that I wanted from this journey was to see how others see me.