I’m very happy to announce the winners of my 3rd Anniversary Photo Contests! (Or should I have called them my 3rd Birthday Contests? I’m still not sure, haha.)  The stakes were high, as over EIGHTY of my past clients are on Facebook, and literally anyone in the San Diego area had the ability to enter their dog’s photo for a chance to win. Tough odds, if you ask me!

As you can see, the “past client” photo album went on & on… just look at allllllll those dogs!

But with intense competition comes fabulous rewards! The “past client” photo contest winner is: Wrigley, the labrador puppy, with a whopping 185 likes on his photo! (See that cape he’s wearing? He’s a service dog-in-training!)

Check out Wrigley’s support team: 40 shares and 18 comments, between 185 likes! That’ll get the job done!  :)

And get this: Wrigley’s puppy raiser, LeAnne, has generously decided to donate the prize (a custom canvas gallery wrap) to Wrigley’s future owner! So that person – whether it’s a veteran, or a child with cerebral palsy, or a person who’s lost their hearing/sight – they’ll not only have a fully-trained service dog, but also a big, beautiful portrait of when Wrigley was a cute little puppy! What a wonderful gift, don’t you think?!

And for our San Diego winner, the most votes for a complimentary session went to a dog named Seamus! His mom Lisa posted a picture of him napping & looking super-snuggly, but I didn’t get a chance to screenshot it before the contest ended, so unfortunately my contest app took it down. Oops, sorry about that. But take my word for it: he looks like a scruffy little nugget – and I’m super excited to photograph a dog with such an adorable name, haha!

So I suppose that wraps up the contest, folks! The Facebook page is back to its regularly scheduled programming of Black & White Wednesdays, Forum Fridays, and the cute dogs I photograph on a weekly basis. I’m sad the big celebration is over, but honestly, I’m even more thrilled that you were here to celebrate it with me. Here’s to the next 3 years of business as a pet photographer! :)

Hello! Guess who’s ridiculously excited to celebrate being in business for 3 whole years? This girl!  :)

(I know – this is a picture from my Grand Opening – but I thought it showed my true, appropriate amount of excitement! haha!)

I won’t lie: owning my own business has been hard. It’s been a struggle at times, and tears have been shed. I certainly haven’t done everything right – one look back at my old photos eliminates any doubt of that, haha! But what a ride it’s been! I wouldn’t trade any of it!! Being a business owner (which, truthfully, takes up much more of my time than the “photography” part of this photography business) is a dream come true. I have my husband and my dog to thank for it, and I’m doing the very best I can – because I want to keep on doing this for a long, long time.

And in less than a week, I’ll get to sit back and smile at my calendar – because October 2010 marked the beginning of this crazy business! So it’s been 3 years – which means it’s time to CELEBRATE!

I thought about this for a long time. How should I mark this occasion? It’s a big one, after all… what to do… and then it hit me. This anniversary (or is it a birthday?) is just as much about my past clients as it is about my future clients. Three years in business have given me experience; the skill to not only take better pictures but to serve my clients better, and that’s something that takes effect over all different aspects of my business. What I’m trying to say is, while my photos have gotten closer and closer to the photography I see in my head, at the same time my business has gotten better. I’ve learned what products my clients love, how to make the entire process of the session seamless (and WAY fun), and how to deliver an experience that my clients will rave about. Everything has improved, and I have my earliest clients to thank for that. I suppose I should thank them on behalf of my future clients!

So on this occasion, how could I celebrate the future and not the past? Simple: I can’t.

That’s why my 3rd anniversary of being in business is going to celebrate my past clients AND my future clients! Here’s the deal: I’m giving away a canvas gallery wrap of a photo from a past session, and a full session to a future client! Yay! :)  Since I can’t give my previous clients another shoot (as they all live in Florida), I’m going to give one of them a piece for their home they may not have envisioned or were able to afford the first time around. And they get to choose the size – ANY size! That’s right, they can pick a 16×20 or a 32×48; it’s completely up to them and it’ll be completely free! And then I’m going to cover the session fee for my newest California client, because as a photographer, it’s all about the next session – and I know my experiences with my past clients will make that session truly great.

Want to know the best part? All of this is in YOUR hands! I’m not choosing a past client/canvas winner, or a future client/session winner – you are! All the action will be taking place on the Facebook page, and you can vote to choose who wins! So visit Allison Shamrell Pet Photography on Facebook between October 1st and October 10th. You’ll find a page to enter a photo of your dog (if you’re a future/potential client) and the ability to vote for who should win a spot on my calendar, and an album where you can vote amongst my past clients’ photos, so that one of them can win a new canvas gallery wrap. All the power is in your hands!

I’m absolutely thrilled to see who you lovely people pick to win – both winners, that is – so make yourself a reminder and make sure you stop by the Facebook page in the first week & a half of October! (Don’t worry, I’ll give you a quick reminder here on the blog too!) I’ll see you there! :)

There’s no better celebration of San Diego dog surfing culture than at the Helen Woodward Surf Dog Surf-A-Thon! This massive event was yesterday – Sunday, Sept. 8, 2013 – and it was a BLAST! There were several heats for small, medium, large & extra-large dogs, a costume contest, and tons of local/national vendors offering freebies & products for sale! Seriously you guys – this event was paw-some! :)

All the proceeds from the entire day (entry fees for competitors, booth fees for vendors, and raffle proceeds from the dozens of prizes up for grabs) went to the Helen Woodward Animal Center, a incredible organization right here in the San Diego area. Definitely a worthy cause!

The day started when the bullhorn sounded the first race! People had big smiles on their faces as they ran into the water!

First round: small dogs only. This chihuahua even had her nails painted to match her lifejacket!

This Jack Russell terrier braved the open ocean…

Shaking off the splashes as he came into shore!

There were a few wipeouts… I love this dog’s super-supportive mom in the background! :)

More love for the dogs!! This is Shelley, and she ended up being one of the finalists – she was great!!

Her dad was THRILLED to see her do so well!

This little gremlin was hanging on for dear li- uh, I mean, hanging ten!

This little pug was so cute – he posed like this ALL the way in to the shore. Like he was defiantly telling the ocean, I’m here, and you can’t stop me from surfing!! Too funny…

This was an incredible moment; this talented Jack Russel actually stayed on his board for the whole ride, even though it almost flipped him into the water! If I’d been on the board, I would have jumped off for sure. Not this brave little dude! The whole crowd yelled & cheered for him!

I do love a bulldog in polkadots.

This lab was too funny – a massive chain of seaweed was right in front of the competitors’ area, so a volunteer was moving it out of the way, and this dog thought it would make for a great game of tug-of-war! He kept biting and pulling at the seaweed, completely working against the volunteer’s efforts! Haha! (don’t worry, the volunteer was laughing too!)

This golden retriever staked out the perfect viewing spot. He stood here stoically for quite a while, “overseeing” all the activity.

And then came the costume round… ha!

You might recognize this bulldog: his name is Louie, and he was on the cover of September’s San Diego Pets Magazine! Here’s a link to his issue/story; check it out online if you haven’t picked up a physical copy yet! He’s surfed all over the country, so it was great to see him hit the waves here in San Diego!

And then, of course, there’s Dozer! This big guy has a book coming out soon, and is quite the decorated surf dog!

Dozer “shakes off the competition”, while another bulldog has a great time out there, judging by the smile on her face!

And last but certainly not least – it’s Ricochet! This beautiful & talented girl not only won her size division, but fundraised the MOST money of any competitor for Helen Woodward – more that $7500!!! She’s a champ twice over! :)  I love how she looks so happy when she surfs – and at one point she freestyled a bit and rode in backwards!

In addition to photographing all the action, I had the privilege of sharing a booth with Muttropolis on the beach. Even though I didn’t get to speak with many people that stopped by (I was in the water for most of the day!), someone won a $100 gift certificate toward a San Diego pet photo session! I can’t wait to meet the winner!

(If you haven’t had your fill of surfing photos yet, check out the Facebook page! There are dozens more there, in a big album from the day… and people are leaving some pretty funny comments!)

Thanks for coming out & supporting the Helen Woodward Animal Center! If you weren’t able to make it this year, I hope all the fun photos convinced you to come in 2014!  Congrats to Ricochet, Dozer and the rest of the winners! :)