Meet Willow, one of the sweetest & most beautiful dogs I’ve ever had the privilege of photographing! I was veryyy tempted to steal this pup and take her back home with me, haha – especially since it’s not every day that I get to photograph a Nova Scotia Duck Tolling retriever! She is a total sweetheart and loves to make new friends. Willow is actually her mom’s first dog, and they are already off to a great start! I loved seeing the bond that they have already made. And if this is just the beginning of their relationship, then I can’t wait to see what it grows and blossoms into from here!
We started our session at Balboa Park, which turned out to be a wonderful (if incredibly busy) spot. Despite all the activity & distractions, she was a perfect angel throughout the afternoon, and did just about everything we asked her to do. I was impressed with her obedience for such a young pup at just 5 months old! There’s a lot of time and work that go into obedience training and it can feel like you’re making progress at a snail’s pace. Puppies have a short attention span and it’s a big world for them to figure out (and be distracted by), so training can be extremely challenging. It takes time, energy and effort – and Willow’s mom has done SUCH a good job staying consistent! I’m here to tell you that all the hours they’ve put in together have paid off – not only for her, but it made my job a lot easier too, haha! Willow’s focus allowed us to get a great variety of portraits. The park was a spectacular setting with all of its bright colors, too; it worked well with Willow’s ruby red fur and I’m so glad we started our session there.
We eventually headed to the studio, where the sights & sounds of the park faded and we got to slow down & relax a bit. I remember feeling pretty excited throughout our photo session because of how well everything was going, and I figured the portraits were not going to disappoint. So here’s Willow’s sneak peek… you be the judge! 😉
This sweet face is Willow!
As soon as I saw these flowers, I knew Willow belonged amongst them. Thankfully, she was willing to entertain all of our crazy ideas!
She was a natural in the studio. And I think we all enjoyed the change of pace from the park!
I’m excited to see how Willow and her mom’s relationship continues to develop and deepen over the years. They are such a cute pair! Training aside, they simply have a great bond, and it’s always so lovely to see a person and dog in sync with one another.
Emily, thank you so much for visiting the studio all the way from Dana Point! I’m excited to share the rest of our images with you very soon!
I’m so excited to introduce you to Molly! Not only because she’s one of the most adorable pups around, but she is also one of my first official “Puppy Plan” participants! Molly is a 2 month old Great Pyrenees, labrador, and (supposedly) Bassett hound mix who gives the cutest little head tilts for the camera. She is definitely in the puppy phase where everything needs to go in her mouth. Toys, food, leashes, collars, pant legs, shoes, my camera bag… nothing is safe from those puppy teeth!
We held her photo session at her parents’ gorgeous home in the Olivenhain neighborhood of Encinitas/Rancho Santa Fe. Her mom and dad have a beautiful setup in their backyard where we were able to get amazing portraits with plenty of natural light coming through the trees. A photographer’s dream! Molly had a lot of energy, so I think she had a pretty great time playing and posing for me. And get this: whenever she needed to take a break from all of her running around, she decided to quench her thirst by drinking the dew off of the grass! She reminded me of a little lawnmower as she cruised around, head down & searching out the wettest blades of grass, haha! She was too cute!
I’ll be seeing Molly and her parents again when she’s about 6-7 months old for the next stage of her Puppy Plan. I cannot wait to see how much she has changed by then! I bet she’ll have grown by leaps and bounds (especially if that Great Pyrenees in her heritage has any say in the matter). Which means even then, and for the rest of Molly’s life, these photos from when she’s only 2 months old will be awww-inspiring keepsakes. :)
Don’t be fooled by that cute head tilt. There’s a silly, rambunctious, mischievous puppy behind that innocent face!
Ohhh that early morning light… I love it! And can you see the dew on Molly’s face that came from drinking the water off the grass?!
Marilyn & Stan, I am so excited to capture Molly’s first year as a puppy with you! I look forward to seeing you again soon! :)
You may have seen the update on my Facebook page, or perhaps you subscribe to The Monthly Bark and heard the news in your inbox. But if you’re hearing this for the first time… surprise! I’m pregnant! :)
At the moment I’m 32 weeks along, which means I’ve successfully survived about 7 months of pregnancy with only 2 to go. (I hear they’re the hardest 2, but hey, after having made it through 7 I’m feeling pretty good!) Our little nugget is a girl (yay!!) and she’s due on May 11th!
I’ve been married to Mr. Shamrell for 9 years now, and although we didn’t always feel ready to have kids – or not both of us at the same time, at least – now we do and our little girl couldn’t have better timing. I have to say that I’ve REALLY enjoyed being married without kids for this long, but we are both very excited & looking forward to this HUGE change in our lives and have nothing but happy anticipation for the future! (Okay, a bit of nervousness too… but it’s all good nerves!) Those 9 years I’ve spent being a dog mom, and loving it – and I believe that our dog Bailey taught me some of the most important skills of how to be a good mother (to any species) that I’ll be able to bring with me into this crazy new adventure. So in the meantime, I’m just trying to brace myself for adapting to a daughter that won’t be potty-trained in a matter of weeks – and can’t be left alone for a few hours at a time – and won’t be able to walk for the next year, haha!
Before getting pregnant, I was never one of those women obsessed with babies/pregnancy/etc. I was never the first volunteer to hold a friend’s baby (I was nervous that I’d drop the poor kid!) and didn’t know anything about what it’s like to be pregnant. So let’s just say it’s been a STEEP learning curve! For example, I’ve learned that the first trimester is 100% sucky (all the crazy symptoms, none of the belly to show for it), the second trimester is relatively easy, and the third trimester is kinda like the first (except now you have a belly). My biggest symptom by far has been fatigue; turns out it’s pretty tiring to make a human being! But beyond that, I’ve been very lucky not to experience any morning sickness, crazy mood swings, swelling/pain in my limbs… and my food cravings have been very mild ever since the first trimester ended. (The only strong cravings I had were for fruit and Taco Bell. Go figure!) So I don’t want to jinx it, but I’ve got a lot to be thankful for… thanks Mom! (And all the other awesome women in my family who handed down their easy-pregnancy genes!)
Before I got pregnant, I was super curious how Bailey would do with the experience. One of my clients told me of her two dogs, “One of them totally knew I was pregnant and got very clingy & gentle, and the other one just thought I was getting fat.” Ha! Our experience has been somewhat closer to the latter; Bailey has never been a snuggler, nor has she ever experienced any real separation anxiety, and her personality/habits don’t seem to have changed in any way these days. But she knows I’m pregnant; we’ve been telling her about our doctors’ visits and she’s seen our second bedroom slowly morph into a nursery. She’s a smart dog… I know she knows. (Plus there’s been a couple of days when she just couldn’t stop smelling me; my scent must be changing along with my body & hormones!)
I’ve read up on how to prepare Bailey for her new little sister, and all the best resources say very similar things. First: start with a basic foundation of obedience. The more Bailey knows & is willing to comply with requests like “off”, “down” and “no” the better. Pretty obvious, right? It’s also a good idea to acclimate her to “life with baby” as much as possible – which means I should be playing YouTube videos of babies crying to get her used to that sound, and going for walks with the empty stroller so it’s an easy transition to walking with a baby in the stroller. (It’s a separate discussion of whether I’ll actually follow through with these “good ideas” – I mean, won’t we hear enough crying once the baby is actually here? And how awkward will it be to walk around the neighborhood with an empty stroller?!) Terri Steuben told us that it’s a good idea to talk to Bailey every step of the way, to explain what all the new things are for (in basic terms) and set her up with a bed and water bowl in the nursery so she doesn’t feel like she’s excluded from this new part of our lives. And most importantly, we’ll need to teach the baby to respect Bailey’s personal space once she’s mobile, since then she’ll be crawling around and reaching for anything she finds interesting! Beyond that, we’ll just take things slowly and make sure Bailey is still getting plenty of love & attention so she never feels like the baby has taken her place – after all, she is our first “baby”. ;)
I’ve gotten plenty of questions about what’s happening to my business (arguably my other baby!) with this impending change. So forgive me as I answer those questions here:
~ Of course I’m coming back!!! I have NO intention of closing up shop; I haven’t worked this hard for 8+ years to pack it in now. That’s not even up for discussion. Now, I’ve stopped doing photo sessions at this point in my pregnancy because my sessions are very physical, and it’s hard to get on the ground at a dog’s level with a big pregnant belly in the way, haha! But I’ll be back in action as soon as I feel comfortable, safe and capable of doing so. To be honest, I don’t know exactly when I’ll come back – remember, I’ve never done this before! – but I expect to have a camera back in my hands in mid-to-late summer.
~ During my “maternity leave” I won’t be doing any photo sessions, but I will be reachable by email to book sessions for after I’m back in the studio. I expect that my schedule in the late summer and fall will book up quickly – after all, the last few months of the year have always been my busy season, and all the sessions I would normally book in the spring & early summer will have to wait until after I’m back from maternity leave… so it’s likely to be a packed rest of the year! (Which means you should get in touch with me NOW if you’re thinking of booking a session this year! Visit my main website and fill out that contact form at the bottom ASAP, since I’ll be giving priority to the earliest inquiries!)
~ Attention past clients: with all the downtime of maternity leave, something tells me I’ll get a little bored. And you know what I do when I have nothing else on my plate? I plan promotions & sales! So keep your eyes peeled on your inboxes for something fun & exclusive, just for you. :)
~ Attention commercial clients: ditto the previous comment! Although I won’t be out there shooting, I have THOUSANDS of stock images in my archives that would love to find a new home on your website/social media/product packaging.
A few more thoughts on the personal side of things:
~ Just laying on the couch and feeling her kick is my new favorite thing.
~ I don’t drink coffee or eat sushi, so a lot of the typical “hard to give up” foods don’t actually bother me. I’m feeling much more deprived for wine & beer, as well as cookie dough and caesar salad (both of which have raw eggs, boooo.)
~ Any hesitations I used to have about eating whatever food & snacks I want? Gone! Poof! I could get used to this… pass the Ben & Jerry’s please!
~ No, we haven’t thought of a name for her yet – still working on it!
~ I never thought I’d say this, but it’s actually been kinda fun to watch my midsection grow to the size of a basketball! Haha!
So thank you for all your support – and an extra thank you to the amazing people who have sent me cards and/or gifts!! I often refer to “the Allison Shamrell Photography family”, and you’re proving (again) that it’s not just a saying. Here’s to that family, as it grows this year by one very special little girl!
What an incredible day at the beach! Sun, sand, and surfing dogs – add in a few doggles and you can’t beat that combination! Saturday was the 8th Annual Loews Surf Dog Competition, and let me tell you, if you weren’t there, you missed out! The streets of Imperial Beach were jam-packed with cars for miles in every direction; I was shocked at how many people & dogs were there. Then again, this was my first-ever dog surfing competition, so I didn’t know what I was getting myself into… still, I think anyone would have said “wow” upon seeing thousands of human & canine spectators in one place! It was awesome to see everyone supporting the dogs out there in the water; there were huge rounds of applause and cheers for any dog that successfully rode in to shore! And of course plenty of “oooh”s and laughs at the wipeouts! Check out a few of my favorite photos from the event!
  This is Abbie Girl, an Australian kelpie & the champion of the small dog category! She was a total pro.
Sometimes I found the people’s faces just as amusing as the dogs’! Heehee!
And let’s give a little credit to the people out there! I think the dogs may have actually had a pretty easy time, just standing on those boards… their human helpers were always in prime position to get smacked by the waves!
This guy was such a goofball – and a great surfer, too!
These dogs are smart, they know when to jump off & save themselves! Haha! There were lots of funny wipeouts!
Yay! Doggles!!
I was SO impressed by the dogs that actually shared surfboards!! These two worked the board like it was nothing.
Uhhh… bird costumes?? What? Haha, these three definitely had an extra challenge out there.
Some dogs preferred to have human partners.
… and I think some dogs wished they had partners! This dog was so cute; he kept looking back to his people for reassurance!
Here’s another reason the event was so exciting: we were in the presence of celebrities! This is Ricochet, a service dog that surfs with people with disabilities! She’s an incredible surfer and a beautiful spirit. Check out her website here, and if the videos there don’t make you cry or at least tear up, well, you’re stronger than me. She also has a super-active Facebook page!
And here’s the one-and-only Tillman! He’s mostly famous for skateboarding (check out the video that made him famous; it has 20 million hits, no big deal) but he was out there on a surfboard on Saturday! He won the large dog competition!
Dogs of all different shapes & sizes were out there..
 This one was sooooo excited!
Here’s Ricochet again. taking a shake break.
There was some pretty intense shaking
The day was gorgeous, of course – it’s San Diego! (gorgeous enough to give me a bit of a sunburn, unfortunately. haha oh well.)
I found it fascinating that there were photographers out there, in the waves, with waterproof casings for their cameras! That is DEFINITELY where I want to be next year!!
This photo sums up the spirit of the day, I think – goooo surf dogs! The cheers were so loud! :)
Whew, that was a lot of photos! And believe it or not, these were just my favorite images from the whole event! If you’d like to see more, or if your dog surfed and you’d like to purchase a print or digital image, visit the event gallery here: http://proofs.allisonshamrell.com.
Oh, and here’s something fun: my photos from the competition were internationally published! Here’s the story from the UK Daily Mail, which asked for my photos to include in their article! I thought I’d left the world of journalism photography behind a few years ago… apparently not! :)
I hope you enjoyed seeing all the photos of these talented dogs! If you’ve never been here before, welcome! You’re visitng my blog, which is where I post about recent events (like this one) and sessions. My website is different; it’s where you can check out my whole portfolio and find info about a session with your dogs! Last but not least, my Facebook page is a pretty fun place too! :) Take a look, click “like”, and you’ll get to see more fun photos like these in your newsfeed!
