It’s great to be back writing! Time to let you in on what I’ve been up to throughout 2019. My busiest year yet!! Book publishing target is third quarter 2020 😃

The first few months of 2019 I spent visiting breeders and mushers, acquiring portraits to showcase the Siberian Husky and the many, many different breeds now active in the sport. Much fun was had in amongst the lessons learnt in getting “the shot” and challenge working with the larger teams of dogs.

It was late March; the temperatures were a mild 18 degrees, the weather cloudy but dry as I headed off to photograph pure bred Siberian Huskies at Heather and Deane’s Subahka Kennel. The cloud cover was great to filter the sunlight and create soft, even light. My set-up was simple and Jade, Dodge, puppy Ruby (below) and Bear did great on the day. Thanks Heather and Deane 🙂

Next stop was visiting Laura and dogs, especially her handsome Tūhua.

By the time I arrived temperatures had risen to the mid-20’s and the clouds had disappeared. This meant it was time to hunt out a shady spot under the large trees by the house.

I love Tūhua’s beautiful black coat and stunning eyes. Close ups of those eyes are destined for the book!

It was a very fine, crisp April morning for the next shoot in Upper Hutt by the river. I love these mornings with beautiful, clear, warm light. Mariska settled her dogs easily and they were perfect models.

On this day I did learn a valuable camera operating lesson. Here I was part way through the shoot when I can’t get the camera to change settings. I try what seems like everything to get it working right with no luck. Then I look on the back of the camera and see that the settings lock button has been accidentally switched on. Doh!!!  That was a lesson I never forgot 🤣

A few weeks break, then it was out to visit Hayden and Lisa’s team at Haysa Sled Dog Racing. This was a cool, fine morning with low mist seen settling on paddocks on the outskirts of Levin.

A fun session with a large fenced area for the dogs to be free of leads. Although that did give Hayden and Lisa the challenge of keeping them in one place to pose for the camera 😂 see below for the blooper shot but we did pull off the group shot in the end.

Next up was meeting Lucy with Myers and Krueger (aka Nightmare on Pointer Street) at Bothamley Park in May. Had a good walk around the park hunting for the best location and light to cope with the contrast of black and white. The dogs had a great time.

Late in May was the last weekend before Sled Dog Racing season kicked in. This meant an adventure to the Hawkes Bay and three teams of dogs to photograph. Mike came with me on this trip and was a fantastic assistant, location spotter, gear carrier and kept me hydrated and on task.

Sheryll and Ilona’s team of dogs were fun and full of challenges to capture in one shot. We played around with many angles and combinations on the day. Patience was key and the entertainment was constant with lively Alaskan Huskies, cheeky Siberian Huskies and the perfect model Rogue.

Last session of the weekend ran very smoothly with extra handlers around who now had plenty of experience from the earlier shoots.

First Olivia’s two dogs then Jess’s two dogs happily sat for the camera.

A few extra photos were always taken in each of the above sessions, so everyone got a keepsake of the day’s antics. It has been a real pleasure working with all of you and your amazing, happy, cheeky, challenging, beautiful dogs. Thank you.

Many more portraits have been captured throughout the 2019 race season, so watch out for future blog posts for those.

Until next time,

Teresa