On the Mend
July 27, 2010| Filed Under Animals, Lensbaby, Pet Photography, Soft Focus | Leave a Comment
Tara is recouperating after surgery yesterday to remove a tumor on her back. A lump was discovered late last year and removed in January. It was biopsied and found to be cancerous. This type of fibrosarcoma is difficult to remove as cells can remain after the lump is removed. There is also a chance that it will return. It did…and quickly. By March she had another lump in nearly the same spot. At age 16, it was a difficult decision on whether to put her through another surgery, but the alternative was that the tumor would continue to grow. In consulting with our veterinarian, it was decided that the best option was to remove it before it grew any larger. Yesterday was a tough day for Tara, but she is doing better today. She’s been resting on the windowsill and alternating between naps and bird-watching. Her stitches will be removed in 2 weeks. In the meantime, she is getting a lot of TLC and many many kisses. I took the image above today with the Lensbaby 3G and a soft focus filter.
Cavalier Cuteness
July 25, 2010| Filed Under Animals, Pet Photography | Leave a Comment
I have quite a few images of Cavalier King Charles Spaniels from the Burlington County {NJ} Kennel Club Dog Show. They are a favorite breed of mine and I think they must have been in the ring when I arrived and so I went to town photographing them. The little one on the left is relaxing on a lawn chair and the cutie pie on the right is popping up to say ’hi’. When I arrive at a show, I usually have ring times and breeds in the back of my mind … not to mention the schedule printed and in my pocket. I make my way around and try to see them all, but that is usually not possible. I find myself stuck on favorites, but have been trying to branch out and photograph the breeds that I haven’t in the past. All the while I’m watching for those special moments that happen between dog and human that are truly endearing. I’m still working on processing all of my Burlington County images…..a daunting task it seems! 
Pigtails
July 24, 2010| Filed Under Painting Effect, People | Leave a Comment
This little girl was adorable with her blond pigtails and flowered dress at The Kutztown Folk Festival. I always feel uncomfortable photographing people unless I ask their permission first. Quite often I will photograph from the side or back so that they remain unrecognizable. Then I feel more at ease if I decide to post the image on my blog or website. I processed this one as a painting which I find is a nice compliment to my love of images in soft focus. To see more images from The Kutztown Folk Festival, visit: http://www.betsydallasphoto.com/Kutztown%20Folk%20Festival%202010.html
Lexi – The Diva
July 23, 2010| Filed Under Animals, Pet Photography | Leave a Comment
Lexi is one of my very favorite subjects. She is a beautiful ragdoll cat with gorgeous blue eyes and soft silky fur. I photographed her last year about this time and the other night she hung out with us on the back deck at my friend Sandy’s house and enjoyed all of the sights, smells, and sounds of being outdoors. Lexi has a wonderful mesh enclosure that allows her to sit outside and still be protected and safe. What a treat …. she loves it! So much so in fact that she hangs out in her “kitty tent” indoors as well! She is definitely a pampered feline! I took my camera along when I visited and snapped a few [okay...63!!!] shots through the mesh. It took a couple tries until I figured out how to reduce the mesh visibility in the photos, but in the end I came away with some nice shots.
Glasses & Shadows
July 21, 2010| Filed Under Lensbaby, Still Life | Leave a Comment
Glasses turned upside down on a white tablecloth + the sun = some pretty nifty shadows. This image was photographed with the Lensbaby 3G at an outdoor wedding.
Feeling Safe
July 20, 2010| Filed Under Animals, Pet Photography | Leave a Comment
Tibetan Spaniels….one of my very favorite breeds EVER! This little one is all snuggled in mom’s arms at the dog show and keeping out of the sun, away from big scary dogs that bark loud, and just waiting for his/her turn in the ring.
Sunday Bloom II
July 19, 2010| Filed Under Black and White, Flowers, Macro, Nature | Leave a Comment
Here’s another image of the water lily in my garden. It bloomed for 3 days…yesterday was the last. I’m glad that I photographed it when I did. The flower itself was only open for about 6 or 7 hours a day. Photographing flowers in the sun is a big no-no in my book, but given that this one was only open between about 10:30 and 4:30 and it was a bright sunny day…what choice did I have? I actually liked the way the sun was lighting up the flower, but not casting as much light on the lily pads surrounding it. I decided I’d try this one in black and white…the color version is below.
Sunday Bloom
July 18, 2010| Filed Under Flowers, Macro, Nature | 1 Comment
This beautiful white and yellow water lily is in bloom at this very moment in my garden. I have one plant in my pond and it blooms 3 or 4 times each summer. The flowers only last about 3 days and then they are gone. I always hope that they will open on the weekend to give me an opportunity to photograph them. I was lucky this week - the flower opened on Friday and so I had a chance to photograph it this afternoon and enjoy looking out the window and seeing it all weekend.
Belgian Malinois
July 17, 2010| Filed Under Animals, Pet Photography | Leave a Comment
A member of the Herding Group, the Belgian Malinois resembles a German Shepherd but is actually a sheep herding dog that is also adept at agility, obedience, and is a popular breed for police and military work. This breed has a strong desire to work and is most happy when he has a job to do. This photograph was taken at the Burlington County Kennel Club Dog Show last month. Hopefully I will finish processing my images from that show tomorrow and will have a new webpage published. In the meantime, here is a link to some images from last week’s Buck’s County Kennel Club show held in Doylestown, Pa.:
http://www.betsydallasphoto.com/Bucks%20County%20Kennel%20Club%20Dog%20Show%20July%202010.html
Working Girl
July 16, 2010| Filed Under People | Leave a Comment
This photo is from the Civil War Encampment last month and features a little girl in period clothing working at the campsite. I love that you can only see her profile beneath her pretty plaid bonnet. The above image was processed as a painting and the original is below. There was perfect soft light in the morning when I photographed this event. A number of children were playing together and they were very active, so it was a challenge to get a good photo without specifically asking them to pose. Rather than interrupt their fun, I chose to take candid shots. This is a favorite.
