Month: August 2011

 

When I saw this Boston Terrier and owner/handler at a show, I couldn’t help but notice that the woman’s dress was perfectly coordinated to the dog’s coloring.  The dog is black and white with a hint of pink at the ears and muzzle and the owner’s dress was black, white & pink.  What a stylish pair!  Upon speaking with the owner she mentioned that she had planned it that way.  Sometimes at a dog show it seems that the handler’s choice of clothing compliments their dog and other times it detracts from the dog.  Obviously clothing choice by the handler is very important as you want the judge’s eye on the dog…not you! 

Somebody [or should I say “some-dog”?] is about to get a kiss on the nose!  And speaking of noses…this image is a great example of the depth of field challenges that you have when photographing dogs.  Just take a look at the difference in the depth of the man’s face and nose vs. the dog’s head and nose.  If I had been shooting these two head on, I would have had a challenge with keeping all of the dog’s nose in focus unless I was using an aperture setting like f/16 or more.  This image was shot outdoors at 1/160th of a second shutter speed, ISO 400 and f/3.5.  F/3.5 would not have been a small enough aperture to keep all of the dog’s nose and face in focus had I been photographing the dog head on.  Since I photographed from the side, it wasn’t a problem at all at this aperture.  A dog’s nose length is vitally important to consider when choosing the aperture [f/stop] for your image!

When I was about 6 years old, my parents bought the World Book Encyclopedia.  One of my favorite things was to look through the book marked “D” at all of the color photos of the dogs.  The pictures were separated into the different groups – working, terrier, toy, etc. – and of course I was always picking new favorite dogs!  One that I always remember is the Dandy Dinmont Terrier.  It was a favorite when I was little and looking at pictures in a book and it’s still a favorite today when I get to see the breed at dog shows!  It’s so much fun to see the dogs in person that I only dreamed about ever seeing when I was a little kid!

Collin Raye has been one of my favorites for nearly 20 years and I recently had a chance to see him live at a local Fair.  I think this is my 3rd Collin Raye concert and, as always, it was excellent!  I was first introduced to his music when my dad and I went to see George Strait [dad’s very favorite!] back in the 90’s.  Collin opened the show and I’ve been a fan ever since!  Concert photography is challenging, but I’m pretty happy with this particular image of Collin on the left and one of his band members.  I love the colors and ‘fog’ in the background.  I have more photos from the concert posted on my website here:  http://www.betsydallasphoto.com/Collin%20Raye%20Aug%202011.html

Alright, so there is a 99.99% chance that this dog’s name is NOT Pebbles.  BUT, you have to admit that the hair style reminds you of Pebbles Flintstone from the old cartoon, right?  All that’s missing is the bone through the pony tail on top of her head.  I have a feeling that with a little digging in the back yard, that could be arranged for this pooch, too!  No matter what her name is, this is simply a gorgeous dog!  I wonder if she has a friend named Bam-Bam?