For 9 years, my dog Duke was my only kid. If you’re a dog person, you know that we often regard them as one of the very important members of our families. Duke and I were such buddies and he loved that I worked from home so he could always lay at my feet while I worked at my desk for hours on end. He was my cuddly bear when the hurt from a decade of infertility wore heavy on my shoulders and my heart and he just has a way of making you feel better by his presence alone. So, even when it was just the 3 of us, my husband and I always included Duke in our photos and continued on including him after the arrival of our two human babies. In 2019 when our son was 3, we discovered he was truly allergic to Duke when we went on vacation away from Duke for the first time. It was heart breaking as he would be taking nebulizer breathing treatments multiple times a week and his eye even swelled shut within days of returning. Thankfully we have family members in Omaha who offered to take Duke in for retirement which while hard, was best for him as he was getting very old and didn’t want to be bothered by toddlers, and was best for the health of our son. He’s been there for 2 years now and just turned 14 this Spring, so for this year’s Spring family photos we went to Omaha & hired a photographer to do our session near Duke so we could include him in the photos. He’s still that important.
One of the most frequent questions I get is if families can bring their furry family members to their photo shoots to which I always reply YES! Bring them, they’re as important to you as Duke is to me. What I typically do when clients bring dogs is get some whole family photos, then depending on the dog will try to get just the dog & kiddos. Often after the family photos I’ll either hold the dog’s leash while I take photos without the puppers, or many times waiting families are all too happy to help hold a leash and get some puppy love. I also get couples with their dog who is in the photos the entire time, it’s really up to you.
Here are some things to keep in mind when deciding to bring your dog or not:
• Or arrive early to give him/her time to sniff around and mark their territory or they will get distracted during photos
• Including a dog can and does impact your session time. 5 minutes goes fast and if a dog isn’t cooperating, it may impact how many photos you get. Bring treats, bring the leash and have realistic expectations if you have a high spirited dog
• Most places I shoot are outdoors and I can’t think of any that don’t allow dogs outdoors (Union Station does not allow dogs inside), but please be sure to bring a doggy bag to clean up any messes your pup may leave behind (especially at the Tree Farm)
If you’re not sure, shoot me a message at jessicastromphotography@gmail.com and ask any questions. But generally speaking, bring your dog, include them, it’ll be awesome!
But don’t ask about bringing your cat… =)
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ALL 5 minute mini sessions are just $80 + tax and INCLUDE a minimum 5-8 high resolution digital images (usually more!) made available to you via digital download approx 2 weeks after your session. Be sure to check out the FAQ for more info Regular 5 Minute sessions are only scheduled on specific dates/times available for booking through our online booking system. Please be sure to book in advance!
Questions? Shoot me an email at jessicastromphotography@gmail.com