Dog Art Weekend

My weekend was filled with viewing and appreciating art. More specifically, art including our canine best friend.

Friday and Saturday was "Art goes to the dogs" hosted by Paige Bauer at the 2nd city council art gallery in Long Beach, CA.  There was an array of beautiful photographs, paintings, sculpture and instillations everywhere you looked in the space.  I was fortunate to display my photograph of a corgie and an Airstream titled,"Dixie." Being camera shy, I took this photograph of another person being interviewed in front of "Dixie."

On Saturday evening, I went to the closing reception of "Dogs Dogs Dogs" at the 1650 Gallery in Echo Park.  I brought Max along to this reception since they had Santa there to take photographs with and I knew he was ready to tell Santa what he wanted for Christmas.  I saw him whispering in his ear but he wanted to keep it a secret from me.  I wonder what Max wished for...

Here are some snapshots I took with my point and shoot camera.  I look forward to seeing the photograph of Max with Santa that the professional took on hand.  Along with the Santa photo shoots, they actioned photographs to benefit "Dogs without Borders" to help homeless pets in the Los Angeles area.

"Dogs Dogs Dogs" Juried Photography Exhibit At 1650 Gallery To Benefit Dogs Without Borders

As you know, I am a big animal lover and I especially love dogs.  I can't imagine my life without one.

I am thrilled to find out that my photograph, "Bella" and "Dog Beach"were selected to participate in the juried photography exhibit at the 1650 Gallery.  Their "Dogs Dogs Dogs" show will be held at their gallery in Los Angeles on October 23rd from 7pm to 11pm.  All proceeds will go to the non profit group, Dogs without Borders.

Dogs without Borders is a 501(c) non-profit dog rescue that is dedicated to saving homeless & abandoned dogs from high-kill shelters in the Los Angeles area and to find them permanent and loving homes.

Because of organizations like Dogs Without Borders, I was able to find my dog, Max.

I went to my local farmers market in Long Beach, California over a year ago in June and there he was looking at me from a cage with other rescue animals.  It was a lot like this picture of him with a stick. He was saved on his last day at a shelter from the amazing group, Hearts for Hounds.  I scooped him up and about a week later, we were on the road.

In addition to "Bella," two other photographs were chosen to participate in their online Annex gallery; "Stick Max" and "Dixie."

I am excited to be next to some amazing work.  I am especially excited to find out that my friend, Sarah Ause is also in the show.  She is the official photographer for the Best Friends Animal Sanctuary.  I have always loved her work and made the trip to meet her when I was on the road last year.  The post of meeting here can be viewed HERE.

If you are in the Los Angeles area and love dogs, this show is one not to miss for a good cause!

Photographing Dogs

I love dogs.  I dream of having a large piece of land where I can adopt all of the homeless dogs and we would all live together happily ever after.  I am lucky that Max likes dogs too.  I am able to go to the dog park with him where I wasn't able to with Maggie.  He just wanders and does his own thing and checks back with me every so often only to run off again.

Dogs are fun to photograph since it captures their personality in an instant.  There is a lot of character in their face when you take an unexpected snapshot without going through the routine of "sit""stay""no..siiitt""staaaayy""waiiiiit", etc.  They are challenging to photograph since they're always moving around which makes it interesting.  Most of my favorite shots are ones where I got lucky when I look back at the pictures I took.  Here are a few of my favorite from the past month.

I adopted Max from the Hearts for Hounds rescue organization here in Long Beach.  They have several dogs that need a good home.  Please click HERE to learn more.

I have more of my favorite dog photographs from traveling around the country HERE.

There is a good chance that your dog may be in one of them.

If your dog isn't in the album and you would like me to photograph your dog, please email me at alisontravels@gmail.com

Max and I are off to do something different and I look forward to sharing it with you soon...

Best Friends With Four Legs

As you may have noticed, I love my dog Max. I love taking pictures of him and one never seems to be enough. In fact, I love taking pictures of all dogs. They all have such different personalities and it shows in photographs. Before Max, I loved all of the dogs, cats, turtles and fish in my life. I will always remember Taz, Barkley, Sunshine, Colors, Pokey, Speedy, Squeekie, Ruffles, Sushi and Maggie.

Max seems to come alive when he's at the beach or at a dog park with other dogs. I love watching him play with the other dogs and I am so glad that he loves it too. It's something I couldn't do with the 10 years I had Maggie. She loved people but didn't really enjoy the company of other dogs.

I went to the park here in Long Beach the other day to let Max run around. It was a beautiful sunny day so I decided to take pictures of the other dogs there at play. Usually, the owners don't mind me snapping away and I found one Jack Russell to be extra cute playing with a deflated football. This pup was there playing while the owners were working. What a lucky dog! I met the pet sitter and once I introduced myself and Max, she put the names together and knew us from our travels. What a small world!

I would love to see pictures of your best friend with four legs! Show other animal lovers the special furry friend in your life by posting a picture on my facebook fan page by clicking here if you'd like. There are some great pictures!

If you live in the Long Beach area and need a pet sitter, click here to see MaryEllen's "Pet Waggin'" service. I had a great time at the park and from these pictures, it looks like the dogs did too.