meeting Glenn

A few weeks ago I had the honor of taking publicity photos of Glenn Close at FetchDog headquarters in Portland in preparation for her appearance on the Martha Stewart show (which aired 3/17/08). Glenn and her husband David Shaw, founder of IDEXX, started FetchDog last year which is both a printed catalog of dog products, and an extensive website for shopping, researching various dog breeds, networking with other dog owners, and blogs (Glenn's blog below).


Walking into the office, the presence of dogs is the first thing you notice!

Glenn and Jake, in the conference room.

Product meeting in the conference room (her husband David is to her right).





Jake has the cutest under bite!

A quick snapshot of the staff and their pups.

FetchDog has some great things in the works that I can't write much about now, but am very excited to be a part of!

published: Ladies' Home Journal

Late last year I had the pleasure of photographing Lazlo, a 12-year-old Belgian sheepdog, for the Animal Affairs feature in the current issue of Ladies' Home Journal.

Lazlo's owner, Susan Walsh, and other family pets endured abuse (even death) from Susan's ex-husband during their divorce 7 years ago. Susan took her story to the state legislature and was the catalyst for the passing of a pet protection bill in 2006. Now in Maine, and several other states that have followed suit, the law protects not just spouses and partners of domestic abuse, but pets as well.

Meeting Susan was a humbling experience. She's a very simple, soft-spoken woman who has immense strength. The sign in front of her farm reads "Blessed Be Farm: Founded, 1984. Liberated 2001."

published: Ladies' Home Journal

A few months ago, I posted about the incredible story of the black lab named Molly who survived a boating accident in northern Maine last Memorial Day weekend, even tho her owner (Douglas Harmon) didn't. Molly swam to shore and then wandered for nearly 200 miles over the course of several weeks before she was found and reunited with her family.

I was honored when Ladies' Home Journal telephoned me to photograph this amazing dog at her Scarborough home. The article is in the February issue, on newsstands now. And although the magazine only had the space to run the studio portrait of Molly, I thought you might like to see some of the additional images from this emotional assignment.

The photo editor asked for both serious and fun images of Molly and the Harmon children (L to R) Jared, Ashley and Tim.

Peanut butter on Ashley's cheek helped make this scene a bit more lively!



Playing in the back yard.

Such beautiful afternoon light!

Home sweet home.

If only she could talk, I'm sure Molly has quite a tale to tell about how she made her way back home!

Sending continued strength and peace to the Harmon family! Thanks for welcoming me into your home and sharing your touching story.

FetchDog.com

A few months ago, web designer Joe Myers (a 2005 groom who now lives in Utah and has a very fun blog) contacted me about doing some freelance work for FetchDog.com, a new website and catalog based right here in Portland. After a lot of work, the site is finally live!

Here is Joe's description of the site:
"FetchDog is a new, high-end dog catalog company. The shop is full of great dog products and gift ideas. There's also a ton of information in the Learn & Connect section: articles, blogs, breed centers, resource libraries, e-zine, puppy center, adoption info and much more to come like forums and ask the experts etc. (no interactive stones unturned). And if you're considering getting a dog, try the breed selector tool to see what breeds best suit your personality type and lifestyle. On top of all that, there's a quickly growing social community section called MyFetch where you can create a profile for you and your "family," upload pictures, write on your whiteboard (mini blog), recommend products, save wishlists and grocery lists, compare notes with other owners and make other contributions throughout the site. Your dog could even be the photo of the day. It's been a lot of work and late nights. I've designed almost every page on this site. The company is full of great people and well funded by involved investors including Glenn Close, who has her own blog called Lively Licks, Profiles of Dogs and Their People."

My riveting (sense any sarcasm?) product photography can be found throughout the drug library. Photojournalistic work will accompany some of their blogs soon.

Congrats, Joe! The site is chock-full of information! I can't wait to spend some time on there creating my MyFetch page. I know how hard you worked on this, and you should be very proud! I wish you all amazing success!

* Howie

Remember Howie? He won the dog photo contest back in May! It was a hoot to meet this pooch who has so many fans!

Dakota lookalikes

I knew I adored the LaCour folks when I met them, and I just learned another reason why! Mark and Erin have a dog, Wylie, that looks very much like Dakota. Long-lost relatives, perhaps?

(This is a video of Dakota chewing on LaCour's ShootQ promotional frisbee they handed out at a recent photo convention. I don't think they intended to have it be eaten by dogs, but Dakota really, really enjoyed it.)

And Pat Callahan, the evening news anchor for the NBC affiliate here in Portland has a dog, Winston, that gets mistaken for Dakota when he's out and about in town.Below is a video of the sister to the pug who was a finalist in the dog contest (you know, the one with his tongue hanging out) waiting for the mailman, as she does daily. Too funny!

contest- results!

Congratulations to Howie who won the dog photo contest with 42% of the vote. Thank you all so much for your votes (more than 400!). Howie's parents, Megan and Sean, were guests at a wedding I photographed last month. I look forward to meeting and photographing Howie soon as his prize for the best doggy mug.

contest- time to vote!

Thank you all so much for your wonderful dog photos! I received over 50 entries and it was difficult to narrow it down to just 3! You all have absolutely adorable (and photogenic!) pups! Below you will find the finalists. Vote for your favorite through May 10th (you can vote once a day). The winner receives a free pet portrait session!

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What is your favorite dog photo?
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Free polls from Pollhost.com

contest- last call

You have until May 1st to submit your favorite photo of your dog! Send your digital file to photo@emilieinc.com. Thanks to those of you have already entered! The winner receives a portrait session for their pooch!

new contest!

You know I love 'em, so... we're goin' to the dogs!

For this new contest, email me the cutest mug of your mutt. Show me his best puppy-eyes, when you caught him getting into trouble, romping in the surf or snow, hanging out your car window... Be creative!

We'll run a poll of the top 3 entries, and the winner will receive a free portrait session of your pup. Submit your entries now through May 1st. Email to photo@emilieinc.com.

dogs in the media

Yes, another dog post...

Did you catch this clip on 'Ellen' the other week? My mouth was hanging open in disbelief when I saw this! Such a smart dog! (Thanks to Jacci and Margaret for emailing me this. I meant to blog about it before Vegas, but I forgot!).


Or have you heard about 'doggie yoga?' This CNN article is definitely worth reading. I'm ready to sign up for a class with Dakota. I think the idea is brilliant!

Have you seen the new Discover Boating ad campaign featuring the dogs? Too cute!
Click here for their website, and then click play on the upper right side of the photo banner.

doggie news

•I received an email from the shelter in Texas and Molly has been adopted. Phew! So I guess I won't need to return to Allen to save that little love.

•The Inn at Jackson in Jackson, NH, is hosting a silent auction tomorrow night to benefit the I Believe Dog Rescue whose facility (and some of their dogs) was destroyed by fire last month. They are accepting bids via email for a Romance Package which includes two nights lodging, a massage for two, arrival refreshments, breakfast in bed and a giftbag! This package normally sells for $429. Email Don at info@innatjackson.com if you would like to participate. I stayed at this inn in December and it is a beautiful getaway!

Big brother for D

Last month, Dakota received an early Christmas present- a big brother! My boyfriend J and his dog, Destin (an 11-year old shepard/lab/chow mix), moved to Maine from California. The two pooches are getting along fabulously.


Destin gives me a wink!

* Alie

This morning I had a quick photo session with Alie, a 5 month yellow lab mix. Isn't she adorable? She was adopted from a shelter in the South and is settling in to Maine life nicely. She attends the same daycare as Dakota.


Alie has a purple tongue!

Puppy mugs

My dog, Dakota, whom many of you have met, has gone to daycare since she was a puppy. She's old enough now to stay home during the work week, but boards there overnight most weekends during wedding season while I am working. It's a fun place with spirited employees and plenty of doggie kisses to go around.

I visited with my camera for a few hours last week. I'll post a few of the images here... I anticipate going back again several times over the course of the summer, so will update as I do. Woof!



This is Dakota (we call her D for short), my lab/hound mix. I caught this moment of her, almost laughing, during a game of ball. She's 2 and 1/2, and a whopping 80 lbs (when I adopted her, the rescue thought she might be a beagle mix and likely would be about 40 lbs. Um, not so!)! She has the sweetest disposition and quite an extensive vocabulary. She loves car rides, playing in her backyard, swimming, sticks, snuggling under the covers at night and sushi rolls.

PSA: dog cause

Ok. So you all know what a huge dog person I am...

I saw Alyssa, known as the Penny Princess, on 'Ellen' this week. She is collecting pennies to buy bullet-proof vests for police dogs. She was such a sweetie- take a peek at her site, www.protect-a-dog.com