Week 3, Day 4

About responsible pet ownership...

I don't know about the rest of you, but I was surprised at the reasons some people gave in surrendering their pets. I guess I just have a hard time imagining that. But onto what responsible pet ownership is.

I spoke with a staff member who had just brought in a litter of young puppies to put in kennels. There were about 10 puppies in all. I watched as she separated the boys from the girls. When she was finished, I spoke with her a couple of minutes about the class. When asked what she thought being a responsible pet owner entailed, she answered without hesitation, "Spay or neuter your pets." I can't say I was surprised at her response.

There was a family visiting the shelter and I approached them and asked them the same question. A teenage girl in the group responded, "To love it no matter what all of the time." I completely agree with both of them. I know the visitor's response is a blanket statement, but isn't loving them the point? When you have a child, you don't stop loving them even when they make mistakes. Those people who have children that were not planned don't give them up saying, "We didn't think this through." Granted, pets are not people, but I believe that many people go into pet ownership too lightly. It is not given the consideration it deserves.

My example of responsible pet ownership is our own lovely dog, Maggie (a.k.a. Neurosis). Don't get me wrong, we love her dearly. She is a good dog, but she has come with her challenges. First off, we got her too young. She was only seven weeks old. We bought her from a reputable breeder who said we would all be fine. Had we known dog behavior like we do now, we would have known to leave her with her mother a few more weeks. Everything about her is hyper-sensitive. She started sprouting gray hair before she was three. If you could see the underside of her muzzle, you would see that it is almost completely gray. She has separation anxiety, requires an expensive diet, get chronic diarrhea at the drop of a hat, and is afraid of the dark. She takes forever to warm up to strangers. There are only two other people outside of our family that she would let into our yard. We have an invisible fence and she stays in it, but if she is outside, we have to constantly be on guard so that no one unexpected comes into her domain for fear of her biting them.

But she is fiercely loyal and is my daughter's best friend. You'll never get a better reception when you come home that you get from her. (Just don't be behind her if my husband comes home...her tail is killer!). She loves to chase after her tennis balls and is always up for a walk. She loves to be near her pack and frequently just comes in to say hi to me when I'm working or just lay on the floor close by. We all love her very much and can't imagine her not being our pet. She is more than just an animal, she's a member of our family. There are many reasons we could list why we shouldn't have kept her, but she's our responsibility. We love her, even if she is nuts!

Our Maggie

Happy shooting!

Week 3, Day 3

Hello all! I have had the pleasure of making several new friends at the shelter this week. Many of the dogs I meet are strays, but there are some owner surrenders in the bunch. First up is a little guy named Bear:

Bear 53055

Bear is an absolute sweetie! He is an 8 month old Collie mix. His white card gives the selected reason as "Animal Behavior." The additional information is that he is not aggressive, but is timid with men. Personally, I'm not sure how he is around guys, but he was very excited and playful with me. He did not cower once from me.

Next up is Lucky:

Lucky 38391

Lucky was very excited to have a visitor. He is an American Staffy/Dalmation. His white card also lists "Animal Behavior" and gives further explanation as having separation anxiety. He is a very sweet dog with lots of energy.

And finally, Trinity:

Trinity 53154

Trinity was a bit more timid than the other two, but warmed up quickly. She is an 8-month old Pit Bull mix. Her card had "Other" selected. The explanation given was that the people who surrendered her got her from the original owner who could not care for her. It further stated that Pit Bulls were not allowed in their apartment building, so they had to give her up.

There seems to be as many different reasons as there are animals; some are good, some leave a little to be desired. We can only wonder what the rest of the story is behind these situations.

Until next time....happy shooting!

Week 3, Day 2

I am surprised at how many new dogs there are in the stray room each week. I was in there last week and photographed about 3/4 of the dogs that were there. Of the ones that I photographed last week, there were only about 6-8 of them remaining in that room. I would have expected there to be more of them left. This leads me to wonder exactly how many visitors come to the WCAS in a week and also what the number of adoptions per week is.

One of the pups I visited last week was Vanna. Here is her image from last week:

 Vanna 52746 May 17, 2011

Here is her image from today:

Vanna 52746 May 25, 2011

I'm not sure really why Vanna is still there. She is only two years old and her small size of 32 pounds makes her an ideal dog for an apartment or small home. She is friendly, but very shy and timid at first. Maybe her timidity is what makes people shy away from her. There are so many boisterous dogs clamoring for attention, yet she is quiet every time I walk by. I also think her age may be a factor to prospective pet owners. According to Amanda, puppies usually go quicker than older dogs. To be honest, I thought she was older when I first saw her, but her white card said she is two. Maybe other people think she is an older dog as well. That could also be a factor. I would think that if I were to adopt an older dog, they would be at risk for more health problems as they age just like people and that would translate to more medical bills.

Whatever the reason, I do hope she finds her new home. She would make a wonderful addition to any family.

Week 3, Day 1

Meet Maxine

Here is Maxine. She is one of the pups I visited last week. Right off the bat, I found her to be one shy pup. She was absolutely terrified of me and of my camera as well. She is the first animal that I actually saw cower as I put the camera up to my face. She was extremely uneasy. I had to spend some extra time with her and let her get to know me some, but she never was totally comfortable with me invading her space.

I had a hard time correcting this image. The walls are yellow, so I tried to adjust for all of the reflections in her fur. I never could get it quite right. I am hoping with the new techniques we are learning this week, I will be better equipped to deal with this type of situation. Also, the catch lights are almost non-existent in her eyes, no matter how I lightened them. I also think the vignette is a bit distracting. She could also use a little more dodging in the light areas of her fur.  

As for strengths, I think the cropping is done well here. The details of the face are crisp with a shallow depth of field. I believe the exposure is good. I feel that I can do highlights and shadows pretty well, but my color correcting needs work.

All in all a decent photo, but not one of my best. I would most definitely like to see her smile. Maybe next time...

Happy shooting!

My photo album

Hello all! Here is the link to my photo album.

https://picasaweb.google.com/103854718450035294911/WCASImages?authkey=Gv1sRgCMz6tP7PmKOrKA&feat=directlink


I met many wonderful animals full of personality! If I had to pick a favorite, it would have to be Snop.

This is Snop. He is a very energetic wire-hair Jack Russel.
He kept bouncing up and down. I was lucky to get this shot!

Happy shooting!

A pup with personality...

On Tuesday, I had the pleasure of meeting Sampson. Sampson is a 5-month old Boxer/Shepherd mix. I found out pretty quickly that Sampson was a hugger, much like Milt. He was extremely playful which translates to very hard to get a good shot of. I edited a few of his images to give you a sense of his personality. After I played with him for a couple of minutes, I said, "Okay Sampson. Let's see how photogenic you are." Sampson said...

"How 'bout I stick my tongue out at you?"

I said, "Come on Sampson! Just one nice shot." Sampson said...

"No No No No No!!"

I said, "Pleeeeease Sampson! Just one. For me?" Sampson said...

"Well...okay. But I refuse to smile."

So this is the shot I am most proud of, because it was not easy to get. I think Sampson is adorable...even without the smile.

Regarding where all of these animals come from, I think it is a mix of those brought in by animal control, those that are surrendered by someone, and those that are simply abandoned. I've been there when two animals were surrendered. I always wonder what the story is behind it. I know that sometimes it is because of blatant irresponsibility of the owners, but sometimes people have to move somewhere they can't take the dog or have some physical problem that prevents them from having a pet. There's always multiple sides to something like this. I have to wonder if the down turn in the economy has caused more animals to come into the shelter. With people losing jobs or having to sell their homes or worse, I just wonder how many animals have lost their homes as well.

But there are many homes that can have pets. I am hopeful our work will help some of these animals find their forever home.

Happy shooting!

The benefits of metadata

Metadata in its simplest definition is "data about data." In the context of Photoshop, metadata allows us to add information about us as the photographer, client information (in this case WCAS), date taken, and keywords. We can also insert contact information in case someone would like to contact us regarding use of the image. One of the primary benefits of metadata is the ability to copyright your image. This allows the artist to protect their image from those who may try to use it as their own. By the way, in the video, Peter Krogh is using CS4 and dpBestflow created a separate script to mark the copyright as true. If you are using CS5 and want the copyright symbol to appear in the image title bar like his, when you are creating your template select "copyrighted" in the drop-down box next to "copyright status." (Professor Johnstone, please correct me if you want this done a different way.)

Besides copyright (which is essential to any artist), the most important element of  metadata for me is being able to organize information with each image. Being able to put the date, client, and other needed information is extremely helpful if you are very forgetful like me and constantly need to write reminders for yourself. If I can have more information at my fingertips rather than trying to track it down later, it is much better for me in the long run.

As far as new techniques go, I have started using the continuous frame mode on my camera that allows me to take approximately 3 framers per second. This has been wonderful in the kennels that are not in the best light and it's hard to get the camera to take that first shot. Usually when it starts firing, the dogs get intrigued by the sound and they perk their ears at it. Of course, some try to lick/taste it. :) I have found if Ican distract them from play for that brief moment, I can usually walk away with a decent shot.

Here is an example. I visited Milt yesterday. Milt is a very excited and very strong dog. He jumped on me so hard, he ripped my gown. I never knew a dog could hug, but I met a couple yesterday that could. Milt was the first. Once I got his attention for a brief second, I started firing. The following are three images in the order they were shot.

Milt: shot #1

Milt: shot #2

Milt: shot #3

I loved his ears in the air! I had to include it. This is a definite pro of my camera. It enabled me to get in and out quickly by using that setting and get a few good shots in the deal. Hope this helps someone!

Happy shooting!

A new pic for a young pup

Today I had the pleasure of finding a new little friend in the stray room. Her name is Little Bo Peep.

Little Bo Peep today, perky ears and all!

A very curious thing though...I can't find her picture on the website. According to her sheet, she was brought in on March 27th of this year. I've looked for her name, number, and as a last resort, sifted through all the puppies. The only previous image I can post is the one I took from her information card.


Little Bo Peep's arrival

As you may or may not can tell, Peep is crowded in behind what looks like another puppy in what looks like a metal holding cage. Just capturing her happy little face is a large improvement over the previous image. Of course, this is just a picture of a black and white copy of the original, so comparison is difficult. Though, since Peep is a puppy, capturing a more recent picture of her is beneficial. Puppies change and grow so much and so quickly. It would probably be a good idea to get another of her in a couple of months because she will most surely change.


I'm contacting Amanda to see if I can find out why she is not on the website. Her card said she is available now. She is an adorable three-month-old who already knows how to "Sit." I was very impressed with this little girl. I'm sure she will make a wonderful addition to some lucky family.

Happy shooting!

Analyzing photos

Happy Monday everyone! While perusing the shelter's website, I found this fella:

Jo, male boxer/american staffy
Unidentified photographer
Wake County Animal Center: WakeGov.com
Date copied: 5/16/11

I immediately loved this image! He really looks like he is smiling. He's facing directly at the camera. The eyes are bright, but I don't know if they have been enhanced with Photoshop or other software. The color and exposure both look balanced and the image is nice and sharp.

For you cat fans, I saw this adorable critter:



Alma, female domestic short hair
Unidentified photographer
Wake County Animal Center: WakeGov.com
Date copied: 5/16/11

Sorry...couldn't decide between the two so you get both. Her pose is so cute, almost like she's inviting you to play with her. Her eyes are bright and the color of her fur is not flat. Thw whiskers are nice and sharp.

Here is one of my images from today:



Say hello to Parker!

I really like this shot of Parker. I think his one ear sticking up gives him such a playful quality. The color of his fur is not a flat black, but has many shades which give it depth. I added more light to the catch lights and whites of his eyes, his nose, the one tooth showing, and parts of his fur. The diagonals created by the perky ear and angle of his head give an added energy to the image.  What an endearing expression!

Here are some other shots from today:


Beau



Britty



Dallas



Gazpacho



And last but not least, Morah

Morah and Dallas were both terrified and I had to spend some extra time with them.  Morah never would look me in the face, but continually put her head down. This was the best shot I got of her. I may try her again later.

Until next time...happy shooting!

My first pics

Hello all. Here are the pics of my first three doggie models.



Here is Petunia. She is a 5-month old puppy full of energy.
Unfortunately, most of my images of her are blurry. This profile shot
was the best I got.



This is Cam. You may remember him from my earlier post. I think
this shot is better for the purpose of the website.

And finally, Onyx. He is a feisty fella who likes to jump and would only
sit for treats! He is a sweetheart that just wanted to love on you and play. :)

These were all wonderful pups to play with. I'm looking forward to meeting some new friends next week. Happy Shooting!

My first day as pet paparazzi

Yesterday I was able to complete my "Fido Training" and join the ranks of paparazzi for the WCAS. It was good to be in a smaller group with Amanda (there was one other person there besides me) and get an opportunity to ask more questions. When I arrived, I realized that I had forgotten to check the prices online. As it turned out, Amanda was running a little behind and to my relief I found them posted on the wall inside. I also had time to observe the comings and goings in the lobby. I saw two happy families leave with the new addition to their family, one volunteer bring in a stray kitty, and also a surrender of a very cute bunny. The lady who brought him in made several trips bringing in supplies and food, but on her last trip out she opened the cage and hugged the bunny for a long moment. As she turned to walk away, there were tears streaming down her face. I have to wonder what her story is. Needless to say, I am learning quickly that a lot happens here on an average day.

On to the cost of adoption...

I was very surprised at the cost of owning a pet. The fees are as follows:

Dog Adoption:      $45
Dog Spay/neuter:  $50
Cat Adoption:       $15
Cat Spay/neuter:   $30

If you adopt an animal that is already spayed/neutered, the overall cost is reduced. This includes the first series of shots, dewormer, heartworm test, flea & tick treatment, microchip, and rabies vaccination.

I spoke with Amanda about her views on the cost of pet ownership. She personally believes that the price is too low. For all that is included, prospective pet owners should be required to pay more. Having the price so low makes it easier for people to adopt, which can lead to not-so-thought-out actions leading to some animals being brought back.

There were many visitors to the shelter yesterday. I approached one lady (who prefers to remain anonymous) and asked her views. She told me that she understands that they have to charge something to keep the shelter running, but wonders if more people would adopt if they were free. She gave me the example of the number of pit bulls in the shelter, questioning if there were a lot of them there due to their reputation or because the shelter makes prospective owners pay to adopt. She ended saying again that she understood why they charged, but thinks maybe more people would adopt if they didn't.

For this issue, I have to agree with Amanda. If anything, I think the fees should be higher. I have had every one of the services listed above done to my dog and it cost WAY more than that. But cost aside, I believe people would question their decision more if they had to pay more and hopefully make a better decision because of it. I found an example of a decision that wasn't so thought out yesterday. One of the staff showed me a pit bull puppy that had been adopted the day before that was returned that morning. Meet Precious Angel:


Precious Angel

A husband and wife with their two-year old daughter adopted this pit bull puppy and then brought her back the next morning saying that the puppy would not quit biting their daughter. The staff member was very frustrated exclaiming, "It's a puppy! What did they expect?" Anyone that has ever owned a puppy knows that they bite incessantly, no matter what the breed. I believe this illustrates my point better than anything else. This causes so much trauma to the animal. There was diarrhea all around her kennel. I have to wonder if this is simply from the stress caused by this event.

Luckily, not all stories are bad. Hopefully our work will help another critter find their happy ending. I got a chance to meet and cuddle with Cam yesterday. Here's a shot of him:



My new friend, Cam

 He was nervous initially, but when he realized all I was going to do was rub him and give him treats, he warmed right up! I checked the website for his current picture and found that they only have his check-in photo. I hope one of my images helps him find his new home. He was a wonderful model. :-)

Happy shooting!

My first visit to the shelter

I wasn't quite sure what today was going to be like. Knowing what sadness happens there made me think it might be an unhappy or depressing place to be. Quite the contrary! I don't believe there was one member of the staff or other volunteers that didn't greet us with a smile, each of them hard at work in their own jobs. Everyone seemed busy with one job or the other. The place was also surprisingly clean, aside from some of the kennels that needed attention. That in and of itself could keep a few souls busy all day with that many animals.

So many of the animals seemed delighted to see someone coming near them. I hated not being able to pet each one. My heart broke for the ones who were shaking so bad from fear. My own pup does that during thunderstorms and the only thing that helps is her being close to her pack. I know that is all these critters need. I expected the smells to be worse, but found it only somewhat smelly around those kennels that were in need of attention and even there it wasn't too bad. That tells me that it is being kept very clean overall.

I imagine when an animal first gets there, the first week or so is pretty traumatic. I'm sure each employee there finds one animal or another that becomes a favorite. But with so many animals, there is no way humanly possible to give them the love that they need. Amanda pointed out a favorite kitty of hers today that wouldn't come out like she usally would. Amanda said she was depressed. I would imagine that is a recurrent problem, especially with the ones who have been there longer. I got to the point towards the end of the visit that I didn't even want to get too close to their crate. I didn't want to sadden them when I couldn't pet them or stay with them.

Not many things get my ire up like irresponsible pet owners. That thought was prevalent in my mind as we passed from one kennel to the next. I also did not have the heart to photograph them with the bars in the way. To me, that just puts a major barrier between me and them-there is nothing intimate about it. My strongest desire with this class is to create images that give the viewer a glimpse into the animals' personalities, something to connect with. Here is a favorite image from today:



Kitty and Kathryn

 Despite the large number of animals and endless jobs to do, I could not help but feel an undercurrent of hope threading its way through the place. I was pleased to hear that the euthenasia rate had dropped so dramatically. I know that more improvement is needed, but that was fantastic news indeed. Here is another image of this little kitty:



Time to eat! 

I'm very pleased with the opportunity to work with this group. I think it will be educational in many ways!

As an added bonus, I'm throwing in an image of our fearless leader! :)



Boss lady with Boss kitty

Happy shooting!

Day 2...Pros and cons

Hello all! About my camera: I am lucky enough to have a wonderful husband who treated me to this wonderful gift for mother's day. It is a Nikon D3100 with an 18-55mm VR lens. For those who don't know, VR stands for vibration reduction which for this class will be a plus. It helps reduce some of the camera shake that comes with hand-holding the camera (instead of using a tripod). The highest ISO setting is 12800 (for which I have no idea what the use would be!) which offers more than I need, but the flexibility is a benefit. One nice thing about this camera is that it is very light for an SLR and small enough for me to handle comfortably. I have short fingers and can't handle the "big dog" camera my husband uses. The lens is a nice size. It enables me to get in close enough for a good cropped shot. The display is also pretty large so I can tell if the image is blurry and requires a retake. I also keep a UV filter on mine to protect the lens glass from damage and animal licks. I can control the depth of field as well, so hopefully I can get good images and spend less time in Photoshop trying to correct them. File sizes are larger, but I have a 32GB card so it won't fill up quickly. Here is a shot I managed to get tonight without the flash:




Maggie without space cadet eyes

And also one of our puppy model, Jeffrey (Professor Johnstone, please forgive me if I misspelled his name):

Puppy Vogue


As far cons, the lens does stick out much further than a point-and-shoot, so damage is a risk. It is also new, so I'm still learning it so there is the risk of missing a good shot while trying to get a setting right. I've been practicing non-stop around my house getting shots of my dog in action to hopefully get better. My dog must think I'm insane! Another con is that if my battery runs out, I've got to recharge it. I don't have an extra, so that's one thing I've got to keep track of. I think one of the biggest cons is that the size of it may be intimidating to some animals because of how much of the human face they hide when we hold them up to get a shot. Imagine being a little critter and seeing this:

Frightening new human with big ugly black thing on its face!

Yikes! I think this is where time spent cuddling the animals will be well spent. Even if it means letting the dog stick its nose on the lens. My pup left her nose print on mine today and we all survived. :)

Happy shooting!

My critter

Hello again everyone. Had to retrieve this from another hard drive. Here's our German Shepherd, Maggie! Please check the older post from day one to see my original post if you haven't already. Happy blogging!

Week 1, Day 1

Hello everyone! Welcome to my blog. My name is Karen Baltimore. I am pursuing a Graphic Design major along with a Web Design minor. I am one credit shy of being a junior and am finishing my sophomore year with this class (yay!). This is my first summer course, so I'm a bit nervous about keeping up. I chose to take this class to refresh my Adobe skills before moving further with my design courses next fall. I spent the previous semester in the darkroom learning photography "old school." After having to spot photos by hand, I found myself craving my Photoshop! I learned a great deal shooting in film and hope to carry it forward into digital. I also enjoyed taking pictures so much that this class seemed like a good fit. I am also excited at the prospect of helping find homes for these animals.

Having never created a blog before, I am looking forward to learning about that. I hope to hone my photo editing skills and learn some new ones as well. Though I love the depth and richness found in film developing, digital is more suited to my degree and also to my lifestyle. It is much easier to edit images on my pc at home instead of driving to Meredith to use the darkroom. I do not have experience with Skype or some of the other technologies we will be using, so that is a little intimidating but I'm sure I'll figure it out. I am also a bit rusty on my Photoshop, so that adds its own element of stress. As with any class, I am sure there will be an initial overload of information and then it will settle down. I also wish to get into a habit of journaling and hope that having a blog to maintain will help with that.

This is the first online class I have participated in. As far as expectations, I expect this class to be pretty intense simply because it is a semester's worth of credit hours in only six weeks. As in past art classes, I expect more time outside of class will be required than in other courses. I am hoping that the online lectures are given during the time when my daughter is at school. That is one of the downsides of an online course. At home there are many other distractions, so that will be something that I will be dealing with. I believe I have gotten disciplined enough over the years to get the work done as I need to, but will miss the classroom dynamic for critiques, etc. All in all, I am very excited to see where the class goes.

See you in class!

Karen B.