Article + Photography by J.Nichole Smith

In Bend, Oregon you’ll find an exquisite high desert landscape complete with pine trees and fragrant sage, the lovely SunRiver resort and spectacular weather – but the real jewel of this former lumber town is 14 yr. old Mimi Ausland.

When Mimi was just 11, she created Freekibble.com – a trivia web site where visitors can answer a daily multiple-choice question, and correct or not, 10 pieces of kibble will be donated to a homeless dog. In only three short years freekibble.com and its sister-site freekibblekat.com have donated over 3.9 million meals to over 100 shelters, and are two of the top 5 most visited animal rescue sites in the world, boasting a whopping 100,000 combined daily visits from visitors in 137 countries. Needless to say, Mimi has been a very busy girl.

I recently had a chance to catch up with miss Mimi and her parents at the Central Oregon Humane Society. After a brief photo shoot we worked together to unload and put away two palettes worth of  Halo’s “Spot’s Stew”. This delivery, which was one of  Mimi’s regular end-of-the-month visits to her local shelter, was special… it marked the beginning of freekibble’s exclusive partnership with Halo pet food.

Perhaps most well known for their ultra-famous co-owner Ellen DeGeneres, and their recent support of the U.S. Postal Service’s 2010 “Animal Rescue: Adopt a Shelter Pet” stamps, Halo seems to be making a name for itself in holistic and high quality pet food products. Halo has been honored with National Canine Cancer Foundation “Seal of Excellence” and now, Halo is honored to be collaborating with Mimi:

“We are thrilled to partner with such an amazing young woman and her organization,” said Steve Marton, CEO, Halo, Purely for Pets®.  “Her desire to keep shelter pets fed, not with just any food, but with natural, healthy food, is commendable.  We at Halo are honored to be able to help Freekibble fulfill their mission of feeding shelter pets in the best possible way.”

If you haven’t yet been to freekibble.com – now is the time!  Visit the site and be sure to subscribe to receive regular email reminders to visit and support the cause. The trivia questions range from super easy to super fascinating, but whether you guess right or wrong, you’ll be responsible for 10 more pieces of kibble finding their way into the belly of a hungry shelter pet, and there’s nothing trivial about that!

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After our “hard work” was done I had a chance to join Mimi and her parents for dinner and then a family photo shoot at their home. I enjoyed meeing Mimi’s own dog, Aspen {a doll of a Golden} and having the chance to get to know this one-of-a-kind girl a little bit more. Watch out world – she’s got a lot yet to give and do!  It’s a joy knowing kids like her are out there, making a difference in a big way.

P.L.A.Y (Pet Lifestyle and You) is a new San Francisco-based company that is re-defining the pet bed experience.  They are in the market of dog beds that are stylish, planet-friendly, comfortable for your dog AND believe it or not, affordable. Earlier this year I met P.L.A.Y founder William when he hired me to photograph his pug puppy at his home in San Francisco (remember Momo?).  Shortly thereafter he commissioned me to consult with him in his branding/launch process – this lead to him hiring me to design the P.L.A.Y. logo (which I personally, love) – meanwhile he was hustling to get all the many pieces into place.

Summer came around and with it the prototypes of the first-ever P.L.A.Y. beds.

Last week Will, his lovely girlfriend Deb (who has long wanted to visit Seattle) and of course, Momo the pug, came up to Seattle for an intensive 3-day photo shoot which spanned several zip codes, included 10 dogs, dozens of products and ultimately, hundreds of great lifestyle shots of P.L.A.Y. beds in-use.

I can’t share too much with you as the P.L.A.Y. story is still unfolding and their big launch is expected this Fall… but here are some of our favorite shots:

The most difficult part of a shoot like this is typically rounding-up the models and scouting locations. Here’s a huge thank-you to our co-operative dog models and of course their humans, who shared with us their time, patience and in several cases, their lovely homes. Thank you Dave, Mieshka and Rosie, Ann, Henry and Max, Hillary, Alice, Mark and Waldo, Jos, Jen, Ollie and Cocoa and last but definitely not least, Ruth, Matthew and the majestic Henri.

{Oh and I can’t forget Momo and Charlie who were dragged along and had a great time dirtying the product and escaping when no one was watching – I think a love story has officially begun!}

You’ll definitely be hearing and seeing more from me about P.L.A.Y. and its FANTASTIC new line of products.

A couple of weeks ago I had the pleasure of venturing out to Seabrook (my #1 favorite WA ocean-side getaway). My purpose was to #1 attend the “Doggie Days” event held there (making an appearance for both dane + dane pet photography & Dog is Good). The #2 reason for the trip was to photograph the three canine kids of my new friend Ann, the proprietor of “Salty Dog”,  the new pet boutique coming to Seabrook this summer.

The event on Saturday was a ton of fun – there was a great turn-out of fun-lovin’ Fidos, all helping to raise money for the North Beach PAWS Animal Shelter in Ocean Shores. We all thought Olivia was a contender for the “lick peanut butter off a spoon” contest – but alas she was bested by a ravenous Golden Retriever. I guess all those “dainty eater” manners don’t always come in so handy

The next day we had a lazy one – made yummy breakfast, walked the beach, rode the beach cruiser bikes around town, relaxed in the hot tub.  When the tide was out and the sun was low, we met up with Ann, Max, Gus and Henry to wander down to the ocean for some fetch, frisbee and photos.

I love, LOVE shooting on the beach – what scenery eh? Makes my job soooo easy

For days I hoped and waited and hoped for the weather forecast to say “sunny” for February 15th. Please, please, please, let it be sunny on this one day.

As luck would have it – it was gloriously foggy in the morning and sunny all day on President’s Day 2010. I guess I wasn’t the only one wishin’

I started my voyage down to Black Diamond to meet little Rachel and her mom WAY too early in the morning in order to capture the best light and boy am I glad I did! 405 South was so fogged-up I could not see the metropolis around me – only feet off the edge of the highway, and barely the cars in front of me. It was glorious (although I happen to be a serious fan of fog.)

Once I arrived I was greeted by a VERY polite Rachel and her smiling mom. We spent time in the living room and the back yard – trying hard to capture the early morning sunlight through the tall trees surrounding their property. It’s not too often that I am presented with a backyard this stunning: a stone waterfall surrounded by ferns and shrubs – all dripping with morning dew were only bested by sweet little Rachel bouncing, sniffing and nibbling her way around it all.

After our outside paces, Rachel was keen to come back inside and curl up with her mum – which she did, in true Golden fashion, with a statuesque beauty.  This shoot just reinforces for me what I already know (and tell people often) Golden Retrievers may just be my #1 favorite dogs to photograph – sweet, gentle, gorgeous and happy.

One of my favorite places in on or around San Francisco is Baker Beach. Combine the Grecian romance of the turquoise waves and stucco-spotted bluff, with the overwhelming beauty of the nearby Presidio and the iconic glory of the Golden Gate bridge and you’ve got one perfect locale.

Did I mention it’s off leash?  Yeah, it is.

Did I mention there’s an old bunker with lots of steel and rust and old concrete with grafiti? Yeah there is. It’s so incredible.

Even better, on this today I got to trade photo-skillz  with my friend, client and colleague Pam Biasotti of You Had me at Woof Photography (and her Golden pup Karma) What a treat!  We wandered in and out of shade and sunlight, bunkers and beach snapping and posing. It’s such a delight to shoot with another pet photographer, and it’s even more fun to watch someone else photograph your own dog (and/or you and your dog, as the case may be.)  Pam is incredibly talented and it was a blast to “trade dogs” and see what we could see around the way.

Karma is such a dear, sweet little girl, I can’t wait to visit in a year or so and see what a lovely lady she’s become… Look at those paws and ears and eyes oooh and that nose… and that tongue!  I could photograph her all day and all night….

Although I do love this set of her and her mama:

It was truly a wonderful afternoon and I am so glad we took the time to stop and enjoy this San Francisco treat.

Thanks to Pam and Karma: Be sure to check out Pam’s blog, complete with photos of Olivia and I

I love this time of year. I love being surprised again and again how late the sun stays up and how abruptly the weather turns so lovely and how we all tend to smile just a little bit more when the rain and gloom have vanished. I love noticing lilacs and tulips blooming, cherry tree petals sweeping up the street and trees that were dark skeletons, filling with supple bunches of leaves. Ahh Spring in the Northwest!

What I especially love about this season is the outdoor, on-location photo shoots I get to indulge in: boats, beaches and backyards, parks and porches – a million perfect spots with a million juxtapositions of inspiring backdrops and “props.”

Saturday I had the opportunity to photograph the lovely Jamie, her husband and their furry family members: Star and Kitty Mo. Jamie warned me that that feline might be a little aloof (as felines often are) and it would be great if we could somehow get her in a few shots, but that the chances were slim. I had to laugh when I arrived because when I stepped into their oasis of a backyard, Kitty was lounging lazily on a vivid mosaic table, sunning his underbelly and pawing at the air. I giggled out loud as I noticed Star carrying around her gigantic new “baby”, over-sized fuzzy bunny that dragged on the ground as she pranced around with it in her soft retriever mouth. “Oh yeah” I said sarcastically – “these guys are going to be realllly hard to photograph.” ☺

The whole shoot was charmed. The sun sat low in the sky, Star pranced and posed with her baby, occasionally stopping to share some licks with her humans or to give me a beaming golden smile and Kitty Mo was a downright camera hog – walking between my lens and whoever was in front of it just about any chance he got.

There were hug piles in hammocks, “keep away” in the grass, rests on the deck and lots and lots of kisses. All in all, a perfect day, a perfect little family, and a downright perfect shoot. *Swoon*

Thanks to Jamie and her crew for providing such a magical place for photography and thanks to the almighty weather gods for blessing us with the perfect lazy May afternoon.

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Did I mention that Jamie is a wonderful, amazing, talented and delightful artist?  No?  Well now I have!  You MUST check out her gorgeous jewelry designs at: Laughing Raven Design or on Etsy. Be sure to check out her robot, dog and wonder woman themes. SO awesome!!

You can also find her at the Best of the Northwest, the Seattle Kennel Club Show and a variety of other local art events. To find out where you can find her creations check out her “news + events” page.

Both kids sure love some treats and pats though, and it was delightful to watch the “two of a kind” display their individuality. Romping, woofing, smilin’ and keeping us fully entertained.

I was honored to have the opportunity to photograph these pooches – 13yr old Sydney is recovering from cancer, and although she is still sparkling and vibrant, her family doesn’t know how much longer she will be with them.

And now… Please enjoy these sample shots of Sydney and Gus!