Blogging with HeathPhoto

Last post

2008-05-16T10:06:00.000-07:00

I have revamped my website and have added a blog directly to is so will no longer be posting at this blog. Please check it out at www.heathphoto.ca/blog.

French Ring

2008-05-11T17:56:00.001-07:00

I went to Montreal yesterday to watch and get some practice photographing French Ring training for the upcoming trial in June. I took several pictures of Ekypse's half-sister Sasha. Then I found a tutorial on the web on how to fill letters with images and voila...my first word collage!!

Atlantic Voices

2008-05-08T14:44:00.001-07:00

On Sunday I went to see the Atlantic Voices performance. I miss being in the choir but my life is just so full and I will just have to happy with watching them perform.

Meet the choir's new mascot 'SS Maritime Atlantiika’, a.k.a. 'Tiika'. She's only nine months old and so well behaved! She will be coming to all the concerts to greet the audience as they arrive.

A different kind of shot of the new accompanist, Theresa Cillis-O'Meara.

Charlie

2008-05-08T08:54:00.000-07:00

Meet Charlie and his family. I really enjoyed photographing this boy. He is such a gentle soul and full of life. And such a beautiful boy too!!!!

Flyball comeback

2008-04-25T18:44:00.000-07:00

Alika will be making her flyball comeback tomorrow!!! She is going to be super happy!!

Spring Fling

2008-04-21T08:37:00.000-07:00

I had a great time at Bullies In Need's 3rd annual Spring Fling!! All the dogs were great and I actually had some time to socialize this year. Here are some pics of BIN's newest litter. Enjoy!!

Responsible Dog Owners of Canada

2008-04-13T08:29:00.000-07:00

There are a lot of changes going on at the Responsible Dog Owners of Canada website. You should go check it out!

My first Whippet

2008-04-13T08:23:00.000-07:00

Meet Vitesse!! She is on Alika and Eklypse's fly ball team. I really wanted a Whippet for my portfolio so her owner came over last week and we took some pictures. She's such a pretty girl.

Photos

2008-03-31T10:58:00.000-07:00

I need to get out and take some photos!!

Out of retirement

2008-03-11T05:20:00.000-07:00

After her coffee bean episode, I have decided to take Alika out of retirement from fly ball. She just is not adjusting well to being a "house dog". She really does need a "job" to do that is active, fast and fun for her. After weighing the pros and cons of allowing her to play at fly ball again, I decided that the risk of her killing herself by getting into trouble out of boredom was far worse than the risk of her injuring her cruciate again. But, there will be some rules for her to play! I'm going to rework her turn on the box and fix it up so that there is less chance of injury. There will be no double running, she will not run a full tournament, but will only share a spot, and she will not run back to back tournaments.

Where will we put it!!

2008-03-08T14:15:00.000-08:00

It's snowing yet again!! Expected total accumulation of 40-50 cm. Everyone is running out room for it!!

Melvin had been adopted....

2008-03-02T16:17:00.000-08:00

by my room mate!! We picked him up this afternoon and he is currently getting used to things in my living room. Thankfully I have French doors in the living room entrance so that he can get used to the dogs and my room mate's other cat Jasper without any harm coming to anyone (man or beast). It will take a few days but I think that he will settle in nicely.

Coffee Alert

2008-02-29T08:32:00.000-08:00

Just a reminder about the perils of human foods that can be deadly for dogs and other animals. My crazy girl, Alika, managed to get into my room mate's room, open up a box, pull out a tin, get the lid off the tin and devoured an entire bag of coffee beans last night. I have been up with her since 2:30 this morning with coffee beans coming out of both ends. It took almost 6 hours before she could lie down and stop pacing. Thankfully she is going to be alright. Remember to keep those foods that are toxic to pets well out of their reach!!

Melvin

2008-02-23T13:46:00.000-08:00

I had another photo day at Natural Pet Foods in Carleton Place today. The people there are all very nice and friendly. I wanted to give something back and I had some extra time so decided to photograph Melvin. Melvin is an absolute doll. I would bring him home in a second if I could afford another animal. I hope Melvin finds his forever home soon. He's super affectionate and very cuddly. He is about 2 years old and his adoption fee will include his neuter. If you are interested in him please contact Hana at 613-256-8833 or email info@catsparadise.ca

Upcoming events

2008-02-14T07:21:00.000-08:00

I thought that I would post some upcoming events in the dog world.

Hopeful Hearts is having a pawdicure event Friday February 14 from 6-9 pm at Natural Pet Foods in Westboro. Come on out and help the needy canines!

I'll be at Natural Pet Foods in Carleton Place on Saturday Februay 16 from 1-4 pm with a small display of my work and will be taking bookings for my photo day the following week-end.

On Saturday February 23rd, I'll be holding a photo day at Natural Pet Foods in Carleton Place from 10 am - 4 pm.

Big Sky Ranch Animal Ranch in Kemptville will be hosting a skijoring and dog sledding fundraiser on Saturday February 23rd. Registration information can be found here.

Hopeful Hearts will be hosting a tea party at Natural Pet Foods in Carleton Place on Saturday March 22 from 10 am - 2 pm. Those needy canines are counting on you!!

The fourth annual OHS Fur Ball Gala will be held on Saturday, March 29, 2008 at the National Gallery of Canada.

February Formals

2008-02-05T13:04:00.000-08:00

I'm having another photo day at Natural Pet Foods (http://www.naturalpetfoods.ca/) in Carleton Place on February 23, 2008. My theme this month is "February Formals". I'm offering classic head shots against my new painted canvas background. I'm looking forward to it!!

Lighting lesson with Ed

2008-02-05T12:59:00.000-08:00

I went for another lighting lesson with Ed this past Sunday. Wendy Beard came along with me and we each brought a dog with us. Tyra was a stellar model for me. She is quite the character and full of personality. She was very cute lying down in the chair and I just had to get a shot of it.

Gotta buy....

2008-02-02T19:50:00.000-08:00

a new tug!!!

Flyball practice was pretty awesome this evening. I forgot Eklypse's tug so borrowed a rope tug. She was a tugging demon!! Looks like I will have to get her a new tug for flyball! She was putting feet on the box this evening...her confidence is definitely improving!! Hopefully she will run in flyball one of these days!

System 6

2008-01-25T21:50:00.000-08:00

Geoff Empey is a friend of mine and owns Sasha who is a half sister to Eklypse. We met when Sasha was still a pup at Bruce Pit. Geoff also belongs to the band "System 6" (http://www.system6.ca). I went out this evening to see them. I had a great time! The music was good and I managed to get a couple of good shots. Here is bass guitarist, Joanne Lyons.

Slurpy puppies

2008-01-19T18:04:00.001-08:00

I had a great time at Natural Pet Foods (http://www.naturalpetfoods.ca) in Carleton Place today for my "Beat the Winter Blues" photo day! It wasn't super busy for me so I was able to relax and take my time with the dogs which I very much enjoyed. I had some extra time in the afternoon and even got a few photos of one of my gang.

I absolutely LOVE nose lick photos..... Out of 5 dogs, I managed to capture nose licks on 3 of them. Not too shabby! And yup, that is my Bugaboo, Eklypse, in the middle!! My little stress case managed to sit nicely for a couple of shots!!

Pink clouds

2008-01-15T05:49:00.000-08:00

The clouds this morning were really pink! Almost fuchsia!!! Too bad I was on my way to work and didn't have my camera. I would have liked to stop and get some photos. I know that I should always carry one with me. Maybe I'll get out my old point and shoot just for that purpose....

Beat The Winter Blues!!!!

2008-01-06T18:36:00.000-08:00

Darby

2008-01-06T18:29:00.001-08:00

Dary is up for adoption. She must adopted outside of Ontario and in an area that does not have breed specific legislation. This little girl is quite the snuggle bum!! For more information on her and others, please go to http://www.bulliesinneed.ca

Ecomuseum

2007-12-30T13:19:00.000-08:00

The Ecomuseum is an educational wildlife park located on the island of Montreal which is operated by the St. Lawrence Valley Natural History Society. I had a great time there viewing and photographing all the animals.

The hawks and eagles were kept out on tether lines so I was not impeded by fencing with respect to photography.

The American Bald Eagle and a Red Tailed Hawk were both very beautiful.

I enjoyed watching the owls but had to blur out the fencing from the foreground. I didn't do too badly!!

The Snowy Owl was absolutely gorgeous...

The Coyotes and Foxes were quite the characters. The coyote was resting in the snow for most of my visit...

This Red Fox was somewhat restless and kept popping in and out of his den. But he did settle after a while...

To learn more about the Ecomuseum please go to: http://www.ecomuseum.ca/

Happy Holidays!!!

2007-12-23T17:01:00.000-08:00

Have a happy and safe holiday season everyone!!

Christmas tree shopping (or rather chopping)

2007-12-22T19:27:00.001-08:00

For the second year in a row, my friend Elise invited me to go look for a Christmas tree with her. She goes to an awesome place in Leeds-Grenville where we can bring the dogs and they get to have a romp with us while we're scouting for trees. Last year there was no snow as you can see below...

Compare that to this year! We had quite the adventure. Got stuck once in the snow on the side of the road...the snow plow had plowed beyond the ditch and it looked solid! A nice man came and pulled us out so all was good. Somehow we managed to not get stuck on a private road before it was plowed. Elise has some pretty awesome snow tires! Here's a picture of the plow after we made it through...

The dogs had a good romp and enjoyed running through the deep snow. And it was deep as you can see...

Elise found a good tree and we got home safe and sound. All 5 of us were pretty pooped at the end of the day. I know that Eklypse and I slept well. I'm sure that Elise, and her 2 puppers did too!

Printing

2007-12-11T18:04:00.001-08:00

I was printing some orders this evening and decided that I wanted to print Alika's photo that I took on Sunday at my studio lighting lesson on the Ilford Smooth Fine Art Paper that I print my simulated sketches on. It looks fabulous!!! I will let the ink cure before spraying it and am looking forward to getting it framed. It is going to look gorgeous on display. I really want to start working on doing more "fine art" type photography. That is why I'm going to see Ed to learn about studio lighting. He is a wealth of information and I'm quite lucky to have found him!

Lighting lesson

2007-12-09T15:37:00.001-08:00

I was lucky enough to find a well known fellow photographer in the area who is willing to help me with artificial lighting. I went for a lesson today and was there for 5 and and half hours!! I'm still reeling from everything that I learned. I was unable to find a human subject as a model and as a result, I brought Alika with me. She was thoroughly spoiled after the lesson while I had tea with Ed and his wife. I am totally looking forward to my next lesson!

Photos with Santa for LAWS

2007-12-09T15:21:00.000-08:00

I had the pleasure to do another "Photos with Santa" fundraiser. This time it was for the Lanark Animal Welfare Society (http://www.lanarkanimals.ca/) and was held at the Lanark Veterinary Clinic. We had a really good turnout!!! Here is Santa cuddling with one of the kitties.

Hopeful Hearts Photos with Santa

2007-12-04T05:23:00.000-08:00

Hopeful Hearts is a new dog rescue in the Ottawa area. They specialize in rescuing special needs dogs. Older dogs and dogs with chronic conditions and illnesses. Pictured above is MacKenzie who was going to her new home this past week-end. A fundraiser was held in conjuction with Natural Pet Foods grand opening in Carleton Place. It was a success!!

To visit Hopeful Hearts, please go to:

http://www.hopefulhearts.ca

And to visit Natural Pet Foods please go to:

http://www.naturalpetfoods.ca/

Fly Ball in Montreal

2007-11-27T15:49:00.001-08:00

History was made on November 24th and 25th, 2007 when the first ever NAFA sanctioned fly ball tournament was held in the province of Quebec in Region 20. I had the opportunity to shoot the event and was blown away by the nice indoor lighting!!

The crowds were incredible. The bleachers were full! Next year the organizers are planning on moving the fly ball lanes to an area where spectators can watch from the blue bleachers!

CKC Obedience Trial

2007-10-29T07:44:00.000-07:00

I spent the day yesterday at the CKC Obedience Trial being held by the Ottawa Valley Golden Retriever Club. It was fun watching all the dogs at the trial. It made me want to get back into it with Alika. And, I finally was able to watch Eklypse's litter mate, Nova, perform.

K9 Costume Ball

2007-10-27T16:45:00.000-07:00

In honour of Halloween, Bullies in Need held a K9 Costume Ball fundraiser. It was a blast!! The dogs looked so cute in their costumes. Some owners even dressed up to match!!

Fall colour

2007-10-21T19:11:00.000-07:00

I don't often post images of my own dogs. But I just wanted to share Eklypse with you. First we stopped at this beautiful row of trees.

Then we found a really funky tree by the shore line.

And of course, she had fun playing with her friend Nigel!

Black and white conversions

2007-10-15T19:10:00.000-07:00

I went down to the States last week to attend a photography seminar. I had a wonderful time learning new things, meeting new people and seeing "cyber friends" for the first time ever! The topics of the day were enviromental portraiture and Photoshop. In the Photoshop portion of the seminar, black and white conversions were one of the topics covered. I have been playing a little with black and white conversions and here are my results. These are from a wedding that I shot back in September.

BARK in the Park

2007-10-13T13:22:00.001-07:00

Bark in the Park was a huge success despite the rain on Saturday. I had fun photographing all the dogs!

Gatineau Park

2007-10-12T15:31:00.001-07:00

I had a wonderful time in Gatineau Park today. This was the view from the parking lot.

The leaves are absolutely beautiful!!

Eklypse enjoyed it too!

dockdogs®

2007-09-30T19:16:00.001-07:00

Despite a cool and cloudy start, it ended up being a beautiful day!!

Got some beautiful photographs today of the dogs have fun diving into the pool.

To view more images, please visit http://heathphoto.ca/galleries/dockdogs30-09-07

dockdogs®

2007-09-26T05:57:00.000-07:00

Time for some wild and wet fun!! Dockdogs® is once again in the Ottawa area. Come on out to the Dundas Veterinary Clinic in Winchester on Sunday, September 30th and check it out!!

For more information, please visit: http://www.dockdogs.com/component/option,com_extcalendar/Itemid,53/extmode,view/extid,338

B.A.R.K. in the Park

2007-09-22T06:40:00.000-07:00

Come get your dog's photo taken in a fall setting at the B.A.R.K. in the Park fundraiser at Bruce Pit on Cedarview in Nepean. The event will be held on October 6th and 7th, 2007 from 9:00 to 17:00. I'm looking forward to photographing my favourite subject once again for a good cause! For more information, please visit http://home.ican.net/~933435/UpcomingEvents.htm

Beginnings and endings

2007-09-16T10:26:00.000-07:00

Photography is about preserving memories...capturing that split second in time for all eternity.

This is Evi. She is just beginning her life. Her owner has many years to look forward to with her. She has a wonderful, quirky personality. I'm looking forward to watching her grow and become a fabulous sport dog and family pet. She will provide many hours of fun and frolic for her owners and will give an insurmountable amount of love to her human family.

And this is Riley. I have only had the opportunity to meet him once. He is a wonderful, happy boy who has given his human family an incredible amount of love. Unfortunately Riley's life is coming to a close. I know that he will be sadly missed and fondly remembered when he goes to wait at the bridge for his human family.

Right now, Riley is still enjoying life and that is what I love about dogs. As long as they are loved and well cared for, they enjoy life to the fullest. I know that you will enjoy the rest of your days Riley. May they be carefree and as sweet and can be.

USDDN Regionals at Super Ex

2007-08-21T13:10:00.000-07:00

The Regionals for the United States Disc Dog Nationals are coming up this Saturday. Woohoo!! I will not be the photographer for this event this time around. It works out best as I will be competing with one of my dogs. Now I will be able to spend more time with her. And, as there will be official photographers there, I will actually get some photos of us playing at this game!!!! That makes me very happy. I would love some nice photos of the two of us together.

Carp Fly Ball Tournament

2007-08-19T06:35:00.000-07:00

Had a great time as usual photographing the dogs at the fly ball tournament last week-end in Carp. This is a new boy to fly ball. He's doing well. I hope to see him racing soon!!! Maybe next month at Burnin' Rubber's tournament...

Trampoline fun

2007-08-10T11:06:00.001-07:00

Shalaine is the daughter of a good friend of mine. She is a lot of fun!! We had a wonderful time getting some images of her on the trampoline. After that, we went to playground around the corner and got some images on the ground!

USDDN Regionals

2007-08-10T06:46:00.001-07:00

Regionals to qualify for the United States Disc Dog Nationals this year will be held on August 25th at the Super Ex right here in Ottawa!! I am very excited to be both participating with one of my dogs and photographing the event. It will certainly be a day to remember! For more information please go to http://www.flyingdiscdogs.com/trialaug25.htm

Dog Days in the Capital 2007

2007-07-28T09:17:00.001-07:00

Another fly ball tournament in the region will be held in Carp on August 11th and 12th 2007 hosted by the local fly ball team "Paws On Fire". I'm looking forward to photographing my favourite subject...dogs in action!!!

For more info, please go to http://www.flyballdogs.com/pawsonfire/

It takes how many hands to raise a child??

2007-07-28T06:43:00.001-07:00

A good friend of mine is expecting a new addition to her family at the end of August! Her family is quite excited about it. We decided to do pregnancy portraits 5 weeks before her due date as her first daughter was 4 weeks early! Of course the whole family was involved in the portrait session :-)

Expanding my horizons

2007-07-18T05:18:00.000-07:00

I have been expanding my horizons and working with people for a change!! It's totally different! I'm very much enjoying the experience and am looking forward to further developing my people photography skills. Linda was fantastic to work with and her make-up was done by a local make-up artist by the name of Tressa Wilson. I would love to work with the two of them again in the future!

Kingston NAFA Tournament

2007-07-09T11:25:00.001-07:00

Unfortunately I was only able to shoot for one day at the tournament. A small emergency required that I boot it back to Ottawa on the first day of the tournament but all's well that ends well! Had a great time shooting on the second day of the tournament!!

USDDN Trial

2007-07-02T05:21:00.001-07:00

Had a GREAT day photographing the trial!! The weather was mostly perfect and the dogs were in good form. Can't ask for much better than that!

Bonnie

2007-06-29T09:35:00.000-07:00

Bonnie was a gentle soul and the mascot of my choir. She attended many of our concerts and truly enjoyed meeting all the people. Run happy and free on the other side of the bridge sweet girl...you will be sorely missed.

NAFA Fly Ball Tournament in Kingston

2007-06-22T12:11:00.000-07:00

Back Draft will be hosting it's second annual Fly Ball tournament on July 7th and 8th, 2007. Lot's of fun to be had yet again!!

USDDN Trial

2007-06-03T19:48:00.000-07:00

There will be a Disco Disc Dog Trial trial in Manotick on June 30, 2007. Time to boogie with your friendly canine pal! More details can be found at:

http://www.flyingdiscdogs.com/

B.A.R.K. Walkathon

2007-04-30T11:29:00.000-07:00

Be certain to make it out the Arboretum at the Central Experimental Farm on Sunday May 6, 2007 for B.A.R.K.'s annual "Woof and Wags" Walkathon.

Registration begins at 8:00am and the 3k walk commences at 9:00am.

A free BBQ and social follow the walk. Get your pup's photo taken by Sue Bird. Various dog sport demos will take place throughout the day. Information on canine health, training and your rights and obligations as a dog owner will also be available at the different booths.

Bullies in Need

2007-04-28T18:30:00.000-07:00

Had a great time at the Bullies In Need Spring Fling fundraiser today.

Bam Bam is known in the Pitty circles for his pout. And here he is...showing it off big time!

dockdogs®

2007-04-06T07:39:00.000-07:00

Photographing dockdogs® was a blast!! 4 days of dogs, dogs, dogs!! Too cool!

Spring Fling

2007-03-14T08:17:00.000-07:00

It will once again it will be my pleasure to do photos for Bullies In Need during their Spring Fling fundraiser on Saturday April 28th, 2007.

Bullies in Need is a network of rescuers, shelters and bully lovers that works very hard to save as many pit bull types and their mixes as possible due to the passing of Bill 132 in Ontario.

For directions to the event, go to: http://www.foreverfriendsdogtraining.ca/FF-ContactUs.htm

For more information on Bullies In Need, go to: http://www.bulliesinneed.ca/

U-Fli

2007-03-02T05:38:00.000-08:00

U-Fli is coming to Ontario!!
Come out and watch the fastest fly ball dogs in the area race head to head in singles, pairs and regular teams of four.This is free fun for the whole family to watch.
Hosted by fly ball area teams Burnin'Rubber and Paws on Fire.
When: Evening of Friday April 20, 2007 and all day Saturday April 21st, 2007 and Sunday April 22nd, 2007
Where: Huntley Curling Rink in Carp
Map: http://maps.google.ca/maps?hl=en&q=199%20Langstaff%20Dr%2C%20Carp%2C%20ON%20K0A%201L0%20&amp;amp;amp;ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&um=1&sa=N&tab=wl

Help Brock

2007-02-27T10:16:00.000-08:00

This super sweet boy has found his way into rescue. Diagnosed with grade three hip displaysia he is in need of two surgies to correct the problem.

A 2-hour freestyle disc seminar will be given by Pam Casselman to raise funds for his surgeries and rehabilitation.

When:Friday, March 16, 7:00-9:00 pm

Where: The Training Hall in Carp

How much: $25 before March 9 / $30 at the door

Limited to 40 people, no dogs please

For more info, email: elise.bonder@rogers.com

dockdogs®

2007-02-26T14:12:00.001-08:00

The exciting new canine sport of dock diving is coming to Ottawa at The Home Show on March 22nd through to the 25th, 2007.

Check it out at: http://www.dockdogs.com/component/option,com_extcalendar/Itemid,53/extmode,view/cat_id,/extid,186/

Time to dive in for some wild and wet fun!!

USDDN Trial

2007-02-26T11:53:00.000-08:00

The Airborne Disc Dog Club of Ottawa will be holding the first USDDN trial in the Ottawa area on March 11th, 2007 . Check out the high flying action at the Super Dome!! For directions go to: http://www.superdome.ca