It is almost Thanksgiving!  I love November. ...most times.  I can leave the mud the dogs bring in the house behind!    November also brings the creative ideas for Christmas cards front and center.  Last week I had a Photo Event Session at Happy Paws in Derby, NY.  We had lots of dogs  to photograph!

I thought to show a concept that is hard for people to envision when I say we can do this!  

What is it?  Taking 4 individual images and combine them into ONE.  I know it can be hard to see but it was well worth it this time.

I did have a really hard time that morning.  My back was just killing me so I was very slow at setting up everything I needed to do.  AND being late getting ready meant people arrived before I had the right light I wanted for the sessions.  I wasn't happy with the lighting but it worked with some tweaks.  All of these individual photos are straight from the camera - no enhancements done to them.

My plan was not to take individual photographs and make one photo from them all - but I really did not have a choice.  My table was being very difficult and not holding together.  Each time a second dog would jump up a leg would fall out and sometimes more!  I was so getting frustrated with that table and my first client had 4 dogs!   4 big dogs - so there was no way to get them all together for one picture.  Plan B came into effect...separate photos.

First thing I did was I took each dog individually and adjusted them so they looked great.  The background I had also worked on.   The next series of steps where just to take each individual dog and line them up on the background.  Then I added a new head to the large blue merle dog.  Once I had everything aligned and looking good, I started adjusting the single image so it looks like the dogs are apart of the scene.     

​Below is the result!  

The first photo session was so popular we have added a second date - Saturday December 14!
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These two great white Samoyeds are plenty ready for all this snow and cold temperatures!   Cody is the older guy at 13.5 years old.  He still gets around like a trooper.  The younger one is Meika at 5 years old - still full of spunk!

About Mid-October I had a photo shoot to capture some candid moments of these two.  I had a really good time trying to get some nice images.  At one point Meika had decided the squirrels needed to be chased around the yard while Cody just stood by and watched.  It was a lot of back forth between posing for the camera and off chasing the critters.

In the end I did manage to take quite a number of nice shots of both of them.  

What else has been happening - 
     I have been attending various Artisan and craft Fairs these past few weeks.  I have to say, a really slow start.  The first event had about 20 people come through.  I think the organizer thought just social media advertising would bring the people in.  Unfortunately - people in the area did not know the Pet Expo was even happening.  It was good practice at least.  The second one was Barksgiving at Chestnut Ridge in Orchard Park, NY.  That was going well until the wind.  My tent did not blow away, thanks to the weights keeping it grounded.  I ran into my side walls billowing in and out with such force to knock my small table over - not once but 1/2 a dozen times.  I got frustrated and packed up.   Next year I am budgeting in a new tent with properly attached side walls.  The next day after Barksgiving, I went to an indoor show.  Yeh, nice and warm...but not very well attended.  Tomorrow I get ready for the last one on my list.  Saturday in Elma, NY.  Hope this one goes better.  I got a few more sample pieces to display, too.

​Don't forget  - November 23 at Happy Paws in Derby, NY  I will be doing Christmas themed photos - some spots still left.