Nellie and Bailey

Nellie & Bailey

When I went to the home where Nellie and Bailey live, I met two playful and highly active dogs. My assignment was to take a photo of both of them together so I could create a painting. This was commissioned by their adoring human mom, Patsy, so she could give this to her husband as a surprise birthday gift. Taking the photo of 2 dogs running and chasing each other was not a simple task. I asked Patsy to sit on the couch and hold both of them. This worked! I shot several images, Some photos had blurry heads because these two moved so much. But that didn't stop me!  When I got back to the studio, I surveyed all the photos. I selected one where their body positions were perfect but Nellie was looking to the left, not straight ahead as I wanted. I went through the rest of the images and found one where Nellie's head was looking straight ahead and in focus! In the painting, I replaced Patsy with the couch and painted a new head on Nellie. Pictured above is the final painting. Below is one of the photos. Mom was thrilled with the painting and Dad was happily surprised with his treasured gift. Of course, Nellie and Bailey liked the painting too.

One of the photos used to paint Nellie & Bailey

Fun loving Lucy

Lucy

Painting: "Lucy–8 mos" 10" x 8",  oil/wax on  canvas, 2012

Photo of Lucy

It all started when I heard about PAWS in the Park, a 50th anniversary festival for PAWS, a rescue and shelter in Norwalk, CT. I offered a gift certificate for an 8" x 10" painting of a pet, head and shoulders, with a simple background to be iincluded in the raffle drawing.

I enjoy doing this as it is a rewarding way for me to use my gift of capturing animals on canvas to help raise funds for worthy animal causes. As it turned out, after talking about the festival with the fund raiser, I offered to take a booth and paint one of the adoptable  dogs from the shelter during the time of the festival. I went to the shelter a week prior to the event, and selected Lucy, a sweet-as- they-come mix with a blue eye and a brown eye. I took photos of her and used them as my reference for the painting.  I started the painting before the day of the festival, painted it from 11 to 3 at the festival and finished it during the week after the event.  The lucky parents who adopt Lucy will receive this painting as a gift.