(Non-photographer followers may want to check back later…this post has the potential to be really boring ya!)

A few months ago I officially launched a forum dedicated to pet photographers and I couldn’t be more pleased with how everything is working out. If you’re a pet photographer I highly recommend becoming part of the community. Having a place to network with other photographers with the same passion is priceless…which is how the idea was born! I’ve belonged to some wonderful forums dedicated to the portrait/wedding industry but struggled when looking for a forum dedicated to the pet photographer.

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The goal of the forum is simple….provide a friendly place for dedicated pet photographers to share, learn, and grow with one another. The response has been really great. We have new members joining everyday and from all different skill levels.

I have plans to update the forum along the way by adding advertising space, a private business section, and a category dedicated to charity/non-profit organizations. For right now, I’m just enjoying getting to know everyone!

Visit www.petphotoforum.com to register. It’s free, it’s friendly, and it’s awesome!!

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because playing in snow never gets old…

for Miao.

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marissa: my dog just had her first ever experience with snow this weekend, she didn't seem quite so enthused as Milo. You captured excitement in his face, I captured disdain in my girls face.

We’ve been through one heck of a week here in Pittsburgh. Without knowing when our power would be restored from the winter storm, I headed to my mom’s 4 hrs. away with the kid, dog, and hamster.

There was no time for organized packing as the house was just above freezing. It was a little taste of what it’s like for those forced to evacuate their homes due to natural disasters. I’m very thankful it was only a little taste. Of all things, I left home with a low camera battery, no backup, no charger and no card reader. I was more focused on getting my equipment to a warmer environment I forgot about the little details! Regardless of the conditions, I spent everyday documenting Miao.

Miao quickly made his home-away-from home on the family room rug:
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Beth McHenry Photography will be participating in Hello Bully’s 2nd annual LOVERS NOT FIGHTERS gala! Come on out to Bar Louie at Station Square and bid on our auction (one lucky dog is getting a whopper of a deal)…AND support a great cause!

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more events to be announced soon! Know something pet-related going on in Pittsburgh? let me know!

Every year I tell myself to enter contests just for the sake of saying “I entered a contest.” It’s not until the contest results are in that I remember I said the above!

Normally the Costco magazine goes straight to the trash, but I saw the headline 2009 International Photo Contest Winners-page 26. There were 45,000 photographs submitted for this years contest titled “Give us your best shot.” What’s even more awesome is 4 of the winning photographs were of….drumroll please…..DOGS!

Anyways, the real reason I bring this up because I share a similar photograph to the one that received U.S. Second Place…

Beth McHenry Photography photograph:
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And, Ken Saunders of L.A. photograph:
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Ken, if you’re out there reading this…Congratulations!

I’m always stumbling across doggy-related websites, blogs and stores. This particular one stood out because it featured a yellow lab… who wears costumes with much more excitement than my own.

Have a petiquette question that needs an answer? submit it to Dear Labby!
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I’m so glad my dog does his business outside. (It’s part of the whole dogs/cats rule controversy). BUT, good news! If you’re a die-hard cat lover or just into all the latest and greatest things for your cat….you need the LITTER-ROBOT! How funky is this thing?! lol

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And with the Superbowl coming up, why not get the dog (who is part of the family too) some BEER! “Dogs are known to love beer and now their owners can treat them to their own festive, delicious brew. Why share when you have a better alternative!?!?”

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Have a great weekend! ~Beth

marissa: At least I know Chevy (our 3 yr old Weimer) is not alone in her love of beer. She goes crazy when she sees a beer bottle, absolutely bananas.

While the majority of my work is on-location, I’ve been experimenting with the idea of incorporating a few “studio-ish” shots to a few sessions. Not every session will be right for this type of set-up but I have lots of mini-sessions to be scheduled this year and think it will be a perfect fit!

So, who do I ask to model for me??…the newly bathed BMP mascot of course! He loves his job. He gets paid in cheese and other fine doggy delicacies.

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When:

- You have 32 different names for your dog. Most make no sense, but he understands.
- Pig ears are on your shopping list every week
- Your passenger side window has so many nose prints on the inside you can barely see through it
- You pay more attention to your dog’s nutrition and food intake than your own
- Christmas cards include all family member names, including the dogs
- Your dogs name has been used as a password
- You bring home your restaurant leftovers for your dog
- You spell out the word w-a-l-k when talking to humans
- When you fill your dogs water bowl, you run the faucet until it gets really cold
- Your front door mat says “wipe your paws”
- You have more dog-related apps than anything else
- You’re licensed in doggy cpr, but not human

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Tracy: That made me smile, Beth. We lost Bailey on Saturday. We cherish that picture you took of her even more now.

It’s been so yucky here in PA lately that getting outside to shoot is nearly impossible. Well, at least for me because it seems when we do have a nice weather day I’m grocery shopping or buried in laundry!

Miao is such a dependent dog that he’ll follow me around the house while cleaning, laying down nearby when I stay put in one location. Today that was outside our master bathroom. While I put away the dental floss and wiped down the counters he finds a way to lay just out of the way, but still within eye-sight. I loved the way he was laying so I made him stay while I got my camera.

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