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When Tucker's mom Caitlin emailed me a few days after the new year, I was instantly sad to read what she had to say. She was getting in touch to get photos taken of her, her husband Joe and her dogs, which normally makes me very happy, but the reason she wanted photos was because their biggest pup, Tucker James was sick. I get these kinds of sessions a few times a year, and they're always very bittersweet. I'm so happy that the family is going to get great photos of their beloved pet, but it's also very difficult to know that our session will likely be the first and last time I meet a very special animal. It was so great to meet Tucker and his family. He's a big beautiful dark shepherd. He has two smaller dog brothers. Keegan is a black and white terrier mix, and Tucker is a Maltipoo. Yes, you heard that right. Tucker has a brother named Tucker. I waited about 15 minutes into our session, when I finally said "Ok, so what's the deal with you guys having two dogs named Tucker?". Caitlin and Joe both laughed and told me how they both used to live down in North Carolina where they were neighbors. The two neighbors met one day and got to talking and they found out they both had a dog named Tucker. From there, they fell in love, got married, moved to Long Island, and voila...two Tuckers. That's why they distinguish them as Tucker James and little Tucker. All three pups were incredibly sweet and photogenic, as were their parents! They braved a super icy cold day to meet for our session at Blydenburgh County Park and they did such a great job looking at the camera for me. It also helped that we had some well-timed passersby to walk right past me to get all three of them staring in the same direction without me having to make my incredibly stupid noises for their attention! I'm sad to say that Tucker is no longer with us, but I'm so glad that I got to meet such a sweet and wonderful boy, and I hope these photos make his family smile whenever they miss him. I know how devastating it can be to lose a pet. The whole reason I began doing pet photography was because I lost my cat Duchess and my dog Basil within a few months of one another. I'm glad that I can provide at least some small comfort to my clients when they go through a loss like this. Hug your pets close! Here are some of my favorite photos from our very special session. Like I mentioned in my last blog post, I'm not taking sessions at the moment. Due to the pandemic, I'm not allowed to shoot sessions for clients right now. I miss my clients and their babies and furbabies so much! I have no idea when I'll be able to get back to shooting sessions, but I will update you here the minute I'm able to take clients again! That being said, I do have gift cards available. If you want to pay ahead of time for a session with me, feel free to purchase a gift card! You can purchase in any amount starting at $15. I also want to give a shoutout to Tucker's mom Caitlin who is a nurse. Thank you to her and all our healthcare workers who are on the front lines of this pandemic, saving lives and risking their safety to do so. We appreciate what you do so much! Stay safe and healthy everyone!
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When people get in touch with me to photograph a first birthday session for them, it usually involves cake and a toddler. This session, however, was going to be a little different! Karen got in touch with me to photograph her dog Schatzie's first birthday! She wanted to get photographs taken with her and her daughter Kayli! We decided to hold our session in Port Jefferson because it's close to both of us and such a dog-friendly town. We started at the park on the harbor and worked our way down to the dog beach next door. Schatzie is a beautiful German Shepherd and she was very well-behaved for a young pup! She had a ton of energy and was up for anything we asked of her. She even let her mom tie balloons onto her collar for some festive birthday photos. She was also happy to share the spotlight for some photos with her family on the beach at the end of our session. Here are some of my favorite photos from Schatzie's big day! This is the part of the blog post where I usually say "Book your session with me today! Email me blah blah!" BUT unfortunately I'm not taking sessions at the moment. Due to this crazy pandemic, I'm not allowed to shoot sessions for clients right now. It's been a really rough go not being able to work and I would love nothing more than to get back to serving my clients and photographing the babies and furbabies of Long Island. I really wish I could tell you when I could get back to booking sessions, but I have no idea. All I can say is I'm so looking forward to getting back out there and capturing memories for you. What I can tell you is I have gift cards available. If you've been wanting to book a session with me and you have that government stimulus check burning a hole in your pocket, feel free to purchase a gift card to use at your next session. You can purchase in any amount starting at $15. I hope you're all staying safe and healthy out there! Purchase gift cards for your next session here!Reilly's mom Rita got in touch with me in January with some sad news. Her sweet puggle was sick and she didn't know how long she would have left with him. She wanted to get photos taken of him while he was still feeling like himself and looking like the handsome boy she's loved since he was a puppy. I get a few sessions a year of this nature, and they're never easy. I fall in love a little with every dog I ever photograph, so while I'm happy that their families are getting quality photos to remember their pet by, it's always sad for me to meet these sweet animals when I know their time is limited. I could barely believe that Reilly was sick because he was so full of energy and spunk during our session. I even had to crank up my shutter speed because he was happily running on the beach like a young pup. We chose a beach that was close by Rita's house and one that her and Reilly liked to visit. I'm one of those crazy people who prefers the beach in the winter because it's so calm and serene and there are rarely ever any people to get in my backgrounds, so this was a perfect spot for me. Reilly had fun running in the sand and eating some unidentified dead sea creature that washed up on the shore! When the light was getting a little darker, we headed over to Rita's house because she wanted a few photos of Reilly at home too. He relaxed in her beautifully decorated basement den and was treated to plenty of cotija cheese to get him to look at the camera. Only the best for this boy! Reilly did such an awesome job and it was so great spending some time with this sweet boy. When I went to Rita’s house for our viewing appointment to show her all her images, Reilly jumped all over me and kissed me like we were best buds. Rita told me she was shocked because he never really acts like that to people he doesn’t know very well. I said “he smells a dog person”. I have to say, dogs do tend to love me. I think it’s because they can tell I love them so much. Also, I probably smell like other dogs 99% of the time! In all seriousness, my relationships with my clients and their pets is one of my favorite things about my job. If you are my client, I can tell you it is an absolute honor for me to become best buds with your dog. At the time of writing, Reilly is still with us and Rita told me he has his good and bad days. I hope he has a lot more good days ahead of him and special memories to make with his mama. Here are some of my favorite shots from Reilly's session. Email me at laurapeaphotography@gmail.com or call (631)256-7476 to book a session.It was great to be back at Barkfield Road in East Northport for another pet portrait mini session event. We've done so many of these events that the owner Carol is now a dear friend to me. She puts so much work into making these events a success and I appreciate everything she does. Go visit her shop in East Northport for her quality products, amazingly decorated dog treats, but most of all her warmth, knowledge and hospitality. You will not regret it and your pup won't either. We do this event twice a year to benefit the Dotty Fund, which is a charity that helps out with financial assistance for families whose pets need medical treatment. This time was our Valentine's Day theme. We had two backdrops, a white one with red hearts, and a champagne sequin background with a kissing booth sign. The dogs were more than willing to get in the spirit and give plenty of kisses! Thanks again to Carol, Vicky and all the people who came in to support the Dotty Fund and give their dog a close up! Here are some of the fuzzy faces I spent time with that day! Join my email list to keep up to date on all the events I'll be participating in!Meet the Petrellis! Just kidding, they're my friends and they've been all over the blog for years haha. We had a lot of photos to get to this holiday season, so when planning our photo session, mom Diana and I decided we'd do two days in a row to make sure we got everything we needed. The first day we met in Stony Brook for a family session with dad Michael. The next day, Diana and her mom Janet (it's always good to bring a helper!) came with the boys into the studio to get some Christmas photos of just the twins. It's the best of both worlds! The boys had a lot of fun playing with the props in the studio, and I made sure to save the best for last. Earlier this year, our friend Dina was cleaning house and getting rid of some stuff and she offered me an adorable little red metal fire truck for the studio. I knew this would look great in Christmas photos, and I knew Vincent and Louis would love it. They have a real fascination with anything automotive, like their dad. Remember when we took some of their newborn photos on dad's car and even...in his tires? The day before at our family session, Vincent and Louis made sure to point out every car that went by! Because I knew it would be a big draw and that it would probably distract them if it was in the room the whole time, I stowed the fire truck outside the studio until right at the end of the session. The boys loved taking turns riding on it and it was really adorable! Here are some of my favorite photos from our double session! Book your session with me! Email me at laurapeaphotography@gmail.com or call me (631)256-7476.I was back at the pet boutique Barkfield Road for pet holiday mini sessions this year! Go visit this wonderful pet store if you’re in East Northport. The owner Carol does the most amazingly decorated dog treats, I’m in awe every time I go there and see them. She even has doggy cakes for birthday and gotcha days, dog cannolis, and so much more. My dog Gracey loves it every time we go in there, because she knows she’s about to get spoiled. Carol approached me a few years ago with the idea of teaming up for holiday photo mini sessions and she always hosts them to benefit the Dotty Fund, which provides assistance to pet owners when they have a situation arise where they can't help their pet get medical attention. The Dotty Fund provides the means to keep the pet at home instead of ending up in a shelter, separated from the owners who love them so much. Every year we’ve been able to do a little better and better and increase the donation to the Dotty Fund. This year sales from the event contributed to a $450 donation to the fund! Not bad for a day’s work! This is always a fun event to shoot, because I get to hang out with a bunch of dogs and the sessions are long enough to get to know them a little more than at my library programs. Some of the dogs have come back year after year and it’s always great to see them and their devoted owners. Here are some of the great photos we got at the event! Go check out Barkfield Road if you're in East Northport, and subscribe to my email list to be notified of other events I'll be participating in on Long Island!It was so great to come back to the Islip Public Library for a third year in a row for a pet portrait program on their beautiful terrace. It was pretty sunny and warm that day, so I moved the pets around to keep them comfortable in the shade throughout the program. It was good to see some repeat patrons come back for another photo, and we also had plenty of newbies who came to get a portrait of their fur babies. Thanks to everyone who came out, to the library for having me, and especially to Laurie Aitken for coordinating everything! I love doing these kinds of programs, because I get to see some adorable pets and get to know some really awesome pet lovers here on Long Island. Here are the photos from the program! Join my email list to stay up to date on what pet events I’ll be participating in!I’ll be back at the wonderful pet boutique Barkfield Road in East Northport for another holiday mini session photo event! Carol, the owner of Barkfield Road, sets up these events to give her clients a great experience, some awesome photos of their pets, and to give back to a charity called the Dotty McMorrow Sandmann Animal Rescue Fund, otherwise known as the Dotty Fund. The Dotty Fund provides financial assistance to families in need if a medical situation arises with a pet that they can't handle. It helps them keep the pet cared for at home, so that more animals don't end up in shelters when their owners are unable to provide them with medical care. Session are a half hour and the fee is $25 but that’s waived if you buy more than $25 of products. On sale will be holiday cards, prints, metal ornaments, and a new product I added to my menu this year, image cubes. These are 4x4 square cubes with photos on all sides. They’re great as gifts or to display on a desk. Holiday props and backgrounds will be available. The mini session event will be held on Sunday, November 17th from 10am-5:30pm.   Reserve your spot by calling Carol at (631)651-9292!Dominic is the son of one of my best friends, Dina and her husband Mike. Dom gave everyone a big scare when he was born and his parents couldn’t bring him home until he was 6 weeks old. That meant his newborn photos were really special for me, because I was so happy we could finally see him out of the NICU. Now, he’s happy and healthy and today he turned 1. To see the long way he’s come is amazing! To celebrate his October birthday, his parents planned him a fall themed bash at Fink’s Country Farm in Wading River. We met there a few weeks before the party to take some fun first birthday photos! Dominic is so fun to photograph because he’s got so many amazing facial expressions. He does this hilarious surprised face when something really strikes him and it’s the funniest thing! I loved celebrating him at his first birthday party this weekend. Happy First Birthday, Big Dom! Here are some of my favorite photos from his session! One more thing, just so you know, in all the photos where Dominic is sitting up high on top of things, I edited out his parents holding onto him. I'd never put a 1 year old 4 feet off the ground on top of a metal cow. I say this because I never want an amateur or beginning photographer to see something here and attempt it, not knowing the image was edited. Always put your subject's safety first, no matter what! This has been a public service announcement by Laura Pea Photography : ) Book a session with me! Email me at laurapeaphotography@gmail.com or call me at (631)256-7476.Wilhelmina is an old friend of mine from college. I hadn't seen her in a long time, so I was so excited when she asked me to photograph her engagement session, because it meant we could catch up! It also meant I could meet her three adorable pups that I always admire on Instagram, and her awesome fiance Patrick. Patrick is from Ireland, so Wilhelmina had told me about the issues they were having with getting married here. They even had to push the date back a few times, but thankfully everything got settled and they could focus on planning the wedding of their dreams! Wilhelmina knew she wanted to get her dogs involved, because they're so so important to them. We started off at their house and did some photos with the pups cuddling on the couches inside! After that, we moved outside in their backyard to take some photos individually with each dog, giving them all a special little moment with mom and dad. First was Phoenix, a Husky/Shiba Inu/probably some other stuff mix haha! He's so sweet and full of energy and his coat is just gorgeous. He did a great job posing with his parents! Then we brought out Schatzi, a sweet little mush of a pitbull, who was happy to sit and sniff the grass while we did plenty of poses. Then, last but not least, we took shots of Kya, who is Schatzi's sister, and I know I'm overusing this word, but she's also incredibly sweet. They all are! I I wanted to just lay on the floor and snuggle with all three of them, but you know, I had a job to do. I'm a professional :D
After that we headed inside to take a few shots inside Wilhelmina's awesome library that I admire so much. Seriously, she should arrange people's bookcases for a living. She has a gift!
Then, finally, we bid adieu to the dogs to take a few special photos of just the bride and groom to be on the beach where their wedding ceremony was planned. It was an absolutely beautiful way to end off our session! Wilhelmina and Patrick got married on September 22nd and I was so happy to be there to celebrate this wonderful couple! They had a beautiful intimate reception at Cowfish in Hampton Bays. Congratulations to them both and I hope they have an amazing life together! If your engagement session won't be complete without your pack of pups, book it with me by emailing me at laurapeaphotography@gmail.com or calling (631)256-7476! |
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All images copyright 2018 Laura Pea Photography
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All images copyright 2018 Laura Pea Photography
Contact Laura here.
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