Travel Session ~ Boris & Matilda the Great Danes in Canberra
My first Canberra session was with Boris and Matilda, two Great Danes who are lucky enough to live out in the country, with a huge paddock to romp and play in! And play they did, chasing each other around with much abandon.
Matilda had a pretty rough start in life, kept as a breeding machine in a small crate at a puppy farm and having her first litter of puppies at just 6 months old. By the time she was rescued at two and a half years old, she’d had three litters! She’s had some issues to work through since she was rescued but is now a happy, healthy and very sweet girl who I just fell in love with. She reminded me so much of my own blue Great Dane girl Luna.
Boris on the other hand, hasn’t had a day of hardship in his life. He came from a wonderful breeder into a home where he has been loved from the moment he got there. His mum Kristen says:
“He’s my heart dog and I absolutely love him.”
You may have noticed the very cool collars this pair are sporting. Boris and Matilda’s mum makes them through her business Big Stinky Dog, specialising in Australian handmade collars and leads for dogs and cats. In fact, one of the reasons Kristen booked this shoot was to obtain some images for the use in her new website, you can check it out here and head on over to the Facebook page too.
Boris was a somewhat more challenging subject than his sister Matilda. In the big paddock we were romping around in, distractions were rife and there was always something much more exciting to see and do. I just love his frinkles here, can you guess what he was very intently doing? Clue: you can see the subject of his focus in the image.
It’s not my usual style to shoot in full sun, but the combination of Boris and Matilda’s gorgeous shiny coats, the long waving yellow grasses and the blue blue sky meant I was mad not to turn around and shoot with the warming sun behind me.
Beautiful Matilda inspired a subdivision of Big Stinky Dog called Love, Matilda. They provide collars for rescue organisations and foster carers who have found new homes for their wards and are about to send them off for their beautiful new lives. It’s their way to celebrate what is a wonderful and amazing experience for a dog in need.
Menacing clouds had been scooting overhead all day, but by a wonderful twist of fate, we were blessed with blue skies, with just the occasional puffy white cloud creating some soft shade, by late afternoon.
Of course the dogs had multiple costume changes during our photo shoot – I loved these super cool “his and hers” bow collars.
The full sun makes Matilda so shiny and I love her regal bearing. She’s certainly come a long way!
Boris was a tad hard to focus towards the end of the session, but we did manage to confuse him often which resulted in some great head wrinkles.
Then of course it was time for more fun and games!
This shot took a lot of effort, but we got there in the end! Thanks for a super fun session, Boris and Matilda.
