Modern New Jersey Pet Photography by Stacey Axelrod | Wackydog Pet Photography » Pets

Wacky Winter

wackydog — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 03:55:29 +0000

While I’ve been trudging through two feet of snow and digging my car out of snow mountains, my three cats have been indulging in relaxation.

After spending the past four winters in North Carolina, this record breaking New Jersey winter has been quite a surprise. Luckily, living in a warmer climate for so long has helped me gain a new appreciation for snow and I’ve been trying to enjoy it as much as possible. While the kitties were relaxing inside, I was out indulging in snow angels and sledding with friends.

I’ve also been spending my winter time planning a couple Wackydog Pet Photography displays at local businesses. I’ll make an announcement here when they’re ready.

This Friday, I’ll be making my first post for a new 52 Weeks Project (one pet photo per week) that I’m starting with a few pet photographers from around the United States. Each week has a theme and I can’t wait to see each photographer’s interpretation. Check back on Friday for the theme and my interpretation!

I hope everyone is keeping warm this winter and taking a note from cats on relaxation.

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Alta the Retired Seeing Eye Dog

wackydog — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 20:33:12 +0000

Alta will always be a part of my family. I’ve known her since she was a teeny tiny 8-week-old puppy, still learning how to navigate the world without a clue to the massive shoes she would soon fill. When my sister was in college, she decided to become a puppy raiser for Guiding Eyes for the Blind and got matched up with a black Labrador Retriever named Alta. ”She came to me at 8-weeks-old in December 2002 during the biggest snowstorm of the year in Ithaca,” my sister recalled. “I had to take her out to pee and when I put her down, she sank into the snow and yelped. I wound up having to shovel the grass for the wee pup!”

Alta at 7 weeks

After months of rigorous training and skill-building, classes with other future guide dogs, and periodic assessments, Alta left my sister’s care to begin her official guide dog training at the Guiding Eyes Training School. She graduated the program in August 2004 and took responsibility to lead her new handler, Melissa Resnick, toward a more independent life. You can see her graduation photo and read about how she licked away Melissa’s tears on the August 2004 Graduating Class page.

We don’t know many details about Alta’s time with Melissa; Guiding Eyes requests that puppy raisers have little interaction with their dogs after graduation so that each dog can develop a strong bond with their handler. But one day, my sister received a call out of the blue informing her that Alta was being retired early because she became stressed working in a busy city environment. My sister was given the opportunity to adopt Alta before Alta was put up for adoption to the general public. At the time, my sister was living with our family friends who had just lost their beloved black lab Allie, so Alta retired to New Jersey and joined a wonderful, dog-loving family.

Best of all? We still get to see her all the time!

For this very special photo session, we caught the end of the beautiful fall colors at Echo Lake Park. Rebecca has taught Alta a little dance…

Alta has maintained the loyalty, confidence, and training that my sister began with her eight years ago. She was so focused on Rebecca throughout our session and never strayed too far.

I’ve always loved Alta’s serious, but possibly just bored and waiting for something to do, expression. She made the same look when she was a puppy. Plus, can you deny those adorable puppy eyes?

I love when dogs cross their legs! Alta does this a lot.

After years of training and work, Alta is definitely making the most of her retired life! She has earned the right to relax and sleep while her new family showers her with love. Rebecca’s mom, Gail, has developed an especially strong relationship with Alta. During our ordering session, Gail said that looking at the photos just made her want to get up and kiss Alta, who was peacefully snoozing nearby. So Gail did exactly that–she got up, laid down on the floor next to Alta, and snuggled with her while making googly noises that a mother makes for her baby.

Click here to learn more about Guiding Eyes for the Blind and to see how you can help. Learn about becoming a puppy raiser here!

Sneak Peak: Alta

wackydog — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 18:24:17 +0000

Alta is a very special dog because my sister, Sara, raised her from puppyhood to become a seeing-eye dog. After spending a few years guiding her blind companion, Alta retired and now lives with my good friend and her family here in New Jersey.

I had such a hard time choosing the photos of Alta for the blog! Check back in a few days for Alta’s full blog feature.

Welcome to the Wackydog Blogsite

wackydog — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 22:02:14 +0000

If you had asked me when I began college what I thought I would be doing in 2010, pet photography would not have even crossed my mind. At the time, I didn’t know that was a career choice. But now I’m here and I’m absolutely delighted with my decision.

After high school, I packed up my life in New Jersey and squished it all into a dorm room in Rhode Island. One year later, I packed it all up again and moved 500 miles away from home to attend UNC-Chapel Hill for their outstanding journalism school. I enrolled in Beginning Photojournalism and quickly chose that for my major. Two years after that, I was sitting in the campus coffee shop finishing the last of my college work, reading the latest bad news about the job market, and wondering why I had ever chosen journalism in the first place.

That’s when I came across a contest for professional animal portraits and discovered my future career. ”People make a living doing this? The photos I take of my pets can be more than Facebook content? I can do something I love, create lasting art for other pet owners, and NOT be a starving artist? Sign me up!” The next few days involved lots of googling, obsessing over other pet photographers’ blogs and websites, and a hefty load of dreaming. While my friends applied to jobs at failing newspapers, I saw a much brighter, furrier, drool-ier future.

But then I was offered a job at a wedding photography agency in North Carolina and I couldn’t refuse it. I tried my hand at weddings and discovered my talent for videography, but I never felt inspired by the white dresses and elaborate cakes.

I felt most inspired while photographing the dogs at the animal shelter where I volunteered. Each dog had an unknown past and an uncertain future… I found joy in capturing their personalities and telling their stories through photography.

A few of the animals that inspired me during my time as a volunteer for the Orange County Animal Shelter.

People started admiring my photos and I thought “What have I got to lose? It’s time to leap.”

And so leap I did. With the help of my ever-supportive family, I boomeranged back to New Jersey and started planning the dream I had placed on the back burner five years prior. My return to the northeast timed up well with an intensive 4-day pet photography workshop in NYC taught by two of the United States’ top pet photographers, Nichole of dane+dane studios and Jamie of Cowbelly Pet Photography. These two wonderful ladies from Seattle mentored me and 20 other budding pet photographers so we could all bring a bit of their expertise to our hometowns.

I’m now settled back into the Jersey life and proud to announce that Wackydog Pet Photography is open for business! My birthday is in three days, so the timing of this welcome post couldn’t be any better. When I think about being a pet photographer, it feels so innate, so natural, so perfect. It’s like I was born to do this. It’s amazing to look back on the last 5-10 years and see how each decision has brought me right to where I am today. Where would I be if I had never transferred to UNC? What would I be doing if I had started working at a newspaper? To be honest, I think I would have ended up here no matter what.

Do I believe in fate? I’m not sure. But I definitely believe in the power of passion. I’ve been passionate about animals and art for my entire life—and now I’m going to make that passion my entire life.

Happy Birthday, Wackydog!