What Really Goes Into a Pup Photography Session

People usually see the final photos, the happiness in their pup’s face, the moment where everything feels right, and where all of the love between them and their pup is conveyed in an image. That’s the part they fall in love with.

Behind every session is a thoughtful and intentional process full of heart that brings those moments forward.

The Session Itself
Our standard photography session, The Haven, is about 45 minutes. We adventure at a local park or iconic Austin spot that is outdoors and pup-friendly, at your pup’s pace.

Getting There
Most sessions take place at a local park or outdoor spot around Austin. Getting to and from a session is usually about 1 to 1.5 hours round-trip.

Sorting Through Photos
After the session, I typically leave with a couple of hundred photos or more. Sorting through the pictures to choose the favorites for your gallery takes about two hours. I look for the images that feel like really captured their personality and the love that shared in a way that you can feel. The way they look at you, interact with their environment, and the way their magic shines.

First Edits
Once I choose the final set, I do the first round of quick edits and cropping. For about fifteen images, which is what The Haven session of 45 minutes includes, this usually takes around two hours. This is when you and your pup’s story starts to take shape.

Hand Editing
Then comes the hand editing. This is the most detailed and time-consuming part. It takes about eight hours for fifteen images. Each image is edited with heart and care, very intentionally. I make sure the colors feel natural, but lively, you and your pup look like yourselves, with their features highlighted, and that your portraits aren’t just images, but a feeling of warmth, love, and the life that you share.

Building the Gallery
After everything is edited, I build your gallery and slideshow. This takes about an hour. It’s the moment where everything becomes something you can move through and feel, where you really feel the magic of what you mean to each other.

All Together
When you add it all up, a single 45 minute session becomes around 16 hours of total time. Every part is done with heart and intention.

I appreciate being able to share these moments with you in a way that, just like the memories and their love, will stay with you and your family, continuing to bring you happiness.

These sessions are more than photos. They are stories and love.

More About Our Sessions

We donate 10% of every paid client session through For The Pups to help support local rescues and pup causes. So while you’re capturing moments and love, you’re also doing good by helping pups in need.

Also, each month, For The Pups Photography gifts two sessions to adoptable pups.

That means each month, we are gifting $1,100 worth of portraits to adoptable pups, along with about 36 hours of time. That’s almost another full-time job on top of my full-time career.

We wanted to share this because now that you can see the heart and time behind these gifted sessions, you can see why I have to limit it to two pups per month. With your help though, by gifting a donation towards adoptable pup sessions, we can help more pups together.

These sessions are priceless in how they can change a pup’s life. A warm portrait that shows their personality, a glimpse of who they really are, not just who they appear to be in their kennel, and what they could be like with their person. For a pup who has been overlooked, one photo may be the moment their life changes.

We would love to gift more sessions each month, and with your help, we can slowly grow the number of pups we can help. Your gift towards photography sessions for adoptable pups, combined with gifts from others, allows us to show their magic and their love, and helps them leave the shelter for their long-awaited home.

These sessions are done as adventures away from the shelter and help give pups a moment of joy, a break, and a chance to feel like themselves again. Most of all, they help them have a greater chance of being seen by the person who will one day bring them home.

Our two gifted sessions per month are planned to be done in partnership with Maggie of BlackDogsATX, an Austin Animal Center volunteer who has a heart for pups and helping them experience happiness, while in the shelter.

I photograph the pups while Maggie takes them out for their adventure, their time to be a pup and away from their kennel. Maggie is in the portraits on this page, first with Sapphire (AAC Pet ID 6429) and then with Baron (AAC Pet ID 6576), who are both ready for their forever home (or potentially a foster).

Maggie affectionately calls Sapphire “Saffy” and Baron “Big Bear.”

Sapphire has been at Austin Animal Services for about a year, and is ready for her home and her family. She’s quite the water baby, even in a swimming pool, loves her trail time, and adorably sits in front of you when she wants to let you know that she’s ready for a treat.

Baron is on the Urgent Placement List at Austin Animal Services, the sooner his future person sees him, the sooner he is safe and living the next fun and love-filled chapter of his life. He’s a photogenic pup with a big heart for his people, ready for park adventures, and could be your lounge buddy, too.