I’ve known Madison and Tyler for many years through Janice at Big Dog Little Bed and have photographed Tyler a few times for his videographer work there. But this was my first time photographing Madison and Tyler not only has a couple, but as parents to their sweet little boy River. River is SO CUTE and also VERY COOPERATIVE AS A BABY MODEL and also LOVES TO SHOVE SWEET POTATOES IN HIS FACE. He’s fun. He smiles a ton. We taught him how to play a tambourine. He did some swing dancing. He hung out on a backyard hammock. River’s living his best baby life over there. And who can forget Margie the Dog? I painted a portrait of Margie once for my Familiar Dolls side business along with her brother Vernon, and while Vernon is unfortunately no longer with us, Margie is thrilled to have River around. She is an incredibly sweet pup who loves attention and cuddles and insisted that I take at least 5 minutes out of my working schedule to sit with her on the couch (I did). Really she insisted on more than 5 minutes but I had to work and she’s still not over it. We had such a good time together in their beaaaautiful home (that yard!). And now that Geoff’s joined Tyler’s baseball team, I’m hoping that I’ll be able to make up for lost Margie time.
Durham Family Photographer
Carolyn Scott is a Durham family photographer. She specializes in candid and documentary at-home family photography in the Triangle area (Durham, Raleigh, Chapel Hill, Cary, etc). Carolyn’s work has been published in several popular books and magazines, including Apartment Therapy, BuzzFeed, and Fangoria. Locally, she’s been voted Best Photographer in Durham Magazine’s Best Of Durham and INDY Week’s Best of the Triangle. She lives in South Durham with her husband Geoff and three cats.
You guys! I’ve been trying to win over Caroline for years and I’m proud to announce that it’s finally happened! That’s right. Carolyn the Photographer and Caroline the German Shepherd are finally BFFS and open to start negotiations for our own buddy comedy series on Netflix. Caroline and I have both worked very hard on ourselves and our relationship and finally neither of us are afraid of the other and now we’re best friends. Last time I photographed her, I used a 200mm telephoto lens from the yard as she barked at me, and this time I used a 24mm wide angle as she showed me her belly. We’ve made such strides and I’m so proud of us. Part of Caroline’s success can be attributed to Zelda, who is Katie and Tony’s younger and newer dog, who is absolutely in love with everyone. I think she’s softened Caroline’s heart a bit (either that or Caroline uses Zelda as a canary in a coalmine). Either way, whatever they’re doing is working. Zelda is extremely, extremely cuddly and friendly and gives adorable, unintentional side-eye. And Caroline comes in a bit later and brings you her toy moose and sweetly asks for pets, receives the pets, then leaves to spend some alone time with the moose before coming back again. They’re both very loved. And also there is Katie and Tony, who are both very loved by ME and also their dogs. They are some of the very best delightful folks and it’s 10/10 being friends with them.
I’ve had the job of photographing the wonderful Janice of Big Dog Little Bed many times over the years. The last time I saw her, I photographed her with dogs Toby, Murphy, and George, all of whom were extremely loved by not only Janice, but the entire community who met and interacted with these pups, myself included. This time was bittersweet because these friends are no longer with us and are very much missed. Anyone who knows me has probably heard me talk about Toby because I was very much in love with him from the moment that I met him despite Janice’s warnings of, “Don’t make eye contact with him, don’t touch him.” I did make eye contact with him (eventually) and I did touch him (eventually) and we even progressed to the level of SELFIES TOGETHER (!!!) where Toby is very visibly rolling his eyes and trying to get away from me. He was one of my very favorite creatures to walk the earth and also to photograph. I also very much loved and cherished Murph, who was always friendly and loving and cooperative. He seemed wise beyond his years – like a little Yoda who chose not to speak. I had only met George once, but he was handsome and took direction well and was a very good boy.
I miss these friends. But while I had photographed Janice many times, this was my first time meeting and photographing her husband Sean (!), as well as their new dog Layla Bean (!). And I’m very pleased to announce that Layla Bean is truly a stellar addition and quite the character – and so is Sean. I immediately adored them both. Sean is the perfect match for Janice and I got along with him right away. He’s funny and creative and loves the outdoors like Janice – and he has a baseball team that Geoff just joined! Layla Bean is a very small yet very mighty dog with a lot of personality. She’s a tiny bossy tyrant with the sass meter on 100% at all times and I love her. She likes to carry around a toy pig that says “Kind of a pig deal” and I’m pretty sure she knows what it says. She enjoys bullying other dogs, hogging all of Janice and Sean’s attention, digging through her toy bin, playing fetch, and celebrating her birthday. They got her a cake. She loved it. She is a cooperative subject only because she knows I’m taking pictures of her and seems to be proud of that. She’s a diva and I’m excited to see more of her in the future because she’s adorable in every way.
So while our old friends are missed, we can take comfort in our newfound friend Layla Bean and enjoy celebrating her for many years to come. This was Layla’s first Gotcha Day celebration and I’m so happy for her that she found her perfect family.