When I first began my journey into learning the advanced skills of photography I had a darling little subject who would stay where I put her and look up at me with her big blue eyes.   Many, many hours of learning, in-person and online classes, books and articles read and many, many professional sessions later, I still strive to capture memorable images of my own child.

I can walk into a session, never having met a child and for some reason it is so much easier to photograph them than it is my own daughter.  In addition, it is more difficult to find the time to photograph for pleasure when I am busy shooting and retouching images for clients.

Fortunately, I have a group of fellow women in the Springfield area who enjoy photography as much as I do and who encourage and support each others own personal journey.  In addition, we all realize the value of capturing not just those “special moments” but the every day moments.   Together we are embarking on a 12 month photography project.

Each month we will try and take personal images and blog on them. The theme will be “What ___ looks like.”   Each month we will each choose to fill in the blank with our word of choice.  Some of us may choose to use the same word all year and some may choose to change it up each month.  We will each link to the next photographer until our circle of is complete.

We hope this project inspires you to take more pictures of your own families!

This month:   What Toddlerhood Looks Like

If there is one subject that is close to my family’s hearts, it is animals.  One of the many things I loved about my husband when I first met him was his passion for pets.   I myself had a dog and two cats when I met him (sadly one of the cats has since passed on) and we knew that pets would always be part of our lives.

That love of pets is what inspired me to volunteer at the Animal Protective League of Springfield.   When I have free time or when they need me, I go over to the APL to photograph some adoptable animals for their website.  A beautiful image of a pet can really help them stand out on petfinder.com.

This recent group of pictures was taken at the request of the APL Executive Director, Deana Corbin. APL was lucky enough to get a grant from the PetSmart Foundation and Deana was going to a make a presentation on the APL and the services they offer.   Knowing that pictures speak more than words, Deana asked me to come out and capture some images.

It was an incredible insight for me too, as Deana led me around their facilities.  I got the opportunity to get inside the APL and see cats under anesthesia while getting spade and neutered.   They have a wonderful program where they find feral cats and do a catch and release program.  In addition, I got the chance to meet a kitten only a couple days old (he kind of looked more like a bat or a mouse than a cat!)   I met a deaf dog who was being taught sign language by a staff veterinarian  and a three-legged dog who was taught to use a walker to play in the yard.  Lastly, I was able to capture some of the love between some adoptable pit bulls and staff members of the APL.

If you are looking for volunteer opportunities, the APL is the place.  They are always looking for folks to show adoptable pets at their local events and just folks to give these adorable animals some TLC.    If you are interested in volunteering, contact them at:  volunteer@apl-shelter.org.