Jul 27, 2013
Dogs need mental stimulation just as much as people do and Kongs are awesome for engaging and challenging your dog! I’m always trying new recipes to keep my foster dogs interested in finding out what’s inside. Here’s one recipe that’s sure to be a winner for any dog, especially on a hot summer day.
What you will need:
- 1 banana
- 1 cup plain yogurt
- 2 tablespoons peanut butter
Make a yummy frozen Kong treat!
- Chop up or slice the banana into small pieces. If it’s a really ripe banana you can mash it if you’d like.
- Mix the yogurt and banana together in a small bowl
- Microwave the peanut butter for 15-30 seconds until it’s thin enough to pour
- Stir the peanut butter into your mixing bowl with the banana and yogurt
- Use a dab of peanut butter straight from the jar (not microwaved) to seal the small hole at the narrow end of the Kong
- Spoon the mixture into your Kong
- Wrap up the Kong in plastic wrap (two sandwich baggies to cover each end works well too)
- Pop you Kong in the freezer and let it freeze over night (keep the large hole facing up to avoid leaks and spills)
- Serve to your dog and let the Kong slurping begin!
Do you have any good recipes for Kong stuffing? Please feel free to share your recipes and links to recipes in the comments below.
Jul 6, 2013
When I took these photos it was a bitterly cold day and I was feeling very blah. I wanted to photograph something – anything, really.
My usual subjects are pets, flowers, and bugs so there was no chance of finding anything new to photograph. Actually, if I remember it right, we were about to get snowed in. Well anyway, I was determined to force myself out of funkland.
I had Nick pick the ugliest thing in our apartment and he chose our stove. No argument there – I’m pretty sure my landlord painted it white when it started to discolor so now when I clean it there are always specs of white flaking off onto my sponge and revealing a nasty yellowish brown color beneath.
So I decided to get out my macro lens and try to make our repulsive stove into a beautiful piece of art. It was a spur of the moment photography prompt, and here’s how it came out:
The whole oooogly stove. Just so you know what I was working against – I mean with – here.
Ok so I didn’t make anything spectacularly beautiful, but they certainly are interesting if nothing else – right? Oh and in case you’re wondering what the one on the left is: it’s a patch of the backboard between the oven light switch and the clock. My macro lens is definitely my favorite toy to play with!
Thanks for reading!
May 30, 2013 |
I’ve been playing with close up photography and off-camera lighting for 3 whole years now… where does time go exactly?
There have been many times I’ve gotten an awesome photograph and thought that I could share my set up for anyone interested, and every one of those times I broke down my set and put everything away, realized I’d forgotten to take a photo of the whole picture, and slapped myself firmly on the forehead while reciting Homer Simpson’s mantra.
Well this time I remembered to snap a few quick shots of my set up and I’d love to show you how I came up with this latest batch of fine art photography! These photos are basically the result of a Michael’s shopping spree. What can I say? – inspiration struck!
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These stones are super shiny meaning they are super reflective. I crumbled up two pieces of aluminum foil, uncrumbled them, and formed a dome over the top of my stones. I cut a hole in the front piece that was just big enough to squeeze my lens through. There was just a bit of space in between the foil on each side to allow the light into the dome. The lens of my camera did show up in the reflections so I did a few minutes of photoshop work to retouch them out.
Want this hanging in your house? Just click on the photo to buy now!
I’ve always had a fascination with water droplets and reflections, but water is far harder to manipulate than these clear bath beads I found at the craft store. Naturally I jumped at the opportunity to photograph something that looked like a perfect droplet and came with none of the issues I’ve faced with water. I was able to play around with the reflections until I got the perfect combination of blurry flower backdrop and sharp, full reflections. My set up ended up looking like this.
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I did something similar here, only I filled up the tray with pink bath beads and went for a different angle. I also changed the lighting so that the light was bouncing off the ceiling instead of being directed at the flower. I call this one Black Swan Eggs and it is my favorite of this batch.
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Then, I just went crazy! I’d have to say this is the first abstract I’ve come out with that I’m really proud of. But is it still abstract if I tell you what it is? Eh, who cares it’s so kewl! I took dozens of shots moving the tray of beads up and down above the shimmery stones, not one of them came out the same. It was so much fun to just play around again… I’ll have to make time for another play date with light real soon!
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May 18, 2013
As many of you know every month I do a caption contest on my Facebook page. The winner of the caption contest wins photo coasters, made by me, with the photo of the month and the winning caption. (Don’t forget to check out this month’s caption contest to vote or submit your own caption for a chance to win! A few people have asked me how to make these photo coasters and today I’m going to show you how you can do it yourself!
What you will need:
- Mod Podge (I use the Glossy kind but whatever you prefer will work) – you can find it in the craft section of many department stores or at Michael’s & A.C. Moore
- 4 tiles sized 4 in x 4 in I use tumbled chiaro (stone) tiles because ceramic is so fragile – you can get tumbled chiaro tiles at Home Depot or Lowe’s
- 4 photos
- a piece of black felt
- 2 paint brushes – I use a 1-inch and a 1/2-inch brush
- a small bowl
- scissors and/or paper trimmer
- a small squeegee or credit card
- a nice cup of coffee or tea to complete the creative atmosphere!
Step 1: Get your photos ready!
I usually prepare my photos digitally so that they are the right size when they come out of the printer. If you have photo editing software that will allow you to resize and crop your photos you can do this too. In Photoshop you can use the crop tool to do this by setting both your width and height to 3.75 inches and setting the resolution to 300 ppi. Then I print onto 4×6 paper and trim the edges.
You can always skip this part, print your favorite image on 4×6 paper and then crop the old fashioned way – with a ruler! I prefer to use a paper trimmer to get perfectly straight lines, but scissors will work too.
Step 2: Size up and place your photos
When size up my photos for coasters I always make them smaller than the surface of the tile. This is so that the photos are less likely to peel up from the edges, but it also creates a nice natural stone border on you tile that looks nice too. I like to cut the corners off the photos too for a little more shape.
Tip: Use the back side of the tile for the front of your coaster. The rougher the surface, the better the Mod Podge will hold. In the photo below the backside of the tile is shown on the left, this is the side you should use as your front.
Step 3: Start Mod Podging
Pour some of your Mod Podge into a small bowl. Grab your 1-inch brush and start painting the Mod Podge onto the back of your photo. Cover the entire surface, then place your photo onto the coaster. You will have a few seconds to slide it around before it starts to hold.
Use your squeegee to get rid of any bubbles or excess Mod Podge. Start from the center of your image and work towards the edges until your image is laying nice and smooth. Let your coasters dry for an hour or two. Cover your bowl so that the Mod Podge doesn’t start to dry while you wait.
Tip: I use a piece of wax paper between the squeegee and photo to prevent any scratches and to avoid getting Mod Podge all over my squeegee and then all over the next photo. You can use regular old printer paper if you don’t have wax paper. Just make sure to use a fresh piece on each coaster so you don’t transfer clumps of the glue onto the next photo.
Step 4: Mod Podge some more!
Now you can start sealing your photo. Brush a thin layer of Mod Podge on top of your coaster. Make sure to brush even strokes all in the same direction, as you will be able to see your brush strokes in the finished product.
You should put 3-5 coats of Mod Podge on your coasters to seal them. Wait 15 minutes in between coats. As your coasters start to dry they will turn from white to clear. When you’ve applied as many coats as you’d like let your coasters dry over night.
Step 5: Make the feet
Now that your coasters are completely dry you can flip them over and work on the back. Cut a strip of your felt, about 1 inch wide and then cut them into 1 inch squares. You will need 16 feet.
Use your small brush to dab some Mod Podge in each corner of your coasters and press the felt down. Make sure you let these dry completely before flipping them over, I usually leave them over night again just to be sure I don’t glue the coasters to my kitchen counter!
Step 6: Enjoy your coasters!
I hope you enjoyed this post! Don’t forget to follow my blog to get notifications of new posts – or even better – subscribe to my newsletter to receive exclusive coupons, promo info, and news about my pet photography and fine art photography. Both links are at the bottom of the page on the right.
Thanks for reading!
May 12, 2013
I started fostering Gracie a month ago, and she is just wonderful! She is a master at basic obedience and knows sit, stay, down, shake, leave it, and off. She has great house manners – she’s totally housebroken and doesn’t chew on anything but her own toys. Gracie loves to snuggle and play catch too. I can’t take credit for even half of her training though. Jennifer, her first foster mommy, was the one who pulled Gracie from a shelter at four months old and taught her everything she knows!
Her name really is perfect for her too, even when she gets a case of the zoomies Gracie’s pretty darn graceful about it, doing perfect 180s on the carpet without banging into any walls or nearby furniture. I’m serious, I actually enjoy watching her run around on the rare occasion that she feels the urge – it’s pure entertainment!
Gracie does, however, have anxiety when around unfamiliar dogs and some strangers. She is wonderful on a leash and knows heel, but sometimes her anxiety still gets the best of her. We are working on it every day. She has lived with other dogs – was best buds with her foster brother Andre – and is now living with our two cats. Gracie just needs a little more time to acclimate to her new fur friends.
If you have any questions about Gracie feel free to ask them here or get in touch with me privately at BekahAura (at) gmail (dot) com. If you would like to adopt her please get in touch with Karuna Bully at adopt (at) KarunaBully (dot) org to get an application.
May 7, 2013 |
I’m really ashamed I’ve been so out of touch with this blog! It’s been nearly a year since my last post :-O
In that year I’ve been super busy with pet photography for private clients as well as for a few local rescues that have dogs, cats, and birds up for adoption! I’ve also managed to steal away a few hours to create some more fine art photography. Three more kittens and three more dogs have been through my home since my last post, and today I wanted to share some of their stories.
Mac, Looney, and Gizmo were semi-feral strays that needed socialization very badly. The three brothers were my first and, so far, only experience with such scared babies. For the first few days that I had them they stayed huddled up in the crevice between my tub and sink. They only peeked their heads out when I brought out the food. At every feeding I placed their food farther and farther away from their little cubby hole and closer and closer to me.
Mac was the big boy, he was the bravest, or the hungriest depending on how you looked at it. He was always the first one out to eat, and he was also the first to purr when I touched him.
Gizmo was my personal favorite. He was a tad more shy than his big brother, but he was the next one to come out and eat and play on any given day. They never really played with me directly, but if I rolled a jingly ball around Mac or Gizmo were sure to take chase. Many of you may have already seen this photo of Gizmo – many people assume this is a kitten with its mother, but that’s actually Mac that Gizmo is hiding behind.
Looney was truly terrified of people. When Nick and I discovered that Mac & Gizmo were boys we guessed our third kitten must be a girl, so Looney actually started out as Luna. He only came out to eat at every other feeding and he never played unless I was out of the room. (I would peek under the door when I heard bells and watch their fuzzy, little feet) The day before I had to return them to the shelter Looney purred in my lap, and I was satisfied with that.
The same day I returned the kittens to the SPCA of Westchester, I picked up JoJo. That was the only time I let go of foster pets without crying over them – I had someone else to focus my attention on right away!
JoJo was 1 year old and was suffering from really bad hip dysplasia. She had the ultimate wiggle butt, it was adorable yet sad at the same time. People who met JoJo in my neighborhood thought it was so precious how she would just plop down on the pavement and roll onto her back. I think initially she did this to avoid pain, but when she realized that falling at people’s feet resulted in belly rubs it became her signature move!
This girl has the happiest forever home story ever: JoJo ended up landing a doctor! He wasn’t just any old doctor either, he was the veterinarian who was doing her acupuncture every week. She is currently living happily ever after with Dr. Mike, his wife, and their 3 kids.
That brings me to Kuna. Poor girl was dumped in a shelter with her sister – later on I discovered the very same people abandoned Kuna’s father as well a few weeks later – and Ali Wazmer, a local trainer working in association with Karuna Bully Rescue, got her out of there!
I’m not gonna lie, Kuna was a wild child, plain and simple. It was obvious that her previous owners didn’t spend a minute doing anything with her, and she was just so starved for attention and love. We gave her love and she gave it right back, as you can plainly see!
Stephanie and Jason decided to give Kuna her forever home. She is now known as June and enjoys long hikes with her new mommy and daddy.
Well that brings us up to date on happy endings! Stay tuned for a write-up and photos of my current foster doggie Gracie Lou! In fact, why don’t you subscribe below to be sure you don’t miss out =)
Apr 5, 2013
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May 17, 2012 |
The next round of foster pets has brought me yet another mommy, but this time I have the pleasure of taking care of her kitten too! Trixie is that beautiful calico, and that cute little fluff ball is Shadow. They were both rescued from a kill shelter in NYC. I had no idea animals were being murdered so close to home; how naive am I huh?
Trixie is a very sweet, vocal, and outgoing kitty. She will snuggle up next to anyone willing to pet her. Watching her with Shadow is so relaxing. He’ll latch onto her, ravenous, and then his head bobbles start to slow until he’s face flat in mom’s fur. Moments later he’ll awaken and realize he’s hungry again. I guess warm milk can make you sleepy… it’s a vicious cycle. 😛
Both Trixie and Shadow will be up for adoption soon. In another two weeks the kitten will be weaned and mommy will go to recover until she can be spayed. Please let me know if you are interested in adopting! Even if you can’t adopt you can help by sharing this post with your friends on all your social networks.
May 7, 2012
All of the photos from the Beacon Barks parade and street festival last Saturday are now available on my website. If your dog was photographed you can purchase prints or download the free internet sized copy of the photo(s).
Beacon Barks! 2012 Gallery
Here are a few more favorites from the day:
Apr 29, 2012
It couldn’t have been a more beautiful day for the Beacon Barks parade and street festival yesterday! I have a ton of photos to go through and process so I picked out a few of my favorites for now.
Stay tuned because I will be posting a link to all the photos no later than next week. Internet sized photos (like those below) will be available for all of you to download and use freely on Facebook and other social networks. Prints and high resolution files will also be available for purchase for those of you who want more.
I hope you all had a great day, I know I did!
