the JOY of LOVE

One of my favorite hobbies is photography. When I lived in NYC, I would frequently take the subway to a distant landmark, then walk back home while taking photos along the way. In more recent years, I’ve become known as an honorary auntie and personal photographer for the young children of my close friends. My equipment is basic—I don’t even have a digital SLR yet, though that’s #1 on my wishlist now that I have a working computer—but I make due and use lots of natural light to make my photos look better.

To feed this hobby, I’ve decided to take my friend Hilary‘s suggestion and participate in the JOY of LOVE, a free online photography class being offered by Willette Designs, a fellow W&M alum. It’s totally low-key, a mixture of amateurs and professionals of all levels, and seems like a fun way to practice my craft, remind myself about a few basics, and remember to take lots of photos.

The overarching theme of the class is documenting your loved ones, whether they be spouse, children, or pets. Since I mostly work from home, I’ve decided to concentrate on my constant companion, Dorsey Dog, though my husband (and occasional co-author), John, may make an appearance as well.

Today’s theme was “what they DO.” With Dorsey, that’s pretty easy to express, since he spends 90% of his time napping, either in his doggie bed or curled up against me on my bed, in my writing room, or on the sofa. In fact, he’s napping right next to me as I type. Here’s the photo I liked best from today’s attempts:

And here are some outtakes:

I love how his ear is flopped over the edge of the bed here, but I’m not loving the cropping.

Where Dorsey spends his time when I’m away from home. I liked the way the baby gate framed him.

Dorsey is actually surprisingly good at waiting for me to release him before he attacks his food. But his head tilt starts to become more and more dramatic as he gets impatient for me to say, “Okay!”