Bellevue Photographer | February 2012 Photo of the Month

This is a dual post, it's the photo of the month as well as a Finn update.  I get requests all the time for "Finn updates" and while I could post once a day about him, because he's so adorable and always doing something worthy of making me laugh, the truth is, I'm a family, child, high-school senior and boudoir photographer and so I'm not going to be posting Finn updates too often (although he could have his own blog with all of his antics and high-jinx.)

Please enjoy this image of him playing with his morning playmate before taking a nap.  "Squirrly" as I affectionately call him (menace that he is) will wait for Finn almost every day.  He will stare right at me until I notify Finn that he's here and waiting to play, unless Finn noticed himself.

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By Request | Finn Update

Finn is doing well!  He's grown so much, he's not a kitten anymore, he's a "big boy" weighing in at a healthy 13 pounds!  I've been wondering what it would be like if I rescued another kitten???  I don't think Finn would like it one bit and I don't need another cat, I was just thinking with Spring right around the corner and sessions booking, it might be nice for him to have some company. 

He has a real routine he's settled into these days.  I can bank on his "nap-time" just as I can bank on "the late at night crazy hour."  Thankfully, he has adapted well to my schedule and isn't roaming around the house at night, meowing and keeping me awake.

Last weekend, I replaced six of his favorite toys, they're all the same and he loves batting and chasing them all around the house.  I walked into the room and said, "Look!  Here's all your favorites and they're brand new!"  He was so excited, he didn't know which one to go after, but true to form, when I woke up the next morning, five of the six toys were either in his food dish, or right next to it.

He's pretty settled into a routine and I don't think he'd be very happy to share the run of the house, his toys, or my attention at this point.  I was thinking that a new addition might help Finn be more social with visitors, however, this could really backfire on me and they both could end up being "hiders" and I don't want that! 

I don't need two anti-social scaredy cats (excuse the pun.)

For now, he's quite content playing with visitors that come to our window every morning :)

As always...  Thanks for asking about him!

By Request: Another Finn update!

If you've been following the "Finn updates" then you know that unless you follow my blog you will never--EVER see Finn.  I rescued him from the Feral Rescue Cat Project last November and he is terrified of people.  I am asked regularly by those that know me, or follow the blog how he's doing? 

He's doing GREAT! 

He has a definite schedule...  He wakes up when I wake up, which usually brings me straight into my office to work and naturally this is the time he's into everything.  His favorite thing to do is watch the birds, squirrels, rabbits and chipmunks from my office window (occasionally jumping in the air quite high believing he might actually catch one of the birds) and when that becomes mundane, he's trying to crawl into camera bags, play with camera bag shoulder straps or nestle himself into my print sample basket.

I always stop and take some time to play with him and give him my full attention once a day and then at 11:30 a.m. each morning he naps for four hours and that's when (if I'm not out shooting a session) I go into my office and work for FOUR uninterrupted blissful hours.

BUT...  I'm not complaining, he's a joy to have and makes me laugh out loud at least once a day :)

Thank you all for always asking about him!

By request: Finn update

I've had several requests from people asking about Finn and how he's doing? I'm thinking he should have his own blog! (kidding folks, it's enough just keeping up my own blog.) The reason people ask is because he's shy and always goes under the bed when someone comes to visit, so they never get to see him.

So by request, here's a "Finn update"

He's almost getting too big to fit under the bookshelf, yet he has fun kicking his favorite toy (given to him by Miss O.) underneath the bookshelf, spending several minutes flopping around trying to retrieve it.

Speaking of retrieving… If I didn't know better I would say I got a Golden Retriever in a cats body! He loves to retrieve and I hope to post a video of him doing this soon. Naturally, since trying to video him retrieving, he's become a little camera shy.

One of Finn's favorite pastimes is watching the wildlife that walk through the yard. He's pretty taken with a doe that passes through regularly and often spends hours at the window watching the birds, squirrels and rabbits while waiting for the doe. If you look closely at the photo where Finn is sitting by the window waiting to see the deer and then look directly at the top of the photograph, you can see his doe friend approaching the yard.

The other photographs are Finn hanging out in my office. I've given him his own stool to sit on by the window, but naturally when I'm working he has to be in the muck of things, walking across my desk, or hanging out on top of my computer tower, or lying on all the cords, which is something I'm working on getting him to stop doing--sometimes I think he does it during the "crazy hour" to get my attention. He knows better than to lay on all the cords...

He's a lot of fun and great company, so until next month, thanks to everyone who asked about him and requested an update with photos.

(click on the images to enlarge)

Update--What's been happening...

For those who follow my blog, you may have noticed that I've been MIA (missing in action) for about a month. This is because I've been busy with the "business" of photography. Yes, the "business" side of things certainly does nothing for my "creative" side, (I've missed my picture making,) but a successful photography business requires attention away from the creative side and winter is a good time to learn new techniques and software, check out the new photo labs and products to enhance my business, get taxes prepared and so this is what I've been doing lately.

I recently attended a photography seminar, which proved to be enlightening. I had no idea there would be so many professional photographers in our area, enough to fill a room of 450 of us!

With Spring upon us, you should be seeing some fresh new photos. I've been learning new software, which will enhance your photos based on my own style (every photographer has a style--ya' know :-)

The beauty of this business are the people I meet and the images I create, both for my clients and my personal projects, as well as the learning and growing as a photographer--finding my style and my voice as a photographer has been challenging at times, but also very rewarding. I wouldn't change a thing.

Looking forward a great spring and summer ahead!