Sweater Vest

Let's see... where were we?

Thursday

Henry: "I look good in this."

Henry the Cool

Henry the Weary

"Zzzzz"

Dog Blog Post #2399

The completed sweater vest, which has certainly made me both moody and blue at times!

And while I'd be the first to point out its many flaws, I'm actually quite pleased with it.

I learned a lot, I created something that is definitely usable (and reusable!) and it basically fits.

The future is already here, as earlier today I took shears to my prototype muslin and added princess seams to the sides.

Do I know what I'm doing? No, of course not, but I found a nice blog post. :)

I'd tried darks and they looked ridiculous. Ripped them out. The curved seams look much better and create a very nice fit on the sides.

Of course, it threw off the leg opening, so I had to add three inches in the middle, cut three inches off the tail, and now I think the neck is too tight. Again.

My next project might be to ditch the undercarriage piece and see if I can get get the sides worked out - with the neck and upper chest.

The Prototype

Photography Assignment

Our Daily Challenge - April 6, 2017 - "Moody Blues"

Daily Dog Challenge 1983. "Color Theme"

Wednesday

Zachary: "What Cookies?"

Henry: "What Cookies?"

Our Daily Challenge - April 5, 2017 - "The Art of Life"

... is getting what you want without getting caught.

At least that's what the boys tell me.

If all else fails, tell 'em you were...

Daily Dog Challenge 1982. "Framed"

Zachary: "He he he"

Tuesday

Henry's Loose Jammies

Henry, showing off his "loose jammies".

Daily Dog Challenge 1981. "Endearing"

Our Daily Challenge - April 4, 2017 - "Wrinkles"

Zachary doesn't "do" wrinkles

Monday

"That Was Easy!"

swat!

paw paw paw

I taught Zachary to push the Easy button years ago, and although I trot it out only rarely, he still remembers it.

It did take a few warm up swipes for him to remember exactly how it works, but on that first "That was easy!" his face lit up and he was so excited because he knew the Cookie was coming.

After that he was right on target.

Daily Dog Challenge 1980. "Easy"

Our Daily Challenge - April 3, 2017 - "Button(s)"

To keep this Easy, I went with ambient lighting.

Trying to get a picture of Zachary pushing the button but NOT obscuring the "Easy" on top proved a bit more challenging.


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© 2017 BZ Dogs - All Rights Reserved

Fun with Lighting

Happy Wordless Wednesday!

Mr. Zachary

Mr. Henry

Mr. Henry

Dog Blog Post #2144

The elegant Mr. Zachary and handsome Mr. Henry.

Photography Assignment

Our Daily Challenge - May 10, 2016 - "Less Than Three Colors"

Black and Gold

Daily Dog Challenge 1653. "Wearable"

Hard to go wrong with a dog wearing a fedora or a top hat, right?

Mr. Henry

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© 2016 BZ Dogs - All Rights Reserved

She's Lost Her Mind

Hats on Zach

Dog Blog Post #2143

A Tall stack of hats on Zachary's head.

I'm pretty sure he thinks I've Lost my mind.

Photography Assignment

Our Daily Challenge - May 9, 2016 - "Tall"

Daily Dog Challenge 11652. "Lost"

Yet another shoot that was much harder than it probably looks.

Balancing things is not really Zachary's thing, but Henry's shoot with the sock was a flop (below) so I had to think fast to come up with a Plan B.

Accidental Selfie

I don't usually upload these shots...

Zachary (thinking) : "She's lost her mind."

... but I loved the look Zachary was giving me here. My right hand, just out of view, has the camera remote.

Plan A - A Tall Sock

Henry loves to haul (clean) laundry around the house - particularly socks and underwear -

Henry: "Do you want me to go outside and find the other one?"

... and then transport them into the backyard.

Good thing the neighbors can't really see into the yard.

While I like his expression, the sock just wasn't visible enough.

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© 2016 BZ Dogs - All Rights Reserved

Catching Cookies

Pictures should pretty well speak for themselves today...

Henry's Efforts...

(click)

(click)

Zachary's Efforts...

(click)

(click)

(click)

Dog Blog Post #2091

Since I get asked from time to time...

I took four pictures of Henry "Catching Cookies" tonight - or at least trying to.

This really isn't his best skill (understatement alert).

Two of those four shots caught him with his mouth open (what I was trying for) and two had the Cookie in flight but he had yet to open up (I was too early).

I believe he actually caught both where his mouth was open but missed both where his mouth was closed, suggesting he might be more successful Catching Cookies if he opened his mouth a bit sooner.

As for Zachary, I took five pictures of him Catching Cookies.

Three caught him with his mouth open (again, what I was trying for) and two were too late (mouth closed, Cookie gone) - although even those shot have their own special appeal.

Photography Assignment

Our Daily Challenge - Mar 18, 2016 - "Perfect Timing"

116 Pictures in 2016 - #101. "Food for Free"

Daily Dog Challenge 1600. "Free"

At least, from the boys point of view it's free!

Henry Has Other Skills

A "throw away" lighting test shot...

Mr. Henry

He makes me look good. :)

And yes, as I've said many times before, he's just as sweet, soft, and cuddly as he looks.


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© 2016 BZ Dogs - All Rights Reserved

Simple

Simple Sunday?

Mr. Zachary

Mr. Henry

Mr. Zachary - showing off his handsome profile

Mr. Henry - looking cute and kissable

Dog Blog Post #2079

I love creating shots like these.

Today, the reflector was flipped black-side out to create deep shadows on the left.

For Zachary's shots, the flash (with small softbox) was sitting on the floor, just off camera on the right and a bit further from the camera than Zachary.

For Henry's shots, the flash was positioned closer to the camera.

And since I get questioned from time to time - No, the boys don't mind the hat over their eyes, perhaps because it completely blocks the light from the flash.

And they get Cookies.

Lots and lots of Cookies.

Photography Assignment

Daily Dog Challenge 1588. "Create A Mood"

Our Daily Challenge - Mar 6, 2016 - "Atmospheric"

116 Pictures in 2016 - #37. "Simple"

FWIW: These were pretty much SOTC (straight out of the camera) with the exception of cleaning up some fluffs and specks on the floor, which looked positively HUGE given the flash's low position.

Mr. Zachary - praying for Cookies

Hmm... looks like it's (past) time to trim Zachary's ears.


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© 2016 BZ Dogs - All Rights Reserved

Portrait of a Dog

After my post yesterday, can anybody really be surprised that I switched lens for the day?

So... presenting my my-loved 135mm f/2 (portrait) lens.

Looking toward the light

Mr. Zachary looking dignified

Mr. Henry looking sweet

Looking toward the reflector

Mr. Zachary looking hungry

Mr. Henry still looking sweet

Dog Blog Post #2072

Yesterday, in response to reader's question about my camera, I waxed poetic about my now-rarely used 135mm f/2 lens.

So... when challenged to do something Special with a Face I decided switching to A Portrait lens seemed like a good plan.

Honestly, despite my fond reminisces, I had forgotten how much I really, really love this lens.

If only I didn't have to have the camera in the Family Room to shoot the dogs in the Kitchen (20+ ft apart) in order to use it.

Don't get me wrong. I also love my 60mm macro f/2.8 workhorse lens, which handles everything I throw at it AND doesn't need to be in a different time zone to do so. And it will be returned to the camera in short order. But...

(sigh)

Photography Assignment

Daily Dog Challenge 1581. "Special"

Our Daily Challenge - Feb 28, 2016 - "Face"

116 Pictures in 2016 - #97. "A Portrait"

Looking Goofy

Henry making a wish?

Happy Zachary

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© 2016 BZ Dogs - All Rights Reserved

A Bad Word

Henry: "Momma just said a Bad Word."

Henry: "It started with a 'B'".

Bath Time

Dog Blog Post #2071

It was Day Spa Day (really!) and the boys came home exhausted (Henry) or hyper (Zachary), with the combined attention span of a teenage gnat.

I managed to get a few shots of Henry, who would have rather napped on that nice thick towel, and called it a night.

Zachary earned his "modeling" fee by putting his excess energy to good use running through his favorite tricks.

Photography Assignment

Daily Dog Challenge 1580. "Whimsy"

Our Daily Challenge - Feb 27, 2016 - "Bubbly"

116 Pictures in 2016 - #59. "Clean"

FWIW - not to disillusion anyone, BUT... Henry's "sad look" is a cued behavior - the combination of a "stay" cue followed by my moving a Cookie slowly in the direction I want him to look.

He dutifully holds his body still, but follows the Cookie with this eyes, creating "puppy-dog eyes".

I also have a "head down" cue, used for other shots in the series. Not that he needed much cueing, today.

Henry: (censored)

My Camera

The other day I was asked about my camera.

I have a Nikon D7000, and I absolutely love it.

I typically shoot with (99.9% of the time) a 60mm micro 2.8f lens, and I adore that as well.

60mm is the perfect length for the small space I shoot in, placing the camera ~8ft away from the boys on a typical night.

The lens is quiet and focuses quickly, reliably, and easily.

The micro ability is a fun bonus to capture tuffs of fur or up-close shots of paw pads, focusing on things only an inch or two away from the lens with ease.

It has no trouble at all capturing motion shots or when used for slow exposures.

The only thing it lacks is a pretty bokeh (the blurry, out of focus stuff) when the aperture is wide.

For that I have a 135mm lens, which creates incredible buttery foreground/backgrounds and gorgeous portraits.

Why don't I use it more often?

Because, at 135mm, the camera has to sit in the family room in order to capture both boys in the Kitchen.

That's well over 20ft away, and off to the side to avoid catching the edge of the sofa.

Here's some samples I pulled up from my Flickr stream...

Look at how smooth the out of focus stuff front and back is

Yes, that's the same floor as in today's shoot.

...and how crisp the in focus stuff is...

You can count every hair and whisker - especially if you click on the image to get the larger version.

Handsome Zachary - such a lovely portrait lens

(sigh)

My third lens (other than the kit lens (18-200mm zoom) the camera came with) is a Nikon 50mm 1.8f fast lens.

Everyone is supposed to have "nifty-50", right?

Everyone is supposed to love their "nifty-50", right?

Sorry, no.

I have never had much luck with it.

I find it noisy and slow/struggling to focus. Trying to capture the boys moving was particularly difficult.

But I haven't used it in quite a while, maybe I've improved since then.

Perhaps it's time to dust it off (along with the 135mm) and give them another go.

Of course, once I see the pictures from the 135mm, I might have a hard time putting it away again.


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© 2016 BZ Dogs - All Rights Reserved

Light and Shadow

Playing with dramatic lighting...

Henry

Dog Blog Post #2066

Chiaroscuro - a Traditional lighting technique using strong contrasts between light and dark, dating back to the Renaissance.

Caravaggio, Rubens, and Rembrandt all employed it to great effect.

This is Henry, his tousled "bed-head" coat catching the raking light most dramatically.

For the shot, the flash was lowered to about 1.5 ft off the ground and the reflector was turned black-side out to darken the shadows on the left.

Photography Assignment

116 Pictures in 2016 - #46. "Tradition/Traditional"

Daily Dog Challenge 1575. "From The Top"

A Few More...

More Henry

Etc

Etc

Uh Oh...

Zachary: "I can't wait to see my shot in the Flickr Group!"

Ummm... yes... about that.

See, I think Henry's rumpled fur might work just a bit better for this shoot...

Zachary - displeased

... than your gorgeous sleek coat and...

Zachary - pouting

Oh dear.


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© 2016 BZ Dogs - All Rights Reserved