Toronto dog photographer's 2021 photo awards
/With 2021 at an end, it’s time to reflect back on the past 12 months and start to plan ahead for pet photography sessions for 2022.
But first a little fun - choosing the best from this past year!
To my amazing clients, this list is compiled in good fun. All of your dogs and cats are winners!
I loved photographing all of your pets and I can’t thank you enough for the privilege of meeting you and getting to know your wonderful pets!
Best Smile - Galaxy
Best smile goes to Galaxy, a beautiful Samoyed. Samoyeds are known for their smile which is a required part of their breed standard: “the mouth should be slightly curved up at the corners to form the “Samoyed smile.”
Galaxy fits the bill perfectly with his gorgeous smile!
Best Hairstyle - Lexi
This has got to go to Lexi with her beautiful shining shaggy hair. I love the one where her hair was blowing in the wind!
Most elegant dog - Payday
Greyhounds may be known for their speed, but they are also extremely elegant looking dogs. So the winner of the most elegant category goes to …Payday!
Kudos to his human parents for rescuing him from the world of greyhound racing.
Best Action - Boni and Charlie
This one was difficult. There were so many shots of dogs in action that I loved!
I think this category deserves a tie between Boni living the good life enjoying the first snowfall of the season and Charlie whose ears look like they will carry her off into the wind!
Sweetest Senior - Steeler
I photographed so many wonderful seniors this year that this was a difficult choice! But the winner has to be Steeler who bravely did his best on only 3 legs after one had to be amputated due to cancer. Steeler was a real trooper as we walked around Toronto’s lakeshore for his photoshoot. Steeler sadly passed away just a couple of weeks after his Golden Session. RIP sweet boy.
Smallest Dog - Penny
And the winner is….little Penny. This pint sized girl was so easy to photograph. We held her photoshoot at James Gardens in Toronto. No matter where we decided to place her - on rocks or logs or in the middle of flower beds, she always had a smile for the camera! Gotta love her bow tie too!
Biggest Dog - George
This category has to go to George a stately and gentle King Shepherd. George came out with his human family for a special pet and family photo session at a Mississauga park in celebration of his “Dad’s” birthday! George was happy to spend time just laying on the grass.
Best eyes - Kenya
Of course this has to go to a Husky, known for their gorgeous blue eyes. Here’s Kenya, winner of the best eye category.
Most Striking Colouring - Nova
I have to give this one to Nova - a striking Red Tri Aussie. “Tri” refers to three solid colours: red, white and copper or gold. The only way that a dog gets that colouring is if they have two red genes and no black genes. Nova had her photo session at Toronto’s High Park in the Fall where the gorgeous colours complemented her wonderful red and gold colouring.
Best Head Tilt - Sergeant
This stunning Cane Corso, Sergeant, gets this award hands down! He may be huge but you gotta admit that he looks darn cute with this head tilt. And those forehead wrinkles are to die for!
Cutest Tongue - Muffin
This series of photos with Muffin showing off her tongue brings a smile to my face. So the cutest tongue award goes to Muffin the long haired Chihuahua.
Best Summer and Winter Session in the Same Year - Jimi
Well this one is a no brainer because Jimi, a Bernadoodle, is the only dog to have both sessions in the same year! Her first session was booked for the winter. We had so much snow that poor Jimi was covered in snowballs and we really could not get too many photos of her. She was uncomfortable and we couldn’t see her cute face for all the snow. Anyone with a longer coated dog will understand how the snowballs cling to the fur and you can’t get them out - they have to melt. So we continued her session in the summer and got some beautiful shots. So here she is in all her wintery and summer glory!
Cutest Dogs in Foster Care - Buddy and Trey
I loved all the rescue dogs that I photographed for Etobicoke Humane Society this year. I am so pleased to say that the photos definitely help these dogs find permanent loving homes thanks to the wonderful work done by the all volunteer staff who make it possible. So this category was a difficult one. I’ve picked Buddy and Trey because it took a little longer to place them and they were both sweet and loving dogs.
There you have it - my first ever awards for clients of Terri J Photography. I look forward to doing this again next year.
My friend Courtney Bryson has a great post about her year too. 2021 was filled with dogs & horses to remember! Atlanta pet photographer Courtney Bryson shares her Best of 2021 Pet Photography Superlatives.
Happy New Year to all people and pets and may 2022 be a safe and healthy one.
