"​THE verges and islets of the lagoon were elegantly embellished with flowering plants and shrubs; the laughing coots with wings half spread were tripping over the little coves and hiding themselves in the tufts of grass; young broods of the painted summer teal, skimming the still surface of the waters, and following the watchful parent unconscious of danger, were frequently surprised by the voracious trout, and he in turn, as often by the subtle, greedy alligator. Behold him rushing forth from the flags and reeds. His enormous body swells. His plaited tail brandished high, floats upon the lake. The waters like a cataract descend from his opening jaws. Clouds of smoke issue from his dilated nostrils. The earth trembles with his thunder. When immediately from the opposite coast of the lagoon, emerges from the deep his rival champion. They suddenly dart upon each other. The boiling surface of the lake marks their rapid course, and a terrific conflict commences. They now sink to the bottom folded together in horrid wreaths. The water becomes thick and discoloured. Again they rise, their jaws clap together, re-echoing through the deep surrounding forests. Again they sink, when the contest ends at the muddy bottom of the lake, and the vanquished makes a hazardous escape, hiding himself in the muddy turbulent waters and sedge on a distant shore. The proud victor exulting returns to the place of action. The shores and forests resound his dreadful roar, together with the triumphing shouts of the plaited tribes around, witnesses of the horrid combat."  Part II, Chapter V

"They delight to sit in little peaceable communities, on the dry limbs of trees, hanging over the still waters, with their wings and tails expanded, I suppose to cool and air themselves, when at the same time they behold their images in the watery mirror: at such times, when we approach them, they drop off the limbs into the water as if dead, and for a minute or two are not to be seen; when on a sudden at a vast distance, their long slender head and neck only appear, and have very much the appearance of a snake, and no other part of them are to be seen when swimming in the water, except some the tip end of their tail. In the heat of the day they are seen in great numbers, sailing very high in the air, over lakes and rivers."  Part II, Chapter V

Two identical Coonhounds, brought in two days apart, from the same rural area of the county. I suppose that isn’t too strange, except for the fact that the first man said he found his dog ten days earlier, and the lady who brought in “Dawson” found him that day.

“Dawson” was just as photogenic as his brother (I assume they are siblings), but a little less goofy. Such a handsome boy being highlighted by the shine of the sunrise in the background… surely he’ll get noticed too!  (“Bogie” got an adoption application the very day his photos were posted!)
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Coming back into the admin building to edit and post the photos, I realized I ignored one of my photo tips: watch the background. In one shot that I wasn’t paying attention, “Dawson” looked a bit comical with a tree growing out of the top of his head!  

“Bogie” was a very handsome Coonhound surrendered to the shelter on March 1, 2017. The gentleman that brought him in said he found him ten days earlier but didn’t provide any other history. “Bogie” perhaps didn’t seem like the brightest dog in the kennel, but he was quite a people-person… or, quite a people-dog, I should say. He stuck close to my legs while on leash. During his photo shoot, he was a bit preoccupied with looking off into the distance. Not sure if he was looking out for a raccoon to chase, or trying to find that owner he was missing.
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I’m still getting familiar with handling the 70-200mm f/2.8 lens just purchased for the shelter through a small grant. It is a much heavier lens than my old lens, so my holding the camera with one hand and tossing up dog toys with the other isn’t working as well.

It is a used lens, but the final photos are amazing, mainly because of the f/2.8 aperture! Not only does it produce some great quality shots with creamy background, but it also does better in lower light, allowing me even more early morning hours to shoot the dogs. More time is a huge resource when the impounds pick up! 

I can’t wait until I get more proficient with the lens! It will surely help get the pups noticed and into new homes even more quickly than before! Thank you Andrew for the grant, and Barbara for referring us to him! 

​I love this combination of an orange cat on a blue background… especially when the cat is as cooperative as “Fred”! Fred was a big boy (just over 10 pounds) that was picked up as a stray on Jersey Social Circle Road in rural Walton County, Georgia. He had on a fraying collar, but no tag or microchip to find his owner. At first he paced the edge of the photo table wanting to jump down. I had to spend a minute scratching his ears until the purring began and he relaxed for the photo session.
 
I suppose the photo really pops because orange and blue are complementary colors. One website writes, “Colors that are opposite each other on the color wheel are considered to be complementary colors. The high contrast of complementary colors creates a vibrant look especially when used at full saturation. This color scheme must be managed well so it is not jarring.”
 
But that is what we want! We want Fred’s photo to be “jarring” so he’ll get noticed and get rescued or adopted!

​“Foxy” was a young, gentle and submissive Labrador and Pitbull mix turned in to the animal shelter late on a Friday afternoon. Even though it is our “job” to accept animals at the shelter, it still irks me after all these years how so many people can just give up their animals. And what irks me more is they dump their dogs at the shelter late on a Friday afternoon!
 
In a “kill shelter”, time is of the essence, and surrendering at 3 PM or later doesn’t give me much time to get photos up on the website. I had to settle for a quick kennel shot of Foxy to post through the weekend.
 
I wasn’t in on Monday; Tuesday was spent catching up on animal control duties; finally Wednesday “Foxy” got her chance at some glamour photos. Thank God intake is still relatively slow and she could be afforded a few more days. Hopefully the improved photos will improve her chances.