biscuit's space | The blog of photographer Katherine Carver

Sep 12

Dog Rescue: The Power of Photography

Recently, I received this lovely note shown below from a person (couple) who rescued a dog because of the photographs that I created of Josie (formerly known as “Lady“) last summer at the Baltimore Animal Rescue and Care Shelter (BARCS). A fine art image of Josie is shown below — one of my favorite images. From BARCS, Josie went to Jasmine’s House, a pit bull rescue organization, where Josie was placed with a foster family. The images of Josie struck a chord with this couple despite the fact that this couple had just recently lost a life-long furry family member of 17.5 years, and they had decided to wait to rescue another dog. I have always been a believer that photography can save dogs’ lives, and this story confirms this belief. I am so happy that Josie has a loving furever home! It is wonderful that photography can bring furry friends and humans together creating families.

In a recent post, I wrote about pursuing your passion. While you pursue your passion, it is necessary to release any attachment and expectations to any perceived outcome. This is a Buddhist teaching. My mantra and intention this year has been “create.” I think that my word for next year will be “open.” I have learned that the best things come to us when we surrender and are open without attachment and expectations to any outcome.

Sometimes, through this journey of creation, you do not know where it is going to lead or what impact, if any, your work will have, which, at times, can be unsettling and uncomfortable. Other times, you hit road blocks, but your inner fire keeps you moving forward despite the road blocks and unsettling feelings because regardless — you know what you are creating is important. Other times, your work has a tangible impact, which is even more inspiration and confirmation from the Universe to keep moving forward! This unexpected note warms my heart! Our precious little Biscuit is the inspiration for this work, which continues to help other dogs like Josie.

Hi Katherine,

My name is Gina and I adopted Josie from Jasmine’s House. I just wanted to take a minute and compliment you on your gorgeous work. I am in awe of your talent. the way you capture the dogs…you can almost feel their emotions through your photographs.

I wanted to tell you that the reason I contacted Jasmine’s House about Josie was because of your photographs. We had just lost our dog of 17.5 years a month prior of me seeing the photographs of Josie. For some reason I was drawn to her photograph. My husband and I had agreed we were going to wait before we started looking for a new dog but after seeing Josie’s photographs, I could not stop thinking about her. So many thoughts ran through my mind…her eyes looked right through me. Finally, I decided to inquire about her. We brought her home a month later!!!

Thank you for your beautiful work and for photographing these loving babies. You are helping so many dogs find wonderful homes.

Thank you.

Love, Gina, Nick and Josie

Sep 11

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Transition

“Be grateful for the home you have, knowing at this moment, all you have is all you need.” ~Sarah Ban Breathnach

Doug and I have been waiting for the past nine months for our house to be completed being built and the day finally came last week — our settlement — our home is ours for better or worse! At settlement, the builder gave us a nice house-warming gift, a Tiffany’s crystal bowl — a nice addition to our new home!

We had fun selecting the layout and finishings of our home. After seeing our finishing selections in context, in the completed home, we think that everything came together quite nicely! (When making our selections, we were not sure how it would all come together in the end). It was also nice to witness our home being built, and we enjoyed frequently taking Biscuit with us to the new neighborhood and the home construction site. In contrast, our last house was an existing ‘remodeled’ dwelling from the early 1900s, which was, to say the least, a very ‘unique’ home overflowing with character! We have been getting our home ready to move into, and we have also been slowly moving our delicate items to our house before the movers come next week for our big move into the new house. I have begun to see life as a continual transition, and we are happy to be moving and beginning this new chapter in our lives. I do love this time of year, the fall is my favorite time of year, which is technically going to be here in eleven days! Doug and I are looking forward to getting settled into our new home, and we also looking forward to decorating and furnishing our new home and really making it ours. We know that Biscuit will be there in spirit with us in the new house. We sure do miss him and wish that he could be with us. Biscuit is the perfect and most handsome little sheltie dog ever!

In other news, if you have been following the blog, you know that we love pandas (and cheetahs)! We were happy to read that the baby panda recently born at the National Zoo is a girl and Tian Tian is the father! We were hoping that the baby panda would be a girl and that Tian Tian would be the father — a good omen! (We saw little Tai Shan, the first panda cub (a male) born in 2005 at the National Zoo! Mei Xiang and Tian Tian are also the mother and father of Tai Shan, who now lives in China). We look forward to going to see this little panda who will be named on the 100th day after her birth!

Today is also a special day which marks the day when Doug and I first met when we had our first date nine years ago today! The time sure does fly by quickly!

Happy Wednesday!

Sep 10

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Honoring Biscuit: Biscuit’s Trip to Vermont

“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched — they must be felt with the heart.” -Helen Keller

This past spring, we took a trip to Vermont with Biscuit. Unknown to us at that time, this trip turned out to be our last trip with Biscuit. We had many other places that we had planned to travel together — Biscuit traveled very well and he loved going with us on adventures! My intention was to share the Vermont images on the blog upon our return. However, in June our priority was addressing Biscuit’s health issues to the best of our ability, and after Biscuit passed away, it was extremely difficult for me to edit and work on these images. I have finally completed editing these images after working on a few at a time consistently over the course of the past month. The finality of Biscuit’s passing is very difficult — accepting that I will never be able to photograph Biscuit, my muse, again. Perhaps, this is why it took me so long to complete these images. Doug and I greatly miss our precious little Biscuit.

Doug, Biscuit, and I had a wonderful time together in Vermont and we will forever treasure these memories. Just by looking at Biscuit’s face and smile he exuded contentment and happiness. Doug and I are so grateful for meeting our little Biscuit. He changed our lives forever — in ways that we could not have imagined. We are also very grateful and thankful that we were able to make a trip to Vermont and the Orvis flagship store as Biscuit represented the Orvis Petfinder Commitment.

Most of all, we hope that Biscuit’s wonderful rescue story inspires others to consider rescuing and adopting a furry family member. There are so many dogs/animals who need a second chance like Biscuit. Doug and I are thankful that we were a part of Biscuit’s journey. We know that Biscuit will send us the ‘right’ sheltie dog who is also in need of a second chance similar to Biscuit.

Below is a small sampling of photographs from our last trip together with our little Biscuit to Vermont. We all had a grand time together!

Biscuit you are forever imprinted in our hearts. We love you with all our hearts. You will always be the most perfect and handsome sheltie dog ever!

Sep 9

Featured: Four&Sons

I was incredibly honored and I am very grateful to have a feature interview in Four&Sons, one of my favorite magazine publications, discussing my photography and the photographs in my black and white series. Four&Sons is based in Australia and this print and online publication documents the relationship of man and his best friend. Four&Sons covers art, design, fashion, music, and lifestyle. Four&Sons brings together an eclectic mix of inspiring ‘dog-centric’ content to dog-lovers passionate about culture and creativity. Four&Sons is curated with a strong editorial approach and written by people who find dogs a constant source of inspiration — where dogs and culture collide. You can read the entire featured interview here.

A big thank you to Marta Roca, Editor, Four&Sons; and Emma Guthrie, Writer, Four&Sons!

Sep 6

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Honoring Biscuit: Biscuit and Me

“The love that flows through your heart purifies not only your own spirit, but the love you share with others.” ~Caroline Myss

Tomorrow Biscuit will be gone for two months. We miss Biscuit very much. Things just are not the same without him. It feels like an eternity since we last saw him. Doug and I think about Biscuit each day, and we feel so lucky that he was in our lives.

Today is a special day for Doug and I — if all goes as planned, we are closing on our new home today. However, we wish that Biscuit was here with us to share this moment with us. Biscuit came to the closing with us when we sold our former home back in November; in December, Biscuit was with us when we executed a contract with the builder to build our home; and this spring, Biscuit accompanied us to our pre-construciton meeting with the builder. Fortunately, we have a photo of us in front of our lot with our little Biscuit along with countless photographs of Biscuit at the new home construction site. We are taking a photograph of Biscuit to closing with us — we know that he will be there in spirit. After all, Biscuit went every weekend with us to the home construction site. I think he knew that we were building a home for all of us. Even though Biscuit will not physically be with us in the new home, our new home will be adorned with his photographs.

Shown below are a few self-portraits of Biscuit and me atop Mount Equinox on the last day of our trip to Vermont. Doug and I are very grateful that we made it to the Orvis Flagship store in Vermont with Biscuit. Biscuit represented the Orvis Petfinder Commitment, supporting and promoting dog rescue. There are so many dogs who need a second chance, and Biscuit’s story is living proof of this sentiment. Vermont was our last trip with Biscuit before he became sick. Biscuit had such a wonderful time as did we! We are grateful for our many trips and adventures together.

Sep 5

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Pursuing What You Love

I love this quote below that I recently came across, which I believe rings so true.

“If everyone had the luxury to pursue a life of exactly what they love, we would all be ranked as visionary and brilliant. … If you got to spend every day of your life doing what you love, you can’t help but be the best in the world at that. And you get to smile every day for doing so. And you’ll be working at it almost to the exclusion of personal hygiene, and your friends are knocking on your door, saying, “Don’t you need a vacation?!,” and you don’t even know what the word “vacation” means because what you’re doing is what you want to do and a vacation from that is anything but a vacation — that’s the state of mind of somebody who’s doing what others might call visionary and brilliant.” –Neil deGrasse Tyson

Some Inspiration — Earlier this week, American 64-year-old long-distance swimmer Diana Nyad became the first person to swim across the Florida Straits from Cuba without a shark cage. This was her her fifth attempt!

I love this quote from Reuters — “Her face sunburned and lips swollen, with barely enough energy to speak, Nyad waded ashore at Key West after a 53-hour swim and delivered a simple message to onlookers: ‘We should never, ever give up . . . You never are too old to chase your dreams.'”

You can view Diana Nyad’s inspiring 2011 TED Talk here.

Happy Thursday!

Sep 4

Good Read: Healing Books After Loss

A few weeks ago, I wrote about some special books concerning our tremendous loss of Biscuit. Well, I recently finished reading all three books: (1) Dog Heaven, by Cynthia Rylant; (2) Mayas First Rose by Martin S. Kosins; and (3) Little Dog Like You by Rosemary Sutcliff. All three of these books were really helpful, and I recommend them all.

I greatly enjoyed Dog Heaven, by Cynthia Rylant. It is a wonderful book that is also wonderfully illustrated. Here is one of my favorite passages from the book, Dog Heaven, ”Dogs in Dog Heaven have almost always belonged to somebody on Earth and, of course, the gods remember this. Heaven is full of memories. So sometimes an angel will walk a dog back to Earth for a little visit and quietly, invisibly, the dog will sniff about his old backyard, will investigate the cat next door, will follow the child to school, will sit on the front porch and wait for the mail. When he is satisfied that all is well, the dog will return to Heaven with the angel.” I hope that Biscuit will come back and “visit” us.

I also greatly enjoyed Mayas First Rose by Martin S. Kosins. This book illustrated the wonderful bond between man and dog. This story reminded me so very much of our relationship with Biscuit, which was like no other. We would do anything to help Biscuit as Martin did for Maya. This story brought tears to my eyes, but reminded me that we are not alone in our strong love for our furry family members. I highly recommend this book, and this author is from my home state, Michigan.

I also loved the children’s book entitled, Little Dog Like You by Rosemary Sutcliff. In this book, sadly, Pippin, a little Chihuahua, passes away. What is so moving about this story is that Pippin finds his way back to his Mom in this touching story. I sure hope that Biscuit will come back to us in some form.

We recently had a special ceremony to honor our little Biscuit whom we miss very much.

Sep 3

Blogging: A Daily Practice

“If we are facing in the right direction, all we have to do is keep on walking.” –Proverb

Some bloggers have an easy time posting each day. I am not one of those people. Writing everyday is a discipline and it is hard work! I practice and blog as a part of my daily workflow, and I have met so many wonderful blog readers and “dog friends” through this blog.

Because writing can be difficult, below are a few tips that you might find useful to support your online voice.

1. Keep it Consistent — There is nothing worse than blogging with two-week lapses in between blog posts. Most times, I blog Monday through Fridays. It is difficult to cultivate readership when people waste their time visiting a site without new content. At the very minimum, a blog should be updated at least once a week. I visit other blogs that post frequently because I know that there will be new content waiting to read! Keep in mind that not every blog post is “jaw dropping.” However, because of the daily consistency of blog posts, you start to become connected with the writer of the blog on a personal level. I really think that this is what makes a blog successful. One of my blog readers recently shared with me that she loves checking this blog first thing when she wakes up in the morning to see what is new!

2. Personalize — Personal stories and sentiments also help to create a great blog. It makes a blog relatable and likable. I think incorporating snippets of your life is powerful.

3. Schedule — I am a list person. I am always making lists and I have made lists ever since I can remember. I also love to organize. (Doug tells everyone that I am our “official calendar keeper” — yes, I keep a paper and pencil calendar — I like the hard copy!) If you think about what you are going to blog in advance (most of the time), it takes the pressure of sitting in front of your blank computer. Usually on Sunday evenings, I make a list of what I want to blog about for the week. Yes, this may seem crazy to some, but it works. However, sometimes, I deviate from my list and new ideas come to me during the week and I incorporate those new ideas into my blogging schedule.

4. Create a Series — In the past, I have posted about our outings and adventures with Biscuit along with many photographs of Biscuit augmenting the posts. These types of posts give readers a peek into our lives. I have an “Interview” series where I regularly interview artists and other people related in some fashion to dogs; I have a “Good Reads” series reviewing books that I have read; and I recently started a new series entitled, “Things I Love!”

5. Keep it Simple — I try to write the way I would talk/write to a friend. I believe that it takes the pressure off and allows you the freedom to express yourself just the way you are.

When it comes to writing about commissions, I like to write a personal post about the commission! Clients like this and they end up sharing the post with their family and friends!

I hope that this post is helpful!

Sep 2

Featured: Pets Blog, The Magazine for Pet Lovers

I was incredibly honored when Roberto Russo, a writer, from Petsblog, who featured my photographs from my black and white series. I am very grateful to have a feature article in Petsblog discussing my photography and also sharing my images. Petsblog is based in Milan, Italy and this online magazine is dedicated to the world of pet animals. You can read the entire featured article here. (The English translation is displayed immediately below.)

A big thank you to Roberto Russo, Writer, Petsblog!

The Dogs and Their Personality in Photographs

The photographer Katherine Carver takes photographs in black and white of dogs trying to highlight their personality.

Dogs are cute, they are nice, cheerful, playful, and gullible. And they are all different from each other. Obvious to us that we live with dogs, but perhaps not so obvious for those who think that dogs are a big category in which the only difference is more or less the tonnage of Fido. The dogs, however, have their own well defined personality that not only varies from breed to breed, but even within the same race in a thousand shades — you will never find two dogs of the same breed that have the same personality. Like us humans, even non-human animals are all different from each other.

She knows well the American photographer, Katherine Carver, who photographed many dogs in a project strictly in black and white to emphasize the intimacy, the singularity, and the emotions of our furry friends with the intention of shedding light on those aspects that often escape us and that, perhaps, you take for granted.

It all started when Katherine Carver and her husband adopted Biscuit. Sharing life with this dog, has meant that Katherine always went around with her camera to capture the special moments in the life of her furry friend. And this commitment to tell the stories of dogs through this medium of photography, Katherine Carver continues to carry it forward even not that her Biscuit went to the Rainbow Bridge. So Katherine continues to tell stories of dogs everywhere, highlighting the personality of each of them.

Aug 30

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Honoring Biscuit: Another Rainbow and Beautiful Clouds

Recently, Doug and I went and checked on the progress concerning the finishing touches on the new house, and just as we were getting ready to leave at sun set, we witnessed a faint rainbow and a beautiful and breathtaking bright orange and pink sunset filled with beautiful clouds — I love the abstract nature of the clouds. The rainbow only lasted for a few short minutes, but this time, I had my camera to capture it. (It had not even been raining that day). We would like to think that it is Biscuit telling us that he is OK. On the evening that Biscuit passed away, there was a similar sun set and rainbow.

We hope that Biscuit is having a grand time running and playing in a body free of sickness and pain; and we are hopeful that he is watching over us each day. We know that Biscuit will send us the “right” sheltie friend. We miss our little Biscuit dearly.