11 favourite images from 2022

Vancouver Island Victoria BC pet photographer_Pauliina Saarinen Photography

Last year was a great photography year for me! I had fantastic client session with the pleasure of photographing both dogs and dog people. I also had a great time photographing our own Frisky. I practice with Frisky so that I can incorporate new ideas, locations and techniques into my client work if they work out. If they don’t, I only disappoint myself.

Looking through the images I took in 2022, I selected not 10 but 11 images as my favourites.

A Pomeranian tilting his head to the camera.

Sid, the Pomeranian

Can anything be cuter than a fluffy pom sitting on soft green moss, tilting his head to the camera? I think not. Blurry conifers on the background contributes to the soft feeling in the image.

A dog photographed in Fan Tan Alley in Victoria BC Chinatown.

Frisky at Fan Tan Alley in Victoria

I call this image “On the heels of an alley cat”. It is a vertical panorama, put together from four or five different images to make justice to the tall and narrow alley. The signs, lights and lanterns high up create visual interest in the image. Shooting there was a challenge with people coming and going but perseverance paid off.

I submitted this image to the Professional Photographers of America IPC competition but for some reason the image showed sideways. I must have saved it sideways… Argh! The judge said, “My heart is aching for you. Please send it again.” So, that's what I plan to do this year.

A toddler with his dog at Merridale Cidery in Cobble Hill.

A toddler and his dog

The old blue truck at the Merridale Cidery in Cobble Hill was a perfect attraction for this toddler, keeping him entertained long enough to capture him and his dog in one image - a rare moment indeed! This adorable child was a superstar and didn’t shed a tear during the two plus hour shoot.

A pair of Bernie-doodles photographed at a river in Comox Valley.

Cooper and Scout

I love what nature has to offer on Vancouver Island, and needless to say, I try to incorporate the scenery in my dog photographs to create “dogscapes” if I can. To create this image, I had the owner of the dogs stand knee deep in the river, keeping the dogs on this rock shelf while water flowed between their feet. I appreciate it very much when owners are “all in”, humouring me while I try to create what I visualize. I’ve noticed time and time again that good photographs take a lot of effort; great photographs require even more effort. But, the end result makes it all worthwhile.

A Finnish Spitz bred by Kinsol Kennels in Duncan BC.

Kova, the Finnish Spitz

What a thrill to photograph a dog breed that I know well from my home country, Finland. The Finnish Spitz is considered to be a Living National Heritage in Finland. These dogs descend directly from ages old hunting dogs without any crossbreeding, making them a rarity in the world of dog breeds for their purity.

Kova is a very pretty and a very clever dog. She figured out my crazy sounds in no time. I only had about two attempts with my crazy sound before she lost her interest in them but I managed to capture her looking quizzitively in the camera. Bingo!

A giant tree in Bright Angel Park in Duncan BC.

Frisky still with the giants

This pair of massive trees is in a nearby park where we walk almost daily. It’s pretty amazing that these trees weren’t logged like most big trees on Vancouver Island have been. There they continue to stand, right at the river’s edge and awe passers-by. When it was time to shoot for the Up Ups Challenge in the Embark course I did last year, I wanted to try capturing Frisky with these forest giants. Frisky got the idea and jumped in the fork of the trees, about a meter above the ground and waited until I had captured an image I liked. She even gave me the interested ears, a sign that she was into shooting that day, which is not always the case. I like how the light from the river behind wraps around the tree trunks and lights Frisky up from behind. The image was awarded a merit at PPA’s Int’l Photographic Competition, which made me very happy.

A young and powerful Rottweiler playing in a Great Blue Heron Park in Yellow Point, south of Nanaimo BC.

Powerful Bane, the Rottweiler

Bane is one of the winners in the Vancouver Island Dogs Calendar Contest, an annual fundraiser for Operation Freedom Paws Canada that I organize. I timed his calendar session at high tide after reading the high tide marks on the rocks. How cool would it be to have Bane stand alone on rock, surrounded by the sea, as if far away… Truthfully, we were only meters off the beach. But, when we arrived at the location, the rocks was completely submerged! I had failed to take the harvest tides, the highest tides we get, into account and scheduled the shoot too late. It was an epic FAIL! The images that I took on the beach did not make the cut that I impose on my images. I had no other choice but to reschedule the shoot at another location. The 2nd time around, I got a beautiful image of young and powerful Bane, playing in the water. He didn’t even know he was being photographed.

A tender moment shared with a senior dog and her owner.

May’s kiss

“I’d like you to capture a kiss”, May’s owner wrote on the questionnaire that I always send out to my clients before a session. I want to learn what’s important to them, and it guides my shooting for that client. I could sense her love for her senior dog; May means the world to her. I love the love in this image and the late summer vibe, the yellowed wispy grasses and the golden evening light that rims my subjects. This image reminds me why I am a pet photographer.

A pair of papillons at 40 Knots Winery and Estate Vineyard in Comox Valley on Vancouver Island.

Fizz and Lucy, the papillons

Every year, I organize Fall at 40 Knots sessions at 40 Knots Winery in Comox in October, just when the vines are in their fall splendour. The vineyard is all fenced so it’s a safe place to photograph dogs, and it gets beautiful light that time of year. This image of Fizz and Lucy is my absolute favourite from their session. Lucy couldn’t quite keep her excitement under control, and her twirling created opportunities for the cutest images possible. These darling little dogs were lit from behind by the late afternoon sun. Even the ground underneath their paws was glowing in golden light. I couldn’t have asked for better light!

A dog in a historic railway car in downtown Duncan BC.

The red railway car

The Embark course includes a challenge called Colourific. Little bit of colour wouldn’t satisfy the judges so I was on the hunt for a location that is VERY colourful. But, where to find one, when you really need one. The end of the course was looming, and I still hadn’t gotten the shot for this challenge. I was starting to get nervous and ready to settle for less until one day I “found” a historic railway car, painted in bold red and hiding in plain sight. I can’t count how many times I had seen it - or had I really? It’s the boldness of red that makes it one of my favourites - and of course, Frisky.

A dachshund and catahoula photographed at Salmon Point in Campbell River BC.

Rex the catahoula and Mason the duchshund

Vancouver Island beaches can be quite chaotic places with driftwood, branches, sticks and algae piled up high by the tides. Small dogs can get lost in the scene, and the distractions can take the viewer’s attention away from the subject. But prop little guys up on something and they stand out in stature like they do in character! Mason with the log is almost as tall as Rex - oh well, almost. The size difference between these beautiful brothers reminds me of the movie Twins, and I can’t help but smile!

I hope you enjoyed my images. I’m looking forward to what this year has in store. Please leave me comment below!

Pauliina Saarinen Photography is an award-winning professional photography studio for pets, dogs, cats and horses and families on Vancouver Island.