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My favorite part of doing these photo shoots, aside from getting to play with cats and kittens is seeing the amazing photographs. I'm in the room when they are taken, I see the light, I see the setting, and yet, every time I am blown away by how the photographers are able to capture the best and filter out the clutter. They make the light magical and luminous even on an overcast day, you see the cats in a new way that you miss in person. I never get tired of it. 

The next best part?  Sending the photos to the hard-working volunteers who care for these animals day in and day out - who get them through their medical issues, work on their behavior issues, and give them as much love as they can. 

Of Cindy's photos, the ones of the white cat, Nicole, really got the attention of the volunteers on Katie's Place's Facebook page.  Someone posted the before and after set below and said the following:
"Seriously I am blown away by these pictures. I see these guys every day and I see them on their good days and their bad days. I see them sick and cranky. I curse when they spill their water or swat me in the head or dart out the door. They've become part of my life and I am so used to them sometimes I don't even notice them. Pictures like these remind me of how amazingly beautiful each and every single one of them is."

That is the power of photography.  


Nicole's story: She was born in the wild outside to a cat someone abandoned. She came to Katie's Place as an unsocial older kitten because she wouldn't have had much of a chance of surviving in the wild being deaf. She has tamed up quite a bit and is becoming more confident every day.  Also, she's beautiful.

Katie's Place Photoshoot

Today Cindy (of Muddy Love Pet Photography) and I made it out to Katie's Place Animal Shelter, along with a friend who is looking for a new cat (or two?) to add to her life (yay adopters!).

We had a wonderful time meeting all the cats and trying to get good shots of as many as we could. Some were natural models, totally working it for the camera, some were quite shy, some were frisky characters - there was a bit of everything.

The Katie's Place volunteers were lovely, staying late so we could work. 

I usually fall in love with one or two particular cats every time I visit a rescue and this time was no different. The guy who really caught my eye was Trump (photo at left) - this is one big, attention-grabbing cat! He was super chill and friendly to us and I think I'm going to make it my mission to make sure this guy finds a home (should be easy, he's ridiculously handsome). He's a Himalayan/Manx mix (no tail!), very unusual!

Cindy took amazing photos - I'm so impressed by her skill and willingness to use it and her free time to help homeless animals try to find loving homes; yay for good people!

I'll be adding a photo gallery of some of her images soon - first I have to get the photos on the hard drive of the rescue group so they can use them! I'll put a few here so you can see how fantastic they are. Thanks Cindy!

Nicole (deaf)

Marlowe

Fiji

Heading out to Katie's Place Soon

Katie's Place Shelter is a magical place. There are lots of kinds of shelters, Katie's Place is one where you feel like the cats have it all right while they wait for their forever homes. Sure you wish they'd all get adopted asap, but your heart doesn't break into a million pieces the way it does in some shelters.

The key, I think is the communal rooms. The cats are not in cages - they have room to run and play and access to a sunroom where they can laze in a sunbeam, just the way cats should.

Katie's Place also takes in cats other shelters might consider 'unadoptable', and if necessary, they provide a home for these cats for life at the shelter - though they fully believe there is a home for every cat. Let that be a thought next time you're looking to adopt, are you a possible home for a special needs cat?

I've only been to Katie's Place once before to visit - it's a ways outside Vancouver (in Maple Ridge), but I'll be going again near the end of June with Cindy from Muddy Love to see if we can get some nice photos of some of the residents to help show the internet how fabulous they all are! I'm excited to work with Cindy - we met for lunch and she seems awesome; I think we'll have a lot of fun!

Stay tuned!