Family

This past weekend, I had the honor of photographing Jet, an 11-year-old German Shepherd. I met up with him and his family for a golden hour for a session at Wimple Park in Tuscola, Illinois, that was filled with love, reflection, and the quiet beauty of early spring.

Jet’s family reached out to me after seeing one of my facebook posts advertising free pet legacy photos: sessions that I do for no charge for elderly or terminally ill pets. Jet received some not-so-great news at the vet a couple weeks ago, and his family wanted to do some photos with him while he was still feeling good. This session was the perfect way to celebrate the life of their loyal companion in a way that honored his unwavering love and the countless memories they had built together.

Wimple Park is a place I had only been to once before, and only remembered it being a large pond. There’s actually a walkway all the way around the pond, plenty of places to sit and relax, and, as luck would have it, a row of pine trees that was being kissed by the early evening winter sun – giving us a perfect backdrop of warm greens and yellows! It’s hard to find anything other than brown this time of year!🤪

As the golden light wrapped around him, Jet walked through the grass, pausing every so often to take in the scents around him. His family stayed close, giving him endless scratches behind the ears, whispering words of love, and soaking in every moment. We all enjoyed laughs as we watched him to do “shepherd things,” such as rolling on his side for belly rubs instead of just laying on his stomach and looking at the camera. These sweet moments just allowed me to better capture his personality, which is the whole point of these sessions!

Thanks for bringing Jet out to meet me, Suding family! Praying for your sweet boy!