An Introduction to Charlie Dog: Puppy Extraordinaire | Hampton Roads Puppy Photographer

Hi!

If you follow any other photographer's online (and I'd be willing to bet you do- I know I do!) you'll probably see a number of them talking about their kids- and rightfully so! Kids are an incredible gift and a HUGE life lesson and experience and joy and journey and so many other things that I know I can't even describe. That's because (as you've probably guessed by following me for a little while now): I don't have children...yet. 

But I do have Charlie Dog. And Charlie Dog is pretty wonderful, too, if I do say so myself :) Charlie Dog is incredibly important to me and to be honest I'm not sure what life would be like without him. You see, Charlie was a gift from my mother in-law when I graduated college. No one besides me (not even my boyfriend-now husband) thought it was a fantastic and stupendous idea to get a dog right before I moved to a new city to start grad school. Good thing no one but me got to make the decision, right? ;)

I mean really, who could turn down that FACE?!

So Charlie Dog and I started our journey together in a small apartment in Ohio where I quickly learned what the teenage years of a puppy were like: frustrating, spiteful (on his part)- he once peed ON MY LAP just because I took a toy from him- oh yea... he often found himself in trouble.

But he also met me every single day with TONS of kisses and jumping and tail wagging. Without fail he would be excited to see me. And we're talking the "ohmygoodnessithoughtyouleftmeforever" kind of happy. It didn't matter what kind of mood I was in, what time I came home from practicals or my 5-9pm class (yea...that's not a typo- it was a 4 hour class), or what season it was: he would ALWAYS be happy to see me. You can't buy that sort of love.

He made being in a new city where I knew only a very small number of people, starting a whole new chapter of life, a lot easier than I could have hoped for. He made coming home to a quiet apartment actually enjoyable. Simply put: he made life better. He was my cheering section throughout my two years of being alone in Ohio rooting me on with puppy kisses.

So whenever I post about him, whenever I plaster photos of him all over the page: I hope that now you understand a little bit about the "why." He's my Charlie Dog. I worry about him when I'm out of town- I have irrational fears about the air conditioning system breaking while I'm away during hot summer days and him having to sit in a 90 degree home for hours- and yes, sometimes, my husband and I even let him share the bed with us.

What can I say? Other photog's have their kids- I have Charlie Dog.

 Thank GOODNESS he's really patient with me because i LOVE to dress him in ridiculous outfits.

Can you BELIEVE he was so tiny?!

Trust me, when you meet him one day you'll fall in love with him just like I did :)

Best,
Sarah

p.s. Little known Charlie Dog trivia: His real *official* name on his papers is Charlie Pavlov Chaplin. And he owns both a tuxedo and a life jacket. Fact.

New Beginnings.

Hi! 

And welcome to the brand new blog! Since today is the first day of a brand new month I figured it was the perfect day to break in the blog! I am so excited to begin to be able to share my sessions and thoughts with you on a regular basis :) Yay for the new blog!

If you follow me on facebook (and if you don't you totally should- really...go to the page and click "like"- you won't regret it!) then you already know how important this new phase of Sarah Elle Photography is to me. With this new beginning comes a lot of different emotions. First and foremost I am definitely EXCITED! :) But I'm also nervous and on completely new ground; which can be scary! But you know what else comes with all of those emotions? Growth. I am growing. I'm growing as a photographer, as a business owner, as a person. And that in itself brings with it a sense of peace and hope and determination. I know that through this growth I will learn and continue to carve my way into the photographer I want to be- the best photographer I can be!

 But if you've gotten this far with me then I know already that you're behind me- and that's the best thing I could ask for! There's nothing better than having the peace of mind knowing that you're family supports you in all that you do. So, with this new chapter of Sarah Elle Photography starting to unfold I want to say hold on tight, Sarah Elle Photography family, it's about to get fantastic! Stay tuned for the great unveiling of the brand new website (the link above is the old one-couldn't release the new one early, you know), new session guide(s)-yep, more than one!, and new business focus. First up? A self-developed project that is dear to my heart called "Life: As it is." But more about that in the next post ;)

 And since a photographer can't have a post without images I thought I'd leave you with one of Charlie Dog. :D

 

Charlie Dog is always trying to come on the shoots with me and thinks hiding in the camera bag is the way to get a free pass to come along.... silly puppy.

Best,

Sarah