Smile Like a Dog » Cats

Nine Lives Kitties Need Homes!

Mark — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 16:46:17 +0000

Attention, Kitty people! My good friends at Nine Lives Foundation are trying to find homes for a few special kitties currently being fostered by one of their star volunteers. I got a chance to meet them when I was there photographing two other cats for a Pet Food Express poster. There are four approximately 3-month old kittens (2 of them below) and 7-month old Maggie who’s a special needs adoption. Those interested in learning more can contact me to be put in touch with the foster mom or contact Nine Lives directly.

Kitkat and Lincoln (11 weeks old)

Maggie (7 months)

Lincoln

Kitkat

I Spy Chai

Mark — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 00:19:13 +0000

Photo of the Day

This spy in training is a Siamese-mix named Chai I worked with a few weeks ago for a Pet Food Express My Mutt poster. A lot of folks ask me how I deal with cats — especially if they’re on the skittish or sly side — and I always say that we’ll work that part of their personality into the shots we get. Sometimes less is more…

Chai the Spy

Bonus Pic

Chai was also kind enough to pose against some lovely purple leaves. Gotta love a kitty with a good sense of color

Whoa, Nellie!

Mark — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 02:00:50 +0000

Photo of the Day

Nellie says it’s feline like a Friday! Have a good weekend, everyone.

Whoa, Nellie!

A Triple-Cat Threat

Mark — Wed, 18 May 2011 04:40:21 +0000

Wow, where have the last two weeks gone. I’m emerging from the vortex for part one of a two-parter — a shoot a did a few weeks back up in Marin for a three-cat/one dog household. Because the cats were so much fun I’m giving them their own sneak peek (you know how cats are about attention) and I’ll follow on soon with one just for Dexter the poodle.

For now, I introduce to you Max, Bogie and Jake. They’re all fun but my personal take is that Jake wins the class-clown award.

Enjoy…

Max

Bogie

Jake

Bogie is not off his rocker, he's under it

Sure wish Jake had shared that catnip with everyone else

Max is not amused when Jake plays with his foodBogie enjoys yoga and long walks in the park...

Methinks someone is plotting something

I think we need to get Max a gig as a Tag Heuer model

Modest as always

Mr Bernie: In the Catbird Seat

Mark — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 03:30:56 +0000

Mr Bernie is undoubtedly one cat with a very important-sounding name which helps when you live in a home with another cat plus two dogs. Mr Bernie–soon to be a Pet Food Express My Mutt poster star–shares a place with two other My Mutts, Zuni and Phoebe, who’ve been on this blog before. But Bernie has his own style and panache, not to mention a really cool play tube. Check him out and let him know which shot you think should be his poster.

And don’t forget there are less than 4 days left to vote for the 2001 Best Bay Area Photographer.

Mr Bernie

I think we should table that issue

Mr Bernie up close and personal

In the happy tunnel

Mr Bernie does his impression of the back of Ron Wood's head

It's tough being Mr Bernie

All work and no play...

Romeo and Gracie

Mark — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 22:19:29 +0000

You’re in for a real treat with this post, folks. Not only will you meet an unbelievably cute little Pomeranian puppy named Romeo but you’ll also get to know a gorgeous cat named Gracie with the most beautiful eyes you’ve ever seen: one blue and one green (it’s called odd-eyed — a term I don’t really like). Romeo is a recent addition to the family while Gracie was adopted through ARF (one of my favorites) a few years ago. Romeo’s puppy energy doesn’t mix too well with Gracie’s routine so for the shoot we kept things separate with Grace indoors or hanging out close to the back porch and Romeo romping through the backyard with his favorite red stuffed toy (thanks for considering the complementary color, Romeo!)

Please remember to vote! Competition for Best Bay Area Photographer is heating up.

Romeo, prince of the back yard

Gracie, princess of...pretty much everything

Roamin' Romeo

Romeo surveys his kingdom

Anyone seen my other contact?

Romeo at Rest (for a nanosecond)

Getting ready for cutenes class to start

No more pictures today, please

Beena and Shiva

Mark — Tue, 11 Jan 2011 17:43:52 +0000

Happy New Year, everyone. After a bit of a holiday hiatus it’s good to be back and blogging again. For 2011′s first post I thought I’d start off with something interesting — a shoot from last year that didn’t go at all as planned.

In December I had a long-delayed session with a cat named Beena for a My Mutt poster shoot. Beena was adopted much earlier in the year but was exceedingly shy and her new mom wanted her to come out of her shell a bit before subjecting her to a photo shoot. In the meantime, the family also adopted a pit bull named Shiva so when the stars finally aligned we decided to try to photograph both while I was there. I’d assumed I would probably spend more time with Beena than Shiva but it ended up being just the opposite. Beena, a beautiful tortoise Maine Coon cat really only wanted to be in two places — on the master bed and under it. Since the latter didn’t lend itself much to a poster Beena’s session didn’t last very long nor did it need to — she’s incredibly photogenic (see below).

Shiva was another story, though. We spent a long time together and took more shots than I can count so there ended up being a lot more photos of her than her feline colleague. I also have to say that while I know a lot of pit bulls I haven’t met many with eyes like Shivas–soulful doesn’t really even begin to describe them. And talk about affectionate. It was actually difficult for me to get shots of her up close because every time I got down on the ground she tried to crawl into my lap. You can see the final results below. I think we may have a star on our hands…

Beena

Beena on lavendar

Shiva

Shiva in the Garden

Queen of all she surveys

Shiva up close

Shiva demanded a color coordinated background

Shiva and Mom

Check out those peepers

Thanks, mom

Mikey Valentine: A Lovely Cat with a Lovely Name

Mark — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 02:24:48 +0000

I love a good pet name and last week I met a cat with a wonderful handle: Mikey Valentine. Is that awesome or what? One day I’d love for him to meet a dog pal of mine named Zev Valentine. Can you imagine the adventures those two could have?

Mikey’s mom made a donation in his name to the San Francisco SPCA so you’ll soon see Mikey’s My Mutt poster gracing the walls of the Burlingame Pet Food Express. Which do you think it should be?

Mikey Valentine

Striking a noble pose

Mikey V and his emerald peepers

For my next trick I'm going tie a cherry stem in a knot

Mikey in repose

Unlike his aging photographer, Mikey Valentine makes ear hair look good

Lookin' Up at Mikey Valentine

River: Cat on a Roll

Mark — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 04:37:20 +0000

I’ve had a nice run with cats of late. Not only have there been more than usual but almost all of them have been total camera hams — which brings me to River, the ham of the hour. River’s mom had forewarned me that River might be a little shy but that was not to be the case. Almost as soon as I walked in the house we were on our back batting our baby greens for the camera. River’s housemate, Cat, even joined in on the fun and helped River offer me advice on what lens to use.

See how we did…

River

River turns on the charm

Trying the sidelong look

Going inverted again

I think head-on works best for this cat

But the inquisitive look works pretty well, too

Cat (yes a cat named Cat) enters the scene as River goes for another prone pose

River and Cat practice for their upcoming job with airport security

Squeak and Kona

Mark — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 18:48:23 +0000

My cat photo run continues with a pair of kitties named Squeak and Kona (I keep thinking they should start a law firm) who live in a lovely spot down in the Castro with lots of wonderful art on the walls and a wealth of cat-friendly perches. Squeak is the older of the two and, I must say, has an excellent eye for posing in front of pieces that compliment her coloring. Kona is a younger and pretty athletic. In fact, Kona eats all her meals atop a bookshelf so Squeak won’t partake. Alas, we didn’t end up getting many shots of these two cool cats together but did manage to catch quite a few individual portraits that capture their Squeakness and Kona-ness repectively. Have a look and keep an eye out for this pair’s posters at a Pet Food Express near you.

And, if you haven’t seen it yet, please stop on by the brand new Mark Rogers Photography website — it just launched this week. I’d love to hear what you think of it.

Squeak

Kona

Like the art? I had it commissioned

See, the red in the painting brings out the green in my eyes

Clash of the Titans

Kona prefers to eat food at altitude (on top of a bookshelf)

And now some work from my Abstract Expressionism collection

Kona in fishnet

Wonder if my manicurist has an opening today?

Check out these peepers

It's only a catnip problem if it cuts into your work or personal life