Regarding Children and Pets:

We wrap our lives around them, don't we.

Little globs of emotion, they are.

They are soft, vulnerable, and dependent to begin with, subtly changing into explorers and questioners seemingly overnight, then all of a sudden, they have figured out that they know it all, and we, the nurturers are somehow no longer the repositories of all knowledge that they once thought we were.

The emotions on our part, however, change little. I'm 58, but still "his baby boy" to my 92 year old father.

Has the core emotion changed?

I don't think so. Even though I am now the care giver, my Dad is still trying to make things easier for me, and to protect me in any way he can.

So where am I going with this?

There are only two emotions, love and fear.

Every other emotion can be traced straight back to their source, love or fear. It is the light side and the dark side, straight out of Star Wars. Once you start down the path to the dark side, forever will it dominate your destiny.

Resolving to stay well clear of the dark side, my goal as a photographer is to capture the light side; the emotions of love, devotion, protectiveness, softness, joy, rapture, anticipation. In no case, are these warm and fuzzy emotions shown more clearly than in children and pets.

Dogs, in particular, have the ability to completely overlook our human shortcomings, and treat us as their personal Gods, yearning for our touch and the tiniest word of praise. A good all over rub will drive most dogs into spasms of ecstasy. "Dear Lord, help me be the person my dog thinks I am..."

Children, while not quite as forthright in their emotions, display just as deep of an abiding affection as their canine counterparts, with far more variation in their expressions.

Portrait photography is all about relationships. There is no adoring puppy without a loving master; no curious child without a parent guiding the way. Even if the dog's counterpart isn't in the frame, the relationship is there for the world to see in the brightness of the eyes and the anticipation of the next scritch behind the ear.

For the adult, it is a bit different, but the photographer will try to capture the essence of their subject within the image, with the fun, love, and yes, pain and struggle that has led them to this particular moment and helped them become the person that they are now.

And you thought photography was just taking a picture....

No, portrait photography, for the professional, is nothing short of identifying, bringing out and portraying the soul. It's an awesome task!