Tailwagger Dog Photography has new dog portrait sessions that include more digital files (more can be purchased after you receive your gallery). We now have three session options – the Mini Session, the Classic Session and the Ultimate Session. 

Going forward you can get any type of image for whichever session you book (this was not the case in the past) – even the Mini Session. Types of images include: dog portraits, headshots, action shots, dog group portraits and family portraits. 

You decide how you want to spend your session time by filling out a priority shot list before your session. For example, recently a client wanted primarily action shots of her dog, but she also wanted a few family portraits to choose from. So, we spent most of the session on action shots, but did a handful of portraits with her and her pup at the end of the session. 

Flower crowns are still an option for every dog portrait session and all three session options are available for Puppy’s First Year packages. Sessions include an online gallery to make your choices. The new session deets may be found below – for more details check out our Sessions – Pricing page. 

• Mini Session:  1-2 dogs, 3 digital photos, 1 location, 30 minutes – $249
• Classic Session:  1-3 dogs, 10 digital photos, 1 location, 60 minutes – $499
• Ultimate Session:  1-4 dogs, 20 digital photos, 1 location, 90 minutes – $799

If you don’t know where you want to have your session, we are happy to make a suggestion – as well as show you some sample photos taken at our suggested location. Also, having the session in your own yard is an option and might be the best choice if you have a sick dog or a dog that is just more comfortable sticking around his home. For more information on our favorite locations and FAQs, check out our Locations & FAQs page.

Last, but definitely not least – your dog never has to be off his or her leash during one of our sessions (even for action shots). We will remove the leash and the person holding the leash during editing. On a side note, we will not edit out your pup’s harness simply because it is impossible to replicate your dog’s fur pattern and or coloring pattern (even with the help of AI). If your dog normally wears a harness, please bring a regular neck collar for the photographs. 

Text or email if you have any questions – 517-990-5630 – trish@tailwaggerphoto.com

The BEST gift for a dog lover meets these criteria: 1) it has EVERYTHING to do with the pup your dog lover absolutely adores 2) it represents the unique bond she has created with her dog and 3) it lasts FOREVER. What could be better?

A custom Tailwagger Dog Photography photo session fits these criteria perfectly. Dynamic, beautiful images of her dog (and possibly of her and her furry companion) will absolutely send her over the top – it is a unique gift that will last forever. 

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The time we share with our dogs can seem so fleeting. There’s no doubt about that – it seems like one moment we are patiently teaching our pups to sit or helping them adjust to their new home and the next moment we are dutifully giving them joint supplements and setting up ramps so they can still reach their favorite napping spots. 

Anyone who has lost a dog understands this – our time with our pups can seem so ephemeral – especially if you are unfortunate to receive an unfavorable diagnosis from the Vet regarding your dog health when your dog is young. Having to say goodbye to your dog is the hardest aspect of sharing your life with a dog. 

I want to remember all my pups forever – each and every one of them has been special in their own way. I’ve heard people talk about how everyone has a ‘heart’ dog – a dog that has somehow touched their heart and senses to a greater degree than their other dogs. That may be for some – but all of my pups have captured a bit of my heart in their own way and they seem to take a piece of it when they leave. 

I suppose the dog that I miss the most is always the dog that I most recently lost – just because that dog is most ‘fresh’ in my mind and heart. I still go through, on a regular basis, photos I took of Schatzi, the springer spaniel we lost this past January. It just keeps her memory top of mind and reminds me of just what a unique dog she was – photos help me do that. I also think it helps with grieving – for me anyway. 

Each and every year we receive emails or texts from past clients who have recently lost their dog. They tell us how much they love and appreciate the images we took of their dogs. But it is never just the images they write about – it is also the experience of doing a photo session with their dog. The memories they spent with their dog working with us to make the photographs they so cherish.

So many of our clients are so concerned about how their dog will perform during a photo session – even those with exceptionally well-trained dogs. However, as all of our clients learn during their sessions – dogs that we photograph don’t need to perform. All a dog needs to do is stand or sit next to their human guardian – we do the rest, including remove their leash and their human holding the leash. The only way to get authentic portraits of a dog is for the dog to be him or herself. 

Time is one thing you can’t get back. That is why it is so important to capture today’s moments that you want to remember forever. Photographs are called ‘memory keepers’ for a reason. As time goes on, our memories fade – they simply aren’t as crisp as they once were. Photographs help keep those memories crisp. Capture today…what you want to remember forever – especially the pup you share your life with.  

For more information on our session options, check out our Sessions-Pricing page. To purchase a gift card online, go to our Gift Card page. 

Questions? Email or text us at trish@tailwaggerphoto.com – 517-990-5630

Tailwagger Dog Photography is a West Michigan dog photographer. We photograph the BEST dogs in West Michigan – the dogs their humans never want to forget. 

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One of our favorite locations in Grand Rapids, for a dog photo session during the summer, is on the west side of the Grand River – from the Blue Bridge, down through the Grand Rapids Public and Ford Museums to Ah-Nab-Awen park. This location is for evening sessions only, due to the positioning right next to the river. 

At first thought, it doesn’t sound like a great place to photograph, but it is surprising all the little interesting spots we find that have loads of color (especially flowers), reflections and interesting shapes and forms for nice and varying backgrounds. 

The other thing we really appreciate about this location is that it works just as well for large dogs, as it does for small dogs. It doesn’t matter if we are photographing a 5 pound Shih Tzu or a pair of 120+ pound Saint Bernards – it’s a great place to shoot for either.

The Ford Museum has a variety of flowering and nonflowering perennials, as well as annuals, which make for great color and background for portraits and headshots alike. Plus there are grassy areas in Ah-Nab-Awen park and near the GR Public Museum to do action shots as well. 

The only real downfall for this location is it isn’t suitable for reactive dogs. There usually aren’t tons of people in these areas, but there are enough people walking through (with and without dogs) or hanging out in the park to eliminate this as a possible location for dog or people reactive session spots. 

The other aspect of this spot to be aware of is, if you have an elderly dog or a dog that can’t walk very far, this might not be your best option – as we usually end up walking around a mile or so during the course of the session.

There is plenty of parking in the Grand Rapids Public Museum parking garage. 

Overall we’ve always been happy with the images we’ve captured in this downtown location. They still have a nice natural feel to them even though it is downtown – a hybrid of sorts between an urban session and a park (or natural setting) session. It’s a great option for color and an urban session without too much concrete. We typically do sessions at this location anywhere from late spring to early fall when there is still some color from the perennials and planted annuals. 

Check out our sessions page for pricing and session details. Questions – just text or email us!

We have decided to change up our Puppy’s First Year session package a bit for the 2023 season – a bit for the better!

The Puppy’s First Year session package is a series of sessions to capture your puppy’s growth – you decide when you want to do the sessions. Some people have decided to do the sessions with the change of the seasons, but most people have opted to do the sessions when they notice a big change in their puppy that they want to document with photographs. 

Originally our Puppy’s First Year package was four Signature Sessions, but we recently decided to make it available with our Artisan Dog Portrait Sessions, which we added as a permanent session this year. In addition, we are also offering the option of now choosing between 3 or 4 sessions for the package. 

We realize some people don’t get their puppies at 8 weeks of age, but at 3 or 4 months of age when that first itty, bitty puppy stage is already over. Also, my understanding is smaller breeds can actually finish their growth cycle at roughly half the age of some larger breeds. Since smaller breeds grown up quite quickly, a three session package might be a better option. 

From my own experience, I have noticed four growth stages in the puppies I have had – the 8 week oh-so- adorable stage, with puppy breath and all that, then around 16 weeks I have noticed just how much my puppy has changed – not only her height, but she also starts to get just a little bit of the adult face – just a tiny bit.

Then the next big stage I have always captured has been around 6 months, when my pup has about 2/3 of her adult weight and is very much looking more mature in the face. The last stage of course – right about one year old with full height and mostly full weight (possibly still has a little bit of filling out to do, but not much). That said – I have had mostly Golden Retrievers and the growth rate of a puppy would definitely vary by breed – which again is why we are introducing the 3 session option.

So, basically you can now do the puppy package with the Artisan Dog Portrait Session, as well as the Signature Session. You also now have the option of choosing between 3 or 4 sessions.  

If you have any questions regarding the packages, just send us an email (trish@tailwaggerphoto.com), text (517-990-5630) or message us. You can also find all the details on our sessions-pricing page. 

The perfect choice for a few beautiful dog portraits that you will cherish forever.

We have a new session in 2023 – The Artisan Dog Portrait Session. This session includes dog portraits and headshots and is perfect for the client who simply wants a few beautiful portraits of her pup to cherish forever. 

This session is shorter than the Signature Session simply because it is limited to portraits – action shots and family portraits are not included with this session. 

There are several similarities to our Signature Session though:

• you can add additional dogs to the session, up to 3 dogs total
• all of our sessions include 3 digital photos (regardless of how many dogs are in the session)
• no time limit sessions
• one mutually agreed upon session location in the Grand Rapids area*
• additional digital photos may be purchased through digital photo collections

The main difference between the Signature Session and the Artisan Portrait Session is that the portrait session is (surprise, surprise) just that – portraits (and headshots). 

This new portrait session is a great option for a senior dog that isn’t able to do action shots or just doesn’t have the stamina to do a longer session. It also makes a great gift for the dog lover in your life – there’s no better gift for a dog lover that beautiful photographs of her pup that she will treasure forever. 

For more information on our sessions, session packages and pricing, check out our session/pricing page. 

We photograph the BEST dogs in Michigan – the dogs their humans want to remember forever. 

*Live outside the Grand Rapids area? No worries! We are very willing to travel for sessions – however there will be a travel fee, due to our increased costs. Contact us for details and/or an estimate.