Leaving My Paw Print Behind

AnnMarie Valea, Meredith College Class of 2011

Major: Business Administration

Minors: Economics & Studio Art

     I was interested in this course because I have a passion for animals and photography. This course combined the two while directing a purpose for our community and contributing to my experiential academic learning at Meredith College.  I enrolled in this course wanting to use my artistic abilities to help animals. 



I was informed a few days ago from a shelter visitor, that
the image posted for Shadow made her come in
to see such a handsome cat.  This was hard proof that
my photography impacts the WCAS in the most positive way.

     The most valuable parts of this course for me were the following: learning how the ASPCA and WCAS were different and why; adopting my first pet due to the animal exposure within this course: a 2 year-old Siamese-mix cat that I have named Stella Blue; learning and applying the Adobe Photoshop CS5 software with my brand new Nikon DSLR 3100 camera and learning how to use photography to better our world. 

     I did not expect to learn the functionalities of the shelter.  For example,  I learned how many animal cycles occurred daily and why,  how to handle each animal, the importance of sterilization for the shelter, why other volunteers volunteer, I learned why the animals enter the shelter and where they come from the most, I learned my volunteering and photography impacted the shelter but most importantly directly affected dozens of animals.  Overall, I learned the ins and outs of animal overpopulation and how to prevent it.  These were all things I did not expect to learn throughout this course.

     Lastly, photography can most certainly impact animal overpopulation by portraying the causes and effects to our entire community in an educational, thoughtful, and strategic way.  Photography can be applied to the shelter’s website, flyers, posters, event planning, and to help exhibit several of the desperate animals who are in dire need of homes.

"Be The Change You Want To See In The World"- Mahatma Gandhi

This photograph portrays a lot of feeling.  I find it shows the cats want for help.

 

    

This image was taken on a camping
trip- on the highway- in West Virginia.



     Animal overpopulation is a serious issue throughout the United States.  Animal overpopulation occurs when there are more stray or domestic animals than humans within a given population.  As a result of volunteering at the Wake County Animal Shelter, I have learned within the United States, the animal to human ratio is so unequal that humans resort to euthanasia to help combat the issue.   Also, during the past six weeks I have observed that dozens of cats and dogs have been euthanized throughout my volunteering.  Considering how many animals were put down over a month and a half at the WCAS I am able to predict that every year millions of animals, specifically cats and dogs, are euthanized at shelters throughout the United States.  Shelter euthanasia must be one of the leading causes of death for both species of animals.

This is one of my most beautifully edited and exposed photos.

     Unfortunately, I feel our society does not view animal overpopulation as a serious and tragic issue.  To my knowledge, there are no laws or regulations concerning spaying or neutering your pets. Thankfully laws against animal abuse exist; however, animal overpopulation is certainly a form of animal abuse (or murder) in the long run.  The only ethically successful method I have witnessed to combat animal overpopulation is spaying and neutering.  The other immoral, ignorant methods I have seen are physically forced barriers between animals in order to prevent “accidental” mating and euthanasia.  Setting up forced barriers is a pathetic attempt, in my opinion, and highly unsuccessful because human parents eventually give up and allow their pet(s) to mate or cause a significant amount of frustration for their animal.  Although euthanasia is highly successful in fighting animal overpopulation- it is terribly unethical. 

                Overall I feel our society and country can do much better.  Establishing ethical and animal-safe mandates for spaying and neutering would legally help control animal overpopulation.  Also, spreading awareness about this issue would significantly help teach millions of citizens in the United States and perhaps make them care about it. Relying on chance, lack of knowledge, and the cheapest method are not effective methods to reduce animal overpopulation.



I highly enjoy the spherical symmetry in this photo.



This photo of Maria and her baby proves how animals are desperate for food, safety, and shelter.

After photographing Streaker I planned a theme for my
 images-capture the most strikingly beautiful eyes.

Stephanie's eyes add to my collection.



I had reached a high peak for my
Photoshopping skills by the time I edited
this photo and I feel it resembles what I have learned.



This cat had to most uniquely colored eyes.



This is the cat I have adopted as a result from taking this course. 
She was previously known as Xena in the shelter.  I have re-named
her Stella Blue.  I pick her up on Monday.



 



Official Volunteer

This photo was taken of me on June 9th, 2011 by a WCAS employee.  I am cuddling a cat named Thomas in order to familiarize him with me and my scent.

I will absolutely continue to volunteer for the Wake County Animal Shelter after this course is over.  I have officially been a volunteer for the center for over a month now since I filled out all of the paper work at the beginning of the course.  I believe the shelter can never have enough volunteers and that it is important to give back to our community whenever possible. Both of these factors play a significant role in my decision to continue volunteering.  Also, I have highly enjoyed being part of the shelter and learning how it functions.  As a result of volunteering I am more aware and consider myself to be more ethical in terms of animal treatment and care.  The WCAS is an amazing establishment, I am proud to be affiliated with them.

Get To Know Your Pet!

    

     After thinking about my collaboration idea a little more I have decided a composed graphic poster would not benefit the shelter enough.  Step 1: Today, I concluded that a video clip of the individual animals would expose their personalities better than a written description and would aid any photographs attached to the critters biography.  My new proposed collaboration includes a 30 second video of the individual animals which will be located on the critters’ name and file on the Wake County Animal Shelter’s website.  In order for this to work, I would need to contact the shelter’s web designer or technology support team.  I have received great feedback from shelter visitors who have explained the enhanced photos our class has taken, enticed them to come in and meet the animal as a result of viewing their posted images online.  I believe the most realistic time to commence this plan would be right after our class ends.  The video clips would show the animals’ personal behavior, sounds, size and personality.  The video clips would be user friendly and extremely convenient to shelter visitors.  Step 2 and 3 would involve putting this idea into motion by contacting and setting up a meeting with the shelter’s website designer or go-to technology support team at the center- perhaps an individual who knows more about video editing than I.  However, my DLSR camera is absolutely capable of recording excellent video footage which would be of the same quality as my photographs. 

Both videos were taken from YouTube.  The video titled "Cheese" was copied on Sunday June 12th, 2011, which was recorded by the YouTube user 'lore1958' on December 24th 2006. Here is the URL link to this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M3SYBH_YU-k&feature=related.  The video titled "The Two Talking Cats" was copied on Sunday June 12th, 2011, which was recorded by the YouTube user "TheCatsPyjaaaamas" on June 28th, 2007.  Here is the URL link to this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3U0udLH974.

Got Photography?

     Photography impacts Wake County Animal Shelter by significantly improving the images of homeless creatures which helps them find families and organizes the shelter’s web photos which promotes the center simultaneously.  The most direct effect photography has on the shelter is it enhances the animals’ photos that are listed on WCAS’s government website.  Most of the animals’ images are extremely unattractive and gloomy.  This decreases the chance the animals have to get adopted.  Photography depletes this issue because potential adoptive parents view warm and beautiful photos of the shelter’s animals instead which is more representative of their demeanor.  Photography helps paint visual pictures of the animals, without it the shelter’s website would remain very “hospitalized”.  In addition to adoptive benefits, photography has also helped WCAS to organize their critters and their website in a more professional manor.  Listing the name and impoundment numbers with the images of the critters makes them more accessible to the shelter’s staff.  Also, the website is welcoming and vibrant- photography helps to maintain this virtual atmosphere. 

This is Tioga, Amanda's favorite kitten.  She had asked me
to photograph him because she felt it was necessary to show
his cuteness to the public.  Amanda explained to me everyone
thought he was a mean kitten because he was so scared
the first day he was in the shelter.  Amanda asked me
to capture his true self. I find this image helps the shelter
because Amanda believes our work reflects the shelters
role in society and had the confidence in me to portary this
purr-fectly cute kitten as he is.

     My artistic skills enhance these impacts because I am able to expose the sparkling life from every photo.  I have developed a skill set vast enough to apply my Photoshop techniques in different ways.  For example, I have had many successes in creating an image of what the public might assume to be a feral stray cat based on the shelter’s website into a welcoming, wonderful, house cat.  I have used my editing skills to properly show the feelings and personalities of the animals.  My skills also help maintain the professionalism of the shelter’s website.  As a government funded institution the shelter must up keep their professional environment.  Therefore, my abilities are applied to create photographs using unique complex methods and techniques.

      Art can be but is not limited to painting, drawing, sculpture, ceramics, architecture, computer/digital design/graphics.  I believe all forms of art can help the shelter, by engaging the surrounding community in compassionate projects which will teach them more about the shelter and its purpose at the same time.  However, I believe computer design or digital graphics may be most beneficial to the shelter in order to keep the shelter up to date with modern society.  Perhaps creating billboards, signs, or propaganda will help expose WCAS to our society.  I can imagine working with a graphic computer scientist. I am not sure who I would physically merge with now but I can consider digital design to create professional shelter posters.

Set Out Runnin But I Take My Time

     I have learned several technological, ethical, and societal skills from this course.  I apply all three of these types of skills to my life on a consistent basis.  My academic and professional life revolves around technology, I consider myself to be an ethically-sound individual, and I constantly strive to contribute to our community.  As a result I have found this course to be significantly valuable to me.

     Primarily, the technological skills I have acquired include learning how to use the Adobe Photoshop CS5 software program, a DLSR camera, and how to use/update an online blog.  So far, I have already used my Photoshop techniques to edit photos for my summer internship to help promote our product.  I recently purchased a DSLR camera for this course specifically and I find the purchase a long term investment in which I will be able to use the camera for many years to come.  The camera is extremely high-tech and has many modes and functions in which I now understand how and when to use them.  Lastly, learning how to blog has been an incredibly fun experience.  I was unaware how easy and exciting blogging can be because my blogs focus on three of my passions: photography, animals, and giving back to the community. 

     Secondly, I have become more ethically aware as a result from learning how Wake County Animal Shelter functions.  I learned that several animals are admitted to the shelter daily due to negligence, irresponsibility, lack of motivation to care for a pet, financial circumstances, location displacement, and natural reasons.  Most importantly, I have learned that massive surpluses of animals are 100% preventable and curable by spaying & neutering your pet. Also, after reading several characteristic cards about some animals at the shelter I now have a better understanding of what taking care and adopting a pet means.

     Lastly, my societal skills have improved simply because I have submitted several volunteering hours at WCAS where I have contributed to the lives of many wonderful animals.  I notice our work as a class certainly helps the animals at the shelter and WCAS directly.  We improve the futures for dozens of animals and support the hard work from all of WCAS’s employees.  Although our course ends in just a week or so I plan to remain a WCAS paparazzi volunteer. 

     Overall, I find the online format of the course to be helpful yet debilitating at times. The online format allows us as students to manage our work at a personal time, location, and pace.  I highly enjoy this sense of freedom, especially because art is all about individuality and mostly-non structured compared to regimented general education courses.  On the other hand, the online spectrum completely prevents valuable and essential insight.  Artist desire regular feedback on their work and the online aspect prevents necessary verbal communication. 



As a result from this class, I was able to create this photograph using
my 'Photoshopping' and camera techniques in order to help promote a Festival.

 

This is what the image looked liked before I learned all my newly acquired skills.



Enriched Learning



This is Salem.  In order to capture this
photo I had to use my active shutter
speed mode.  Therefore, the photo
was flat without any depth of field.  I used
both the forced depth of field technique and
the sharpening technique to bring this image
to its best quality of life. 



    For the week I found both the forced depth of field technique and the sharpen technique to be the most valuable skills.  This is because depth of field within a photograph is highly critical in order to portray a photo of high quality because it gives the picture greater character and focuses the image at a particular part within the photo.  In the same light, the sharpening technique is also vital to quality photographs because it makes the picture clearer for the viewer to see. 

    On the other hand, the forced depth of field technique allows the photographer to positively and physically manipulate their photo in a technical sense.  For example, I have previously taken a photo with the active shutter speed mode which typically depletes or avoids depth of field within a picture.  Therefore, this new technique allows me to use the active shutter speed in order to capture a great photo and then I can go back to the image later and photo-shop it to its highest quality.

    Next, the sharpening technique simply enhances photos

beautifully, miraculously, and subtly.  After

editing photos, the sharpening technique allows me to

bring my pictures to life at the discretion to

the viewer.  Hence why this skill is a beautiful tool that is

necessary to make specific photos sparkle and shine.

The Other End of the Spectrum

     I normally photograph cats and kittens.  Over the last month or so I have become exceptionally accustomed to photographing cats because I have learned strategic techniques to capture catch lights, facial expressions, up close photo ranges, full body images, enhancing camera angles, and feline behavior.  However, this week I challenged myself to photograph at least one dog and one small critter, in this case, a guinea pig.  While attempting to capture these different animals I learned very quickly that photographing these animals was going to be very challenging. 
   

This is Dakota. She is a 2 year-old Siberian Husky.

   I initiated my photo adventure in the dog room.  Immediately, I thought to myself how I did not know any of the dogs within the shelter in terms or their personalities, kennel locations, and behaviors.  As an animal lover I know basic doggie behavior and can recognize various feelings by analyzing their ears, faces, and tails.  Unfortunately, I am not used to doggie voices, tones, and sounds. As a result, I remained hesitant to enter most of the dog kennels and only entered the cages with younger/smaller dogs or puppies.  My first challenge was getting the dogs to stay still and/or to stop jumping.  I was concerned I was not strong enough to protect myself or my camera if the dogs’ power dominated my own.   Next I learned the lighting within the dog room was darker and more artificial than the cat room.  Lastly, I felt as though being inside the dog kennel restricted my abilities to maneuver around in order to use great camera angles for my photos. 


Curious, the 4 month old guinea pig is always oh so curious.



     Next, I entered the small critter room where a couple of plump rats and cute guinea pigs cohabitated.  Inconveniently, I am deathly afraid of rats whether domestic or wild and therefore I stayed away from the rat cage. Instead I focused my attention on the guinea pigs neighboring the rats.  My first challenge was tackling the cage in order to open space to take a good photo without startling the critters.  Secondly, guinea pigs move and they move fast.  Thirdly, small critters also do not respond to calls or human sounds of nurturing like cats/dogs do, so this made it difficult to intrigue to small animals to look at the camera while capturing their catch lights. 

   

    Overall, I became acquainted with a female Husky named Dakota and a female guinea pig named Curious.  I learned photographing dogs would be most beneficial with a partner and outdoors in order to ensure a quality photo.  Also, carrying or bribing to doggies with a treat would help direct their attention toward my camera instead of my body movements.  For the smaller critters having an open space or cage would help increase my abilities to capture a good photo and having a partner/visitor/shelter volunteer would help control the guinea pigs’ movement. 



Home Sweet Home



    Since it is kitten time at the WCAS, the adoption rate for older or adult cats has declined.  Fortunately, 2 cats, one older kitten and one baby kitten have all found homes within the last  two weeks.  This is very good news considering the shelter experienced a severe Pan Leuk epidemic over the last couple of weeks which wiped out a solid majority of healthy kittens and cats.  The epidemic also prevented dozens of families from adopting.  The lucky winners this week are the following: Diana who has been in the shelter since May 9^th, 2011; Chicago who has been a friendly feline inhabitant since April 26^th, 2011; Lucy- one of the older kittens has been located at the shelter since May 24^th, 2011 and little baby Leonardo who has also only been at the shelter since May 24^th, 2011.  They have all been photographed and are shown in chronological order.  One important fact I must note is that WCAS makes it a priority to release their critters to suitable, loving families.  Please admire.





This is Diana, she is a 2 year-old short hair mix.





This is WCAS's most windy kitty Chicago. She is an 8 month old explorer!





Lucy! I'm Home!







Oh Leonardo! He is an adorable 3 month old heart breaker.



Week 3 Photos

Hi everyone! My week 3 photos are ready to be viewed! Please follow the link and enjoy.  Week 3 starts with Margaret! Happy Memorial Day to all!

https://picasaweb.google.com/108564237120452087050/JPGs#

=)

Responsible Pet Ownership

This is James Lassinger from Raleigh, North Carolina
with Dakati, a 100 pound Red Huskey in Winchester, VA on May 26, 2011

Responsible pet ownership is an important topic to discuss or to contemplate when considering adopting a pet.  From my point of view, I believe responsible pet ownership entails have sufficient, safe, and monitored housing, care, and nurturing.  The animal should be regularly bathed and groomed, fed nutritious food, visit the vet regularly, be given an immense amount of love, and be provided with a safe and reliable home. 

When I spoke with Dawn a WCAS employee from Raleigh about what she believed responsible pet ownership includes she responded, “You must have enough time, space, and finances to care for a pet.”  She also explained that animals should remain active in order to stay healthy, which most parents neglect to focus on for their pets.  Dawn also noted that she sees irresponsible families come in and adopt a pet from the shelter that turn out not being able to care for the animal and return them too often. 

Lastly, I spoke with John from Roxboro, a shelter visitor about responsible pet ownership and he believes animals should be taken to the vet to get their shots and vaccinations, be played with several times day, fed regularly, and not be neglected at any time. 

Voluntarily Surrendered Animals

I struggle the most, emotionally, when I come across owner surrender sheets for the cats.  This is because those cats have lived their entire lives or the majority of their lives under a domestic roof. For the most part, these cats are surrendered due to medical or circumstantial displacement.  For example, 4 year old Marcy was surrendered because a family member was allergic to her. 

Marcy is a little over 4 years old and has been in the shelter since April 29^th, 2011.




Moxy is an 11 pound Domestic Short Hair, she has been in the shelter since May 5^th 2011.  Her previous parents surrendered her because they had too many pets to take care and did not have the finances to support her.



Waffles was also surrendered. He is a 10 year old Domestic Long Hair cat who is most comfortable in your lap.  Waffles loves to be loved and deserves every bit of it.  He also highly enjoys kitty toys.   He was surrendered because his owners were moving and stated they could not take him with them. 

Animal Turn Over

     Unfortunately, the last four or five days have been the hardest to tolerate at the shelter.  This is because it is currently kitten season and small kittens carry the most germs/ bacteria and have severely spread the epidemic called Pan Leuk throughout the cat rooms within the last week. This disease kills adult cats within a few days to a week and kills kitten within a day or two.  For the last five days I have observed that approximately sixteen cats, whom I’ve gotten to know very well, are no longer in their cages or are not part of our world anymore.

     Throughout my volunteering I have been able to maintain my emotions and be immune to the reality around me until I personally noticed a shelter employee physically remove four cats I had recently finished photographing.  After this occurrence I instantly became extremely aware of the amount of cats that were missing. 



     Overall, there were surprisingly about four to six new cats in each room.  I was previously informed that the shelter’s turn-over rate was 40% but I didn’t completely understand what that meant until I witnessed the process with my own eyes.  I assumed the public would adopt some of the cats instantly because most have wonderful personalities.  However, unless you visit the shelter daily, one would not learn their personalities unless they spent more than a few hours with each cat. 

This is Stephanie. She is an 8 year old Calico.  Her impoundment number is 53041.  She is a die-hard smush and a playful ball of fun.  She has most likely not been adopted because she is considered “old” to potential adoptive parents who may also think adopting her would not be worth it. 

Re-do! Re-do!

Last week I felt as though I took as many photos as I physically could in order to help the most cats in need.  However, at the same time I struggled to effectively photo-shop several pictures.  This is where I struggled with academic values and what I thought was ethically correct.  As a result I included one photo within my “21” collection in order to just get the picture of the cat out there.  In the end my decision did not necessarily help me academically. 

I took this photo of Daisy on May 14th, 2011.

Although the photo was not my best work, I do feel there are some strengths to it.  In my opinion, I feel the catch lights, camera angle, and the expression of the subject complement the photo nicely.  The catch lights in both eyes help supply life and a soul to the cat.  Catch lights grab the attention to peoples’ hearts and therefore may help the animal to get adopted more easily.  The angle of the camera captured the cat’s entire body from the tip of its longest whisker to the end of its tail.  Also, the angle of the camera helped portray the size and physique of the cat.  Lastly, the cat’s facial expression suits the critter perfectly.  It seems discontent, which it’s not, but curious and interested at the same time. 

On the other hand the photo has several areas of improvement.  These issues include exposure, depth of field, focus, and distractions.  The lack of exposure makes the photo appear dull ad grey and therefore unattractive.  Since I did not capture any shallow depth of field the photo looks flat and stagnate.   As you scan the cat’s face you may notice that it is also slightly out of focus within the eyes and head.   In the end, the surrounding objects or distractions bordering the cage removes the viewer’s attention away from the cat’s face, which negatively affects the critters potential for adoption. 

Week 1-2 Shelter Photos

Here is the link to view my edited photos from WCAS within the last two weeks. Please enjoy!

https://picasaweb.google.com/108564237120452087050/JPGs#

Where Does WCAS Find its Roomies?

     After visiting WCAS for a couple of weeks now I have had the opportunity to speak with several staff members, volunteer workers, on-site doctors, and public visitors.  Overall, I now understand that the animals within the shelter are either domestic animals that are given up due to personal/medical and legal needs OR they are called in as strays from by the public community.  I find it most difficult to read an information card that states the animal had been domestic its entire life; for some animals they were domestic anywhere from 1 year to 9 years of age.  I am sure it is exceptionally difficult for, in this case, house cats to be confined to a cage with minimal attention or motherly cuddling.  For the stray cats, as a volunteer it is obvious that being cooped up in a 2X2.5X2 foot cage drives them mad and eager to get out in order to explore.  Overall, if the animal was a stray or domestic, all of them are in dire need for attention and loving homes. 


I am most proud of this photo from this week because I was able to completely capture the life and personality of Xena, a Siamese blend.  She is intelligent, talkative, flirtatious, loving, and crazily playful.  In terms of photography, this photo has a shallow depth of field, wonderful catch lights, a good camera angle, and great exposure for inside a cubby.  Xena also reminds me of my house cat that I no longer live with.



My DSLR is Smarter than a 16th Grader

     Metadata is the information about all my photographs.  This data ranges from basic information such as the time the photo was taken to complex information for example, what type of camera was used or shutter speed.  Metadata also states legal rights and records image adjustments. Metadata most certainly can be used to help me in my class by intricately organizing my cherished photographs.  Organization is necessary for legal matters and effective/efficient photo work.  Metadata may also categorize my information so well that its information is extremely easy to access and search for. For me the most important metadata pieces are usage rights and the descriptions of my photo’s characteristics.  Academically, I find these parts to be most valuable for students. 
   For the photograph below I was forced to walk another path with my DSLR camera that I had never gone down before.  Callie would literally not stop pacing in circles until I touched her or fed her a treat.  This made it exceptionally difficult to capture her beautiful big eyes, full body, and amazing fur pattern.  Therefore, I decided to switch my aperture dial to the "action" setting.  As a result, I was able to capture Callie at 180 degrees of her walking circle.  Fortunately, switching my camera settings allowed me to encompass Callie's eyes, pattern, and her sense of girth.  I felt it was necessary to portray Callie's body size because I feel future parents would be able to realize that Callie was actually a domestically trained house cat just a couple of months ago.  In contrast, the action setting has a high shutter speed thus losing a shallow depth of field. 



This is Callie, she is an energetic Tabby cat.  Her sister Chelsea (who is just as beautiful and nice) is in the holding cage adjacent to Callies. 



Eye of the Tiger

    I have been visiting the WCAS for about two weeks now.  I have personally gotten to know the personalities of dozens of cats/kittens and I am able to recognize several by their voice and tone.   Recently, I started focusing on cats that have been in the shelter the longest.  Some of these cats include Tortellini, Pitch and Tiger.  All three have been inside the shelter for longer than 50 days.  For today’s blog I am going to focus on Tiger.  He is a 3 year old grey & white Tabby cat originally from Holly Springs.  He entered the WCAS on April 2^nd, 2011 and has been available for adoption since April 6^th, 2011.  As part of my “Who Let the Dogs Out?!” course the main priority is to help critters at local animal shelters get adopted by capturing irresistible pictures for shelter staff members to upload on shelter websites.  Please learn more about the importance of my photo course by reading the captions to the pictures posted to this blog.



Photographed by a WCAS Employee.                  http://services.wakegov.com/adoptiongallery/. May 22, 2011.

This is a horrifically gloomy picture of Tiger. He appears feral and unadoptable due to his angry expression.  The photo is inundated with distractions and horrible lighting.  The lack of catch lights in Tiger’s eyes makes him come across as disposable.  The shallow depth of field brings your attention to the rim of the cage and Tigers squashed ear and demonic face. The border focus on the red/emergency colored cage adds an immediate negative connotation of denial. 



This is the real Tiger.  My Photoshop techniques have helped emphasize Tiger’s wonderful body language, facial expression, and fur coloration.  My photograph significantly improves Tigers potential for adoption for the following reasons: 1. The immense catch lights bring Tiger to life and portray his soul in the photo.  2.  Tigers facial/body expressions show how relaxed and welcoming he is.  His open chest certainly signifies that he is a proud cat desperate to share his loyalty.  Lastly and most obviously, the scene in which I photographed Tiger helps potential adoptive families sense Tiger’s cleanliness, calmness, and security. 

Photographic Inspiration



Photographed by WCAS Volunteer. http://services.wakegov.com/adoptiongallery/. May 22, 2011.

     I find photos of cats/kittens capture my attention the most perhaps because I am now aware that cats are not adopted as frequently and consistently as dogs.   While searching through the Wake County Animal Shelter’s photos I came upon a striking photo of a male Calico whom I know very well- Tonks.   Tonks’ photo is extremely focused making the image exceptionally clear and detailed.  The lack of a bright flash emphasizes the reflective surface of Tonks facial fur and not on the shiny rug he is laying on- the image’s shallow depth of field also contributes to this effect.  Due to the photo’s sharp focus, the catch lights in Tonks eyes are vivid and dramatic. His eyes are brightly sparkling and his ears are softly perched and noticeable. 

     Moreover, Tonk’s intense stare into the camera’s lens makes me feel that he has chosen me as his adoptive parent. However, I feel Tonks appears too serious in this photo considering he has a quirky personality.  Additionally, the angle of the camera is parallel to the floor but directly in front of Tonks, which forms a sense of physical closeness and warmth.   Overall, I feel it is necessary to aid more sheltered cats by using these techniques of methods.  Therefore, I have created my own helpful work below. 



Here is my personal photo of Tonks.  I find this image captures his spontaneous behavior: massaging of the front right paw, extended neck showing curiosity in the actual camera, twisted ears exposing his constant attention and an up close shot proving he does not mind me being in his personal space.



This is Fawn. Within her image I was able to capture bright catch lights in her eyes, a shallow depth of field focusing on her illuminated face, ears, nose, and whiskers.  The angle of the camera allows the viewer to feel as though Fawn is interested in what is in front of her and a slight vignette brings the viewer’s attention towards the center of the photo- Fawn.



Adoption Temptation

While visiting the Wake County Animal Shelter today I noticed adopting a pet is not as costly as I had imagined. I spoke with a fellow shelter employee named Dawn who tends to all kennel responsibilities.  She explained, it costs 95$ to adopt a dog and 45$ to adopt a cat at WCAS.  These prices include FIV testing for cats only, de-worming, all vaccines/shots, and neutering.  The Raleigh native also stated that these prices change depending on the shelter’s needs.  For example, when she started volunteering at the shelter, a few months ago, adopting a dog cost $120 and adopting a cat cost $100. 

As always, price variances trace back to supply and demand.  For example, Dawn said the prices were lowered in order to entice individuals and families to adopt more pets at affordable costs.  Thus, when adoption costs are too high people tend to adopt less which negatively affects the shelter and its employees.  On the other hand, when adoption costs are too low, Dawn explained families who cannot afford a pet, adopt one because it’s cheap to do so, which negatively effects the animal and the ethicalness of the shelter. 

In the same light, Dawn clarified how people usually adopt dogs rather than cats.  Therefore, the higher adoption fee for dogs makes up the difference for the low adoption fees for cats.  They are not equal because the shelter is attempting to increase the demand for cats since the demand for dogs is constant.

After our cost conversation, I asked Dawn to express her opinion on giving homeless critters away for free.  She said giving animals away for free would hurt the productivity of the shelter and animals would end up the hands of the wrong kind of people.  Also, the shelter would lose money since they supply medical treatment to the animals.  However, free pets would significantly reduce the shelter’s euthanasia rate.

Later on, I scouted out a friendly shelter visitor named Nikki.  I asked Nikki to share her point of view on the same topic.  The Wake Forester claimed the animals should be free because of their intense need for love and homes.  Nikki also stated giving the homeless animals away for free would probably negate the shelter’s function because people would take in stray animals off the street without restriction. 



This is an image of Nikki, a local visitor, cuddling with Home Body the itty bitty kitten.