A Conversation with Pop ARF Artist Nathan Janes, Part II

Nathan Janes’s renderings of his dogs Button, left, and Zipper, right In Part I, I introduced you to Pop ARF creator Nathan Janes. He discussed the business of Pop ARF, but in this section he gets a little more personal…in respect to how his work benefits others. Courtney Mroch: What breeds are your dogs, Button and Zipper? How old are they? Nathan Janes: I have two dogs Button a terrier mix and Zipper a beagle mix, which are both females. Lets start with Button. When it comes to spoiled dogs, Button takes the cake. She loves being held, hugged, and … Continue reading

A Conversation with Pop ARF Artist Nathan Janes, Part I

“One Nation Under Dog,” an original by Nathan Janes I was drawn (no pun intended) to my next interview subject because he feels the same way I do –heck, that most of us animal lovers do—about mistreated and abused animals. Where I react to it with words, he reacts with marvelous creations. That’s why it’s my pleasure to introduce to you Nathan Janes, the creator of Pop ARF. I first became aware of his work right around the time all the Michael Vick stuff started. I decided to send him an email and see if he’d be willing to be … Continue reading

Pet Portraits by Michael: Chatting About Pet Photography

In Meet the Josephs I introduced you to some very dear friends of our entire family: Michael, Karen, and Tucker Joseph. (I should have used the above picture for that piece, but I didn’t have it yet. Oh well. Now you can see what the Josephs, not just Tucker, look like!) I thought it’d be fun to interview them about their business, and thankfully their schedule wasn’t as swamped as it usually is so they had a little time to humor me… Courtney Mroch: Say someone’s interested in getting a Pet Portrait by Michael. Describe how a shoot goes, what … Continue reading

Professional Pet Portraits: Worth It?

In 1996, I had taken our dog at the time, Budly, to Petsmart for one of his routine grooming sessions. It just so happened that on the day I took him they had a photographer there. So I had Budly’s picture taken, just for fun. Since they turned out great, I ordered an 8×10, a couple 5x7s, and four wallets. When Wayne and I moved to Jacksonville, Florida, in 1999, we lived in an apartment complex. It was more like living in a resort, though, because there were monthly (if not weekly) resident activities. For instance, every afternoon they served … Continue reading