Me and my Dogs and the camera . Living a low stress life.

In December 2006 i had enough of the town and partying and everything that goes with it, so i decided to rent a house out in the quiet with no neighbours. It was just me, my dogs and the birds and the bees. The house was situated close to the Murray river so i was fortunate enough to have a beautiful quiet location and a place i could take the dogs for a swim everyday. The heat is incredible in Australia and being from New Zealand it was something i could never really get used to.

If you have dogs then you can understand the emotional bond that happens. People compare them to family and they are but i think they have their own category which i call "Soul Saviours'. You can be in your darkest moments and they can show enough light to keep you grounded.

The new surroundings i moved to released the inner camera Kraken and i was compelled to start taking photos of my German Shepherds. I had an old pre school van i had purchased for vineyard work and converted it into the "Dog's van. I had purchased a Canon 400D from Hong Kong the previous year, so i was ready to get snap happy. Taking them everyday to the river became a ritual and the challenge to get that 1 amazing shot became an addiction. I never had any photography experience and still to this day not a lot more. . I had a mental visualization of what i wanted to capture so i persisted like a man possessed .

I remember the day i took my first half decent shot, and i remember the overwhelming feeling of accomplishment. I now believe if you have a creator spirit then it doesn't matter what you create it will always give you the same great emotional feeling that is only achieved from creating.

I have literally hundreds of photos i took over a 3 year spread, and what looks good to me may not to you. Like i said i am no professional and none of these photos are edited in photoshop at all. So i guess there is a lot more i can do with them, but there is something about true raw that i like. Anyway here are a few i took while in hermit mode status with my dogs Nero, Toosh, Tisha and Bree.

Waiting everyday the same time to go to the river

they would run back and forth on the river bank for hours

looks aggressive but really just having fun

This was just a funny expression it made me laugh my ass off at the time.

Bree was born an unusual color that looked amazing in the right light.

when i took this is reminded me of a wolf pup in the wild

Tisha and Bree in a pretty setting.

Tossh was actually 8 years old in this shot but cardio for days,lol

I really like this shot it gives off a real "in the wild feeling.

Bree was always in tune with what was going on more so than the others.

This was my backyard.

This sorta sums up my lifestyle back then. Simple Quiet and no stress.

While i was making this post i had memories flowing in like a tsunami . Man was almost crying actually. Nero and Toosh are no longer here but Tisha and Bree live an amazing life back in Australia on a huge vineyard with a great family.

If you have never owned a German Shepherd but you are considering it, i can tell you they will be with you until their last breath.