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a blog about cats,
       
           photography & cat photography

8/22/2018 0 Comments

The cat portrait re-shoot

This week at the shelter I set about re-photographing some cats who have been waiting a while to be noticed. Sometimes I photograph them upon first arrival at Raystede, when they tend to be frightened and unsure, so their photos don't show their true personalities. Armed with a list, I revisited a few lovebunnies this week for some new and improved portraits.

Pixie has been waiting for a new home for a few months now, which surprises me every week when I go in and find that she's still there. This purrpurr is loving and sweet and is a stunning beauty, which only sort of shows in her original picture:
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And just look at the sultry stare she gave me this time:
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Also, she looks great in pink
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I got some help from Jane to provide a lap and some loving strokes for Nellie, who needed a little gentle TLC to bring out her softer side.
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Beautiful Fluffy often suffers from Resting Bitch Face (which is what I got in our first photo session) and so I worked with her to find her 1940s Hollywood starlet look.

Here's the before shot:
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And here's her new, improved and more optimistic look:
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Darling little Pye had a very traumatic kittenhood and because of that she has some trust issues. So when I walk in with my giant camera and flashing light, it's easy to understand why she has trouble looking relaxed for her portrait.

Here's the original shot, taken when she first came in to the shelter and was hiding out in her covered bed:
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And here's our second try. She managed to look pretty relaxed, all while giving me a deep warning growl. 
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Sweet Mary (who is Fluffy's daughter) suggested we do a shot of her while she attacked a tiger's tail, which I think was an inspired idea and really shows her personality.

​Here's her original photo:

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And the re-shoot with creative direction by Mary:
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And finally, a bonus shot of Jane feeding a teensy kitten with a syringe. This baby is the smallest of the litter and needs a bit more nutrition so she can keep up with her siblings.
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All of these gorgeous cats and more can be found at Raystede.org
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8/18/2018 0 Comments

Catnip Closeups

This is Betty. 
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This is Betty on catnip.
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Any questions?
Find Betty and many others at Raystede.org
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8/10/2018 0 Comments

Lost and Found

Max came to Raystede back in January after his human decided to move away and leave Max behind. He was a big handsome boy, full of loving cuddles and somehow without even one tooth in his mouth.
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It didn't take long before he found some new humans to love him and he went off to what was supposed to be his forever home.

But something wasn't right and then he became spooked by some houseguests, so he ran away and went missing for two months. No one but Max knows what happened, but he was finally found -- skinny, missing some fur and a bit rough around the edges.
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It's anyone's guess how he found food considering he has no teeth!
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His adventures didn't change his loving nature, though, and he's just as purry as he was before. He's on the mend and looking better each time I see him at the shelter.
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Here's hoping Max finds happiness in a new loving home soon.
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8/9/2018 0 Comments

Chatting with Tigger

Meet Tigger. He's a big ol' ginger kitty who loves to talk. Getting a picture of him with his mouth closed is actually hard to do because he has so much to say.
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Really? And then what happened?
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Oh! I can't believe she said that to you.
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Oh, interesting. Could you elaborate on that?
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A knock knock joke? OK. Who's there?
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​Ha ha ha, that's a good joke
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Hey Tigger, can I tell you one of my jokes?
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OK, maybe not.
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5/30/2017 0 Comments

Oldies but Cuties

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Gorgeous Mo found herself homeless at 17 years old.

Raystede shelter sees its fair share of senior cats, which is always such a heartbreak - first because no kitty wants to become homeless after a lifetime spent in the loving embraces of their family. And second because the older cats are often the hardest to find new homes for, so they can spend a lot of their Golden Days waiting in the shelter while the younger ones get chosen first.
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O'Neil was in the shelter for a long time before a home was found.
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Sometimes it's not that homes can't be found, but that a suitable home needs to be found. Older kitties sleep a lot and generally need a quiet home with a patient and loving human who doesn't mind a few eccentricities and who can offer a warm lap. Special accommodations might need to be arranged, like a ramp or easy steps up to the bed and gentle access to the outdoors or litter box.
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Ragamuffin preferred the shelter of a covered bed.

​My own kitty has started to show signs of her advancing age (and who doesn't, but with cats it's harder to see). Now when she jumps up to the bed, she uses her claws and arm strength to pull herself up, and climbing the stairs requires the same upper-body effort, whereas before she did it effortlessly, with her back legs doing most of the work. It's painful to see her struggle and also hard to know how much pain she's experiencing because cats can hide their discomfort so well.
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Hetty had a few things to say
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Beautiful TC had a hard life and lost an eye after being kicked in the head, but that didn't stop him from being a very loving purrpurr.

You might wonder why someone would send their faithful senior kitty to a shelter. Unfortunately it's often because their human has died and the family left behind doesn't want to take care of the cat. A lot of times people surrender their cats to the shelter because they are moving and aren't allowed or able to bring their animal with them. Divorce is another big reason as well as the sudden appearance of a newborn baby in a household, which can upset some furbabies who are used to being the only child.

It's hard to see these beloved cats spend week after week in the shelter, so when one finds a new loving home there is often much rejoicing and some tears of happiness (and secretly some sadness to see them go).

Recently we had 17-year-old Mo in the shelter for quite a while. Her human had died, poor sweetie, and after a month or more of her sleeping her days away in the shelter,  Raystede made a big push on social media to find someone who wouldn't mind living with such an old (but lovable) lady. A home was finally found and all of the cattery staff and volunteers have been so excited and relieved for her. Because while Raystede is a loving, comfortable shelter, nothing beats a home with a family who can love and adore a kitty until her last day on Earth.
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Lovable Bernie
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3/18/2017 0 Comments

Noses I Have Known

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It's hard to decide what the very most cutest bit of a cat is. Would it be their fuzzy paws? Their dreamy eyes? Their tempting tummies?  I think we can all agree that there's one part of a cat's body that isn't very cute, especially when it winks at you just inches from your trying-to-sleep face. (Yes, I mean the ass-terisk that punctuates your cat's back side.)

That aside, I'd like to suggest that it might just be the cat's nose. There's something about their dainty felt-tip sniffers that melt me.

Case in point:
Nose power
​Could you ever actually say no to Blackjack with that nose of his? I think not.
Cute nose = YES
What about Chloe? If she asked you for a solid gold and catnip-encrusted scratching post, how hard would it be to say no? Very.
There are many cat nose varieties to admire, including the Tasteful Dot:
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And of course the Smudge:
The beguiling Perfectly Pink nose is particularly yummy:
And a few Honourable Mentions:
And finally one of the most beautiful cat noses I know, belonging to Lyra the fuzzy love muffin who sleeps at the end of our bed, who purrs love and comfort into my heart when I'm down and who absolutely forbids me to bring home any other cats:
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Do you have a cat with a lovely nose? Why not hire me to visit and shoot some professional portraits of your fuzzlovie and maybe even you too. See my Glamour Puss page for more information.
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3/11/2017 0 Comments

The art of blinking - or how to make cats think you're cool

You hear a lot about horse whisperers or dog whisperers and I'm tempted to make a claim for being a cat whisperer, but the truth is it's less about whispering and more about the slow blink that helps me to make friends with felines.

You may already know this, but if not, I'm going to let you in on the secret to getting an unknown cat to trust you. Before you go barreling up to a cute cat, ready to kiss and pet their soft fur, stop for a minute, look in their eyes and do a long, slow blink. If the cat is in a good mood, you will probably find that you get a long slow blink back. This is the cat handshake. The Hi-how-are-you, as we humans know it.


Still waiting for the blink
Perhaps in another blog post I will go into some detail about the delicate politics of where and when you can or cannot touch a cat (for instance cheeks and head: usually good. Just behind the tail: it depends. Belly and feet: at your own risk. And so on).

Until then, here's where I get to pitch my wares: If you are a human who is owned by a cat (because we all know this is truly how it works) and would like a professional portrait of your feline master in his home, you can hire me to come over, do my cat blinking magic and get some nice shots of 'your' cat just being his adorable, feline self. More info on my Glamour Puss page, or contact me.
The cat stare
After the first blink, wait a second and try it again, this time with a few quiet gurgling cat sounds plus a question mark at the end. This is nearly impossible to transliterate, but I'll give it a go: G-g-g-g-g-uh?

Try it with me now. Long slow blink. Look at cat to check for a reply. Wait a sec. Long slow blink again and G-g-g-g-g-uh?

If you still don't get a return blink, expect a chilly reception to your petting/fawning. If you also see an impatient tail thwacking, your hand might get a few new scratches or punctures if you're not careful. Proceed with caution, and don't say I didn't warn you.

If, however, your greeting was successful, you might find kitty will come over to meet you or maybe even do a few cute Come-pet-me moves like rolling over to expose her soft, irresistible belly (WARNING: this is a trap), or by making a few kitty gurgling noises of her own.


Ready for love
I'm too sexy for this shelter
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    Shooting Cats

    By Cammie Toloui
    I am unapologetically in love with cats. I'm also the official volunteer cat photographer at Raystede Centre for Animal Welfare in East Sussex, England and a professional photographer specialising in Glamour Puss cat portraits, quirky weddings, portraits, events and party photo booths.

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