Oh goodness – is there anything better than getting to make cute pup portraits? Methinks probably not, especially when the doggos are as adorable and sweet as Mighty and Melvin are, who are darling little Cavachons. These two rocked their Hamilton Montana dog portraits and had their mom, Shelly, and I in stitches laughing at their hilarious antics.

Mighty (also known as Mr. Mighty or The Prince) and Melvin (also known as Pickles, Sweet Pickles or Pickle Lips) had a great time traipsing about in the tall, golden grasses, and racing through leaves. They also showed me just how very much they love chicken treats. (Their love for chicken is real, folks.) When chicken treats were in the picture it was “every man for himself” trying to reach that delectable deliciousness. (Mighty may have used Melvin as a furry step stool to boost his reach – haha! Scroll on down to see photographic evidence of this – Melvin’s face just makes me split a gut laughing every time I see that photo.)

The even more wonderful thing about this session was that it was a gift to Shelly and her husband, Bob! Talk about a nice present! I may be a little biased here, but getting to create lasting memories is a gift that truly keeps on giving.

And I just love that we got to capture Mighty and Melvin being their wonderful little selves. Getting to watch them run through the tall grass, fluffy ears a-flopping, and bearded little smiles wide and happy truly fills one’s heart to the brim!

Shelly, Mighty, and Melvin – thank you so much for an absolutely delightful session! I loved getting to meet all three of you and create these images for you and Bob! What an absolute blast! Thank you again!

On the Docket:

Editorial images! Stay tuned!

Cheers,

-Kristine

I knew that my friends Jennie and Mike had been thinking about a winter Missoula Courthouse wedding, but hadn’t yet determined when they were going to say their “I do’s.” Suffice it to say, I was so tickled when Jennie asked if I’d consider accompanying them and taking a few photos of their nuptials. Count me IN!

We all headed down to the courthouse together, which happened to be a gorgeous, bluebird winter day, and had a good time hanging out, cracking jokes, sharing a few courthouse candy machine M&Ms (which we had thought were going to be Skittles), talking about dogs, skiing, and the massive amount of snow Missoula had just gotten. (We all kind of love the snow – I originally met Jennie when we were in the same For Women Only class at Snowbowl.)

Soon, it was time for Jennie and Mike to get hitched. They stood together and held hands in the rotunda of the courthouse, laughed, grinned and made their promises of forever to one another, signed their license, and tah dah! They were married – just like that!

We had fun making some images inside the courthouse, and because it was too pretty outside, we zipped on out to capture some shots out there as well. The snow beckoned, and, to celebrate their newly-married status, Jennie and Mike leapt into the snow backwards to make some newlywed snow angels. Perfection!

But we couldn’t just end things there – Jennie and Mike’s dog, Sophie, had been patiently waiting in their truck for us, so we went to say hi to her, let her smell Jennie’s bouquet, and get some good nose-time in with my camera.

Jennie and Mike! Thanks so much for asking me to make these images for you – it was so fun to be able to capture these moments and memories for you, and I can’t wait for your big celebration this summer! Cheers to you two! :)

On the Docket:

Portraits, and editorial work – stay posted!

Cheers,

-Kristine

I’m always so tickled when I get to work with past couples of mine – and that was absolutely the case for Sarah and Matt’s Missoula autumn anniversary photos with their sweet pup, Oliver. (We called it an “anniversary session” even though it was technically a few months after their first anniversary, which was in August.)

I hadn’t met their dog, Oliver, before as he’s the newest addition to their family since they’ve moved to Montana, so it was such a treat to get to document these three together just enjoying the beauty of a chilly October day in Montana.

Oliver was pretty excited to survey his new playground, and did his best “dolphin” impersonation as he leapt through the swaying grasses, popping his head up every now and then to get a visual on us. We had such a great time chatting and cracking up at Oliver’s antics, and I’ve got to give a shout out to Sarah and Matt for braving the cold and wandering through the hills for their images.

We somehow also managed to avoid most of the raindrops the day was throwing at us, and even lucked out with some pretty spectacular big sky clouds to act as a wow factor in our backdrop, which always gets me pretty excited.

Sarah, Matt and Oliver! Thank you again for such a happy, fun session – I just love getting to work with you guys, and have absolutely enjoyed the opportunity to document so many wonderful moments in your lives! Here’s to loving where we live, and appreciating it and protecting it always!

On the Docket:

Weddings and portraits! Don’t miss ’em!

Cheers,

-Kristine

First, I just love, love, love when folks contact me wanting to do family photos with their four-legged friends, and secondly, I love it even more when it gets to take place in the winter! So it was no surprise that Margaret, Scott and their adorable dog, Danforth Quayle’s, Missoula pet and family photos would be so enjoyable.

Margaret and Scott have been wanting to make some portraits for a while now, and decided this was the year to do it – and also give it as a gift to their parents! (Always a great idea!) Luckily we were able to fit a session in for them while it was 1). actually snowy (sometimes Missoula doesn’t see that much snow in the city). 2). while it was actually not totally freezing and deep-freezing us with sub-zero temps (thank goodness!). AND 3). while Scott was still in town (he’s a professor of philosophy at a liberal arts university in India – yep, India!).

It was so fun to get to chat with these two as we ventured around making images in the snow. I asked to know a little bit more about how their sweet dog, Dan (Danforth Quayle), got his name. Margaret told me that all their dogs have been named presidents’ names, which I think is just about the most perfect thing ever. (They’ve also had chickens named after first ladies!)

Thank you again, Margaret, Scott and Dan for such a delightful afternoon! And thanks so much for braving the cold and tromping through feet of snow to get the photo – worth it, I’d say! It was such a treat to meet you all and I’m so excited that you’ve now got some fun photos of your lovely family!

On the docket: weddings and portraits! Stay tuned!

Cheers,

-Kristine

When people ask me to photograph them with their pets, I admittedly always get a little excited (ok, a LOT excited), because pets and their people are seriously the Best. Thing. Ever. And when I’m told that the session will include a puppy and an older dog too…well then. It’s no surprise that my heart completely melted during Kristy’s Victor Montana pet and family pictures.

I met up with Kristy, Dug, her 10-year-old golden retriever, and Sven, her 12-week-old golden retriever puppy at Kristy’s friend’s ranch in Victor. It seriously couldn’t have been a more idyllic setting – the ranch land is rugged and beautiful, and full of areas perfect for two curious dogs. Plus, that little dusting of snow on the mountaintops is always a nice bonus. We had a great time wandering the land and chatting, and as it turns out, Kristy also has Wisconsin connections, which is always fun to discover. (woot woot!)

A small creek runs through the ranch, and Dug took the initiative to jump in and go snorkeling for a variety of rocks that passed his strict rockhound test. Kristy and I couldn’t help but laugh ourselves silly at Sven’s antics, doing his best to imitate his big brother, Dug. As only a puppy can do, he barked and jumped alongside the creek, waggly puppy tail waving in the air, wanting to jump in, but being a little cautious as it was pretty deep for his currently short stature (which he had discovered earlier).

Kristy – what a pleasure it was to be able to make these images of you and your happy furry family! It was so fun to document this time in your life, and so cool to see how much your pups love you and how much you love them too. They’re lucky lads for sure!

On the docket: portraits and more portraits! Stay tuned!

Cheers,

-Kristine

I don’t have a dog of my own right now (sigh), but my parents have a dog that I grew up with, Opie. They were out here visiting and, as is required when there is a cute dog around, he got his own little mutt mugs.

We’re still not entirely sure what Opie is since he was a pound dog rescue pooch (shepherd??? something else??  something else?) – but that doesn’t matter – he’s got the sweetest disposition. He “oinks” when he’s excited, he sings when he knows it’s dinner time, and he hops up and down on his front paws when he realizes he’s about to go for a walk. Oh, and he smiles, too.

I just love dogs!  (To see some more pics of cute dogs, check out the multimedia piece I did for Go Fetch of Missoula. I think it’s kinda fun. You’ll need your sound on.)

And now to share some photos of the Opie I love – enjoy!

I love the hair on his chinny chin chin!

And his pretty, soulful eyes.

Aww, he’s just a cutie, don’t you think?