Artemis: A Quiet, Full-Hearted Session with a Dog Who Was Still Very Much Herself
A studio session shaped by comfort, connection, and presence, not perfection
Artemis, a senior Chihuahua mix, photographed on Lavender
Artemis came into the studio as a 13-year-old Chihuahua mix with a quiet kind of steadiness. She was small in the way that makes you double check where you’re stepping, but she carried herself like she knew exactly where she was going. Her family, Heather and her child Kian, booked the session after a recent inoperable cancer diagnosis that changed the timeline they imagined for Artemis’s golden years. There was no confusion about what mattered most. They wanted photographs that felt like her while she was still here and still comfortable enough to enjoy being part of the process.
As a Minneapolis dog photographer, sessions like this are less about direction and more about paying attention. Artemis didn’t need coaxing into personality. She was having a good day and her portraits are proof of that.
The details that tell the real story
Kian chose Lavender and Blue Mist backdrops, and the choice fit Artemis in a way that didn’t need explanation. Her coat carried a mix of warm greys, brown tones, and a white underside that almost looked like she had walked through something soft and bright and came out the other side unchanged. Her face held contrast, with darker eyes and a darker nose that anchored everything in place.
There was also a subtle facial asymmetry that became part of how we approached the session. Artemis has been living with some muscle atrophy on the right side of her face. Nothing about it defined her, but it did inform how I photographed her. I leaned into angles that honored how she naturally presented, specifically her left profile, and made space for variety without drawing attention to anything that didn’t need to be emphasized.
The goal was simple. Keep Artemis at the center of every frame, not the changes happening around her.
A family that knows how to show up for each other
Heather and Kian moved through the session with a kind of calm familiarity that comes from years together. Artemis had grown up alongside Kian, and that relationship showed in the way they settled into each other without instruction. Kian even chose clothing that visually softened into Artemis’s coloring, which was a small detail that said a lot without needing commentary.
Artemis brought her favorite toy, a well-loved beaver that had clearly seen a full life of its own. She also had strong opinions about treats, which she made known without hesitation. Even with everything going on, she had moments of curiosity and interest that felt very much like her regular self showing through.
We photographed her alone, but also as part of the family unit, because that is often where the real weight of a session like this lives. Not in individual portraits, but in how everyone fits together in the frame.
Photographing what is true right now
These sessions are always about timing and care. When a family reaches out and shares that their dog is facing illness, I move things around to make space as quickly as possible. There is no version of this work where waiting feels like the right answer. Dogs don’t work on our schedules, and families are often trying to hold onto normal routines while also navigating something that is anything but normal.
There is also a practical side to it that people don’t always think about. Comfort matters more than posing. Energy matters more than perfection. The goal is not to create a version of the dog that looks untouched by time or circumstance. The goal is to create something honest enough that it still feels right years from now.
What Artemis’ portraits tell about her story
Artemis spent the session doing what she had always done. She stayed close to her people, accepted affection on her own terms, and took breaks when she needed them. Nothing about it felt forced. That is what made it work.
Sessions like this are not about writing a final chapter. They are about documenting a relationship while it is still unfolding. Artemis was still very much herself in these images, and her family was still very much hers. That is what the photographs hold onto.
