Li Ward photographer of pets and weddings. Fat Orange Cat Studio is a fresh and candid boutique photography service in Boston, Massachusetts.

Keira is the final 4-legged member of the family that included Emma, Casey, and Logan.

This is what Jean has to say:
Keira is the youngest at almost 4 years. She is a skinny orange tabby, and you can see the devil in her eyes! She is constantly moving around, causing trouble. She’s so annoying and opinionated I threaten to give her away, then she will just plop herself in your lap and settle in.

A subject with the devil in her eyes, causing trouble, being annoying, constantly moving around…not exactly recipes for a successful photo shoot. I was sitting on the stairs hoping to catch Keira as a non-moving blur and as she roamed continuously up and down the stairs, from one room to the next, this way that way up here over there, I was like, Great. FAIL.

And then I opened all the images from the shoot, and while I cooed at Logan’s puppy face, whistled at Emma’s green green eyes, and aww’d at Casey’s tortoise-shelled coat, it was Keira and her photos that made me HAHAHAHA! What a kangaroo!

Here is Keira with the Devil in Her Eyes:

Keira as Trouble:

And Keira, Constantly Moving Around:

The unfocused shots, which I might have trashed back in the day, are becoming my favorite kinds of shots. Not that I would deliberately shove the camera in the animal’s face to get it of course. It has to happen naturally, like it did over and over and OVER again with Keira. You would have thought my lens was a giant opened can of steaming tuna the way she kept making a bee line to press her wet nose against it.

I was actually trying to get Casey in the above shots, and then Keira’s tweaked out face appeared in the viewfinder. What a little camera hog.

She’s UP the stairs, she’s DOWN the stairs, she’s ON the stairs.

She’s IN the lens again. Tweak!

But finally, a few still moments by the window. Shhh…

Keira’s toes are from Funky Town.

I wish we could hear the thoughts that go inside of a cat’s head, especially in one so loony tunes.

All the aspects of her personality that make her extremely difficult to photograph turned out to be exactly the qualities that make her a wonderful subject. Keira was not the most photogenic kitty (let’s be honest), but she certainly was the most expressive and the funniest.

Orange tabbies rule.

From Jean: Casey is the middle cat (10.5 years), and was obtained as company for Emma (she’s actually Emma’s cat). She’s a tortie/calico with gold eyes. She is quite shy at first, then demanding of attention. She likes to spend time on her cat tree or sprawled/hanging off the sofa back. She is extremely sweet.

“Oh, hello.”

I love torties. But Jean failed to mention that Casey’s pelt is also coated in the Soft as Satin polymer technology. That cat’s fur is unnaturally SOFT. As SATIN.
Her paw pads are also as multicolored as her coat.

Casey was very shy. I tried my best not to make sudden movements that would have her diving under the bed. The treats were brought out for her benefit. Like Emma, Casey knows how to sit on command.

(By the way, we’ve tried getting VanBuren to do something useful for roast beef. The only thing he’ll do is lick his chops and beg for more. So far, all signs suggest that he is untrainable and a big fat pig.)

She warmed up to the camera eventually.

She doesn’t match the linens the way Emma does, but here Casey wants to show you that her coloring is quite nice nonetheless. Who knows though, maybe one day mom will be wanting a Halloween-themed bedroom?

Casey is brought to you by the color Orange.

“I dreamed a dream of times sans dog…”

Casey is battling a multitude of emotions – fear? intrigue? quiet rage? – while watching Logan play in her cat tent.

I think the below is my favorite photo.

I don’t remember what Jean was saying to Casey…or maybe she was talking to me as I was waiting at the bottom of the stairs for Casey to make her re-appearance from under the bed. Like I mentioned in the earlier post about Logan, I loved the lighting on the stairs and at one point, just sort of sat there at the bottom, waiting for Casey specifically. I think Jean is saying Quick! Here she is! and even though you can’t see Casey’s tail, I bet you it’s in the air and slightly curled at the tip, expectant of an incoming head scratch. Which she got as a reward as soon as she got a leeeeetle bit closer to me…

Casey is so pretty, even in negative space.

P.S. I love negative space and I’m trying to do these kinds of shots more often. It’s kind of not that easy – I seem to get it more by accident than on purpose, like the last two shots of the Springers from this post. It really works well when you overexpose the shot of a subject with very distinct markings. Gonna try it on Bunny.

Next up: Kiera, the totally tweaked orange tabby. This cat l.o.v.e.d the camera. Here is a preview:

Bahaha.

Today I have been married to Daniel for seven consecutive years.

In total, it’s been over 10 years of an interdependent partnership in which both parties claim equal stake.

This partnership reached its pinnacle this weekend in Providence, RI, where we were scouting locations for an upcoming shoot.

I made him pose for me as a dog.

And he did such a lovely job. Right? Baha.

Fat Orange Cat Studio is just one of the many things in my life that he helps make possible. And fun.

I’m a very lucky girl.

(Whether or not he’s a lucky boy is up for debate…)

P.S. I’m still trying out new design templates for images processed for the blog. Decided to go with rounded corners which is in keeping with the rounded corners in the square of my logo. Just simple things to keep the design consistent and thus, reinforce the branding!

Photos shot in front of the First Baptist Meeting House, Providence Superior Court, and colorful doors of the beautiful colonial homes lining Benefit Street. I heart you Providence! And you too Dan!

Hey! Here is a little local news clip that aired after the Pawsh party from earlier this month. You get to see the back of my head in action, oooo.

The camera man conveniently caught me actually not taking a photo. I was trying to shoot Penny (shown below with her bff Marta) by herself.  And she was all yeahkaynothxbai.

I get the brush-off more often than not, truth be told…

Something in the air smells different.

Mmm. It smells CLEAN.

It smells PINK.

And yellow, green and blue.

Throw the windows wide, open all the doors, scrape the crust off the barbecue grill. Upper 70s – and possibly 80s, dare I say outloud?! – is being forecasted for this weekend. Happy happy joy joy! Spring in Boston is a fickle, moody thing, so I’ll be stuffing myself to the gills with as much of it as I can.

South End cat taken on our street; pink magnolias and tulips flower along Commonwealth Ave in the Back Bay; mastiff (I think?) lounging in front of Looc in the South End.