Photographing dogs can be difficult. They want to explore, chase after at every unfamiliar sound and smell, put everything in their mouths, and usually aren’t the best at remembering what “sit” and “stay” mean when there’s a camera in front of them. Despite these challenges, taking what I call Puppy Portraits is really fun, and any time I get to spend with a puppy is time well spent.

Last Thanksgiving, I photographed my brother’s new puppy, Ava, playing in the fallen leaves in my parents’ backyard. Ava was seriously one of the cutest puppies I’ve ever seen, and was also one of the tiniest puppies I’d ever seen, especially considering her breed(s) – a Lab and German Shepherd mix.

Thia quick photoshoot made some of my favorite Puppy Portraits I’ve taken, so now that it’s finally starting to look like Fall in Texas, why not share them again?