1980s-style Portraits of Pets and Their Humans

Los Angeles-based pet and family photographer Danielle Spires has been shooting humorous portraits of people and their pets in the style of 1980s-style studio portraits.

“I had been photographing my own cats in this 80’s Olan Mills style for years, and suddenly in 2018 I found out both of my cats had been diagnosed with cancer,” Spires tells PetaPixel. My beloved Noguchi passed away from lymphoma, and my cat Panton survived thyroid cancer.

“This tragedy left me enormously in debt and looking for a way to heal my heart. I began to offer pet portraits on my unique backdrops and sets in my DTLA studio, and the rest is history!”

“I found a way to fill that void that Noguchi left in my heart by giving people what I always gave myself: humorous and fun pet portraits that straddle the line between Victorian paintings and awkward 80’s studio portraiture,” Spires says.

“The most important part of creating pet portraits for me is making the clients super comfortable in the studio,” the photographer says. “Most people really dislike their photo being taken, so I try to make it as fun and pleasant as possible. After the shoot, I spend some time editing and retouching to get that vintage feel.”

You can find more of Spires’ work on her website and Instagram.

(via Danielle Spires via Laughing Squid)


Image credits: Photographs by Danielle Spires and used with permission

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