It's been a Xoloitzcuintli kind of Summer! The beautiful Moria was the 6th Xolo I've had the pleasure of photographing this season! Her owners gave me the freedom to choose a location and to create whatever kind of canine photography my imagination desired!

When given free will, I almost always want to tie in the history, purpose and legends of that breed. Xoloitzcuintli are an ancient breed, with historical ties to the Mayan cultures, and when sharing a life with an owner, was used as an alert dog, and when the owner passed, the dog was sacrificed, believed to be the owner's sacred guide to the underworld. With this in mind, I knew I wanted older architecture, stairs, and ornate details, softer but directional lighting, and powerful, statuesque poses from the dog.

I was able to find the locations I wanted within Ann Arbor's Law Quadrangle, and Moria came ready to play the part! She exuded power and regal strength through her photos, immediately making my imagination run wild with what this breed used to be like 3,000 year ago. ... It helped we had plenty of squirrels and bumble bees to keep Moria on her toes too.

Big thank you to Tina (Canine Design 27 Mile & Gratiot) and Nicholas (Professional Groom Supply Clinton Township) for bringing Moria and allowing me the freedom to create fine art photography using the beauty of the Xoloitzcuintli breed!

““Five Stars! From the booking process and session to the delivery!

Jesse sent tips to make the photoshoot run smooth and help us be prepared. My xolo is a little “special” at times and Jesse did an amazing job of keeping her attention and also having patience.

Highly recommended to everyone. Can’t wait to schedule more photoshoots!”
”

— Tina