People love to say, “I just want it to look natural.” This is code for, “I want to look effortlessly amazing while pretending I don’t know you’re taking my picture.”

It turns out, that taking a great photo, and convincing people to let you take one are two completely different skill sets.

MISSION STATEMENT At Cathy Dee Photography, my mission is simple: to make you appear so good, even your ex will zoom in for a second look...

Photographers with the flu should not be trusted near cameras. Or editing software. Or other humans, frankly. Until further notice, I’ll be in bed, photographing the pet spider posing coyly on the ceiling like it’s my life’s magnum opus and it's his time in the influencer spotlight.

So here I am, a photographer with a brilliant Facebook ad… invisible to the world. But maybe that’s the lesson: no ad can compete with good old-fashioned word of mouth. And hey, unlike Facebook ads, at least your friends won’t charge you $10 a click to tell the world how great you are.

Look, I get it. Everyone has a phone in their pocket that promises “pro-level photos” with the tap of a button. ...

Here’s how to make Christmas cards that are memorable, funny, and don’t look like you bribed your own pets with feather wands, squeaky toys and vague threats of swapping them out for a Banana.

(With a Camera...) A Photographer’s Guide to Surviving Children Let me start by saying this: I did not go into photography to chase...

Confessions of a Pet Photographer Surviving Canine ‘Over exuberance’ As a professional pet photographer, I’ve seen things. Things I can’t...

Look. The world is a mess. You know what brings joy? A high-definition portrait of a cat sitting inside a wok, or glaring into the camera with a leaf on his head like it owes them money.

or is it? Furrio Soprano The image above was taken by me about 10 years ago with a very old, cheap camera. If there is one thing that...

I had to think about this when I was asked the question the other day.

The year was 1989 and I was in New York studying Photography...

When I trained in New York as a photographer, we studied incredible photographers - one of my favourites being the work of Irving Penn...

I've been doing a bit of photography for local animal rescue organizations. Kitty Kingdom here in North Canterbury is inundated with cats...

‘Props’ to you for choosing me to photograph you or your loved one but…that’s not the sort of props I am talking about here...

Wondering if a Fine Art Portrait with your pet is something you should do? Here are 8 reasons why you should book your shoot with Cathy...