A
photographer’s colourful and dramatic photos of dogs have gone viral and you
can see why.

Canadian
photographer Jess Bell has been working in the industry for the past three
years, specialising in ‘artistic animal imagery’.
Wanting
to do something different and striking, Jess asked her friends to bring their
dogs to a photo shoot, tossing colourful powder over them before they jumped
into the air.
The
results were pretty magical!

Choosing
a colour which would either closely match or neatly contrast with the dog’s
fur, Jess shot a range of photographs with Border Collies, Australian
Shepherds, German Coolies and more.

Speaking
to UNLAD, Jess, who is also a dog owner and trainer, explained how she created
the photos, adding that she ensured the dogs were safe at all times.

Jess
said:
''The
images were created by placing coloured powder on dogs owned by some very
talented dog training friends (and my own dog). We then asked the dogs to move
and capture the resulting explosion. Each image is unique as it reflects each
animals’ individual movement and structure. Don’t worry, the powder is
non-toxic (FD&C/D&C approved), we shoot with plenty of ventilation and
it’s kept away from airways so nothing is inhaled.''

Animals
keep us humble! They’re not always predictable, nor do they have long attention
spans. I think photographing any subject comes with its own unique set of
challenges; I’ve grown accustomed to the challenges animals present. I have
plenty of patience, and know when to scrap an idea if it’s not working.

Well as
you can see from the amazing results, Jess was right not to ‘scrap’ this idea!

Jess’
photos were actually inspired by a fellow photographer, Andrea Zachrau, who
specialises in equine photography.
Andrea
has regularly worked with coloured powders and horses with equally impressive
results.
Looking
at Andrea’s photos, it is no wonder Jess felt inspired!

While
taking the photographs Jess knew the results would be ‘something great’, but
she admits she was surprised at how well they turned out.

She told
UNILAD this made it hard for her to pick a favourite, although she has now
settled on the photograph of Border Collie Rush jumping through red powder.
Jess
said:
''Each
image has something about it that I love. I guess my favourite is the shot of Rush
the Border Collie jumping through the red powder. Black, white and red is a
killer colour combination, and I love how powerful his jump is.''

I’m very
pleased with the results and look forward to doing different sports! I wasn’t
too sure if they’d be successful beforehand. I told the participating dogs’
owners that I was pretty sure we’d be making something great, but that I
couldn’t guarantee the results beforehand (they were kind enough to participate
anyways!).
Here is
Rush in action:


To be
honest, I would love to see Jess take a photo of my cat jumping through a
coloured powder! Although cats aren’t as well trained as dogs, maybe that could
be her next subject.

To see
more of Jess Bell’s photography you can click here. You can also check out
Andrea Zachrau’s photography here.
I like the 2 Australian Cattle Dogs best. Blue Heelers become Blue Rockets. Sirius-ly. ;)
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