Boston is a beautiful city with so much to offer for stunning backdrops, from beautiful gardens, architecture, graffiti, cityscapes, and so much more! I love Boston, but sometimes I prefer photographing closer to home. The traffic on I-95 into the city makes my head spin – and it seems to be a challenge no matter what the time of day. Did you know there are a few hidden gems on Boston’s North Shore that provide perfect graffiti walls for a dog photo session? I learned about these great spots while location scouting during the pandemic. March and April are lacking color with the change of seasons, and graffiti can make a beautiful backdrop while waiting for colorful flowers to bloom!
1. Georgetown-Rowley State Forest
Georgetown-Rowley State Forest is over 1100 acres of trails covering both Rowley and Georgetown, with a little bit in Boxford. When I used to hike this trail with my dog, Kota, we entered this vast space via a back road in Georgetown. This is one of my locations in the book project I am working on, Tails of the North Shore, and I learned about another “hidden” entrance that leads to this graffiti wall that crosses over interstate 95. Forrest Gump is a book participant, and his siblings, Sprout and Pippin, joined us for our session adventure with mom. Here are a few of the colorful graffiti images.
Aren’t these three dogs perfectly posed? Their mom, Jenny, happens to be owner and dog trainer with Seacoast Canine. They offer walking, training and pet sitting on the North Shore, be sure to check them out!
2. Fiorentini Rail Trail, Bradford
I learned of the Fiorentini Rail Trail in Bradford when I was searching locations for a project that I was working on. I was looking for dogs that do specific sports/activities with their owners. I met another local dog trainer named Jenny, too, and she skateboards with her dog, Emma! I met with Emma and her mom and dad at this location, and to my surprise, there was a graffiti wall underneath Rt. 125 in Bradford. Entrance to the path is attached to the Dunkin Donuts parking lot and there is street parking right near Dunks. The pathway is wide for bikers and walks… even for dogs that skateboard with their owners!
If you are worried about the lack of color in the early Spring for photos, graffiti is a great option! AND they the colorful back round goes perfect in a frame, such as this ebony frame decorated with a beveled edge.
I am located north of Boston in Georgetown. Both of these locations are less than 15 minutes from me. Thinking about a spring photo session with your dog? We have so many amazing locations for an adventure!
This week I’m blogging with an amazing group of Pet Photographers around the world! Follow along our circle to see a variety of “colorful” posts. Next up is Minneapolis & central Minnesota dog photography About A Dog Photography. Enjoy!
Great shots with graffiti as background. Breaks up the dullness between winter & spring. Graffiti is an art & very colorful. A lot of railroad cars have graffiti art done on them. The last shot that is framed really shows the style & color of graffiti & blends well with the color of the dogs. Well done.
Love these! How cool that you have so many awesome trails to choose from!
I love the walls in the first set of photos. I use graffiti walls a lot in Charlotte during the winter to help give my work some color!
Wow, wow, wow! What a great way to add a splash of color to your dog portraits! You took us on a wonderful adventure of dog photography in Boston.
Such a cool location Darlene. I love the tones of the graffiti and the rusty industrial railing. The dogs are adorable as are their names!
Those ARE great locations, I love dogs photographed with graffiti and you’re absolutely right – I never thought of it as an alternate way to add color in between seasons! You’re so clever!