Nothing like a beach sunrise with your dog!
My dog, Kota, recently turned 10 years old and next month we celebrate her 10 month “adoptaversary”. I can’t believe how fast time goes! Kota is a homebody. She does best in her own backyard. When you see pictures that I post of her, they most likely are at home. She gets stressed and anxious and she isn’t a fan of other dogs. I wanted to take Kota somewhere “epic” for us. Since we live only 20 minutes from the beach, my husband and I decided it was time she experienced a sunrise at the ocean!
I set the alarm clock for 5:00 AM – yup – early! I made a cup of coffee in the Keurig and we headed out at 5:35. First light was scheduled for 6:10, and I love to catch the beautiful colors in the sky as the sun comes up. Kota was a bit conflicted on why we were getting out of bed so early. She loves car rides… but then again, she loves her sleep!
We chose this time of year for the beach as the beaches are dog friendly in the winter, and also, it’s still cold enough where hopefully we wouldn’t run into many people up early with their dogs. I’ve been to Plum Island for a few sunrise photo sessions and out of all the beaches near me, it seems to be the quietest.
First Light
We arrived at 6:00. No one in sight – yay! Kota had no idea what to make of this whole excursion. She is very scent drive, so there was a lot of sniffing going on! Sand was a new thing. It was high tide (I always forget to check that), so we didn’t have far to walk from the path to the ocean. My husband, today’s “Kota wrangler”, walked Kota to the water. The waves skimmed her paws and she leapt back. She was more intrigued than anything else. Kota doesn’t love water, so I was happy she was comfortable to get so close.
Kota was a bit stressed at this scary new place. As you can see in the first image, her tail is down, which is a tell tale “stress” sigh for her. When my husband did a little jogging with her, she perked up! Running is much more her element!
Sunrise
When doing sunrise photos, I love seeing what image is taken exactly at the time of sunrise – this one below was the one at 6:41 AM sunrise to be exact!
Ready to head home….
Kota’s favorite part might have been when we headed on the path toward the car – haha! There were so many smells on the sand path. As you can see, her ears perked up in this last image. There was a dog nearby! So glad we didn’t have any encounters with dogs on the beach. That made my morning less stressful!
It was definitely worth waking up early this morning! I”m grateful to be able to do something like this with both my husband and myself working from home. We were back at our house at 7:30. As I write this, I’m on my 5th cup of coffee. Kota went right into her crate to nap. Adventures make her tired!
Dog are allowed on most of the beaches until Memorial Day. Now is the time to schedule a beautiful sunrise session with your dog! It’s definitely worth it!
If having your dog “off-leash” is a concern, 95% of dogs I photograph are kept on a leash for the photo session. This is for everyone’s safety. Kota had a 12 foot leash on that I removed in post processing. Images with the owner I do leave it a lot of times to show the bond. (as you can see with Kota and my husband, Pete)
Thank you so much for stopping by! This is a blog circle and next up is Linda Perdue with VP Shoots Photography specializing in photographing pets and their families in the Tampa Bay area of Florida. Have a great weekend!
What a lovely sunrise. You’re so lucky to live close to a beach. I hope Kota enjoyed the adventure
I love this story about Kota and sunrise at the beach. I’ve never thought about which photo was taken at exactly sunrise. Next time I’m at the beach, I’ll have to think about that. (Next time should be in about 4 weeks!!!)
I’d give anything to have photos like this of Hunter!
The first pic of her and your husband is epic!! ❤️
Great shots of the sunrise. Love the 6:41 shot and ready to head home.
Besides being impressed by your lovely photos, I am impressed that you got up at 5:00 and headed out the door at 5:35, with only one cup of coffee under your belt. I’m always up for sunrise photos, and your photos are beautiful!
How fun! I wish my dogs liked to sleep in – instead, they are the ones getting me up at 5am! Gorgeous photos!
Love the last one better than the olde man runner ha ha. Seriously that is the one – luv it! Kota loved the waves…..
Love these. I have a beach not too far away either, but I have a dog who is reactive to other dogs as well. I would love to get him out there, but worry he will see another dog just as I am ready to take a pic and take me and the camera down ( lol)
Wow – that’s getting up early and getting moving! We get up early (about 6 and out the door by 6:30 most days). A car ride at that time is an eye opener for sure. I love these photos – the silhouettes are really nice….but then when the sun came up…those are lovely!
1These are stunning! Oh, how I wish I had a beach near me!
Absolutely gorgeous work. I wish I lived by a beach! Ohmigosh, those silhouettes are straight fire. I love all of them. I wish I could get some great portraits of me and Bella like that.
Gah, the silhouette with your husband made ME cry and it’s not even my dog. Or my husband. STUNNING!