A Bengal cat receives affection from someone in a red shirt while sitting in front of a lit Christmas tree with silver tinsel.
Bengal cat peeks through Christmas decorations with wide curious eyes amid warm bokeh lights and red holiday ornaments.
Bengal cat with striped fur gazing upward near a Christmas tree with twinkling bokeh lights in the background.
A festive holiday scene with someone in a red sweater holding tinsel garland near a Christmas tree and cat.

My Sister's Cat Hates Me

You may not be able to tell from these pictures- but it's true. She hates me because every time I come over, I come with my camera and an annoying goal of capturing the best, most cat-lady pictures possible. My sister, who does not have kids, sends out a holiday card of her and her cat, Paloma, every year. Which means every year, at least once, I come over and invade her quiet little home to set up my light and force this cat to participate in family pictures. This past year, my sister had no plans for her holiday shoot, so I let my imagination run wild with. I was picturing vintage, early 90's, lots of tinsel and sparkle, a grainy film edit, and of course- the cat.


The pictures turned out just as I had hoped. Not only did I succeed in this very specific style of shoot that is wildly out of my normal realm of edits- I reignited the creativity I was starting to lack when it came to photography. I have realized that over the years, editing the same way over and over can become monotonous and take away from the creative aspect of this type of art. While having a streamlined editing style is majorly important for bringing in clients, I have found that doing work outside of my normal "instagram style" is what help keeps the love for photography alive. That and of course, working with my amazing clients!

Someone in a red sweater holding a spotted Bengal cat next to a decorated Christmas tree with twinkling lights.

This one HAD to be included... that face sums it up.