Big Beach Baby

No one in this house likes getting up early, but the rewards are generally worth it. Case in point: jumping in the car at 6:30am in order to avoid hours of typical summer stop-and-go traffic on the one road that leads to the Cape. Bringing us allllll the way out to Truro (just 20 min or so from Provincetown - the very tippy-tip end of the penninsula) was the chance to meet and learn from the brilliant Bay Area photographer, Jesse Freidin. I first learned about Jesse via his trend-sploding Doggie Gagga Project in 2010. I've been keeping tabs on his fine work since then, and I couldn't pass up the opportunity when I saw he was teaching a workshop so (relatively) close to home, at the Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill (we only audited one day of his 5-day course).


Jesse's workshop was on basic photography and canine portraiture. I'm no stranger to taking nice pics of dogs, but learning from pros is ALWAYS an inspiring experience, and Jesse didn't dissappoint. My only regret - not meeting the dapper Pancake! Next time...

After our day of test shots and aperature experimentation, Oscar and I did what most people do when they visit the Cape - we hit the beach (and because "we" were a human and a dog, we did so with some amount of difficulty - the Cape Cod seashore is NOT terribly friendly to canines - especially during the peak summer season, and most beaches will only allow on-leash access before 8 or 9am, and after 5 or 6pm... harumph). By 5pm, Oscar was POOPED. The poor kid stayed standing for a bit, but between the exhaustion of driving all morning, modeling all afternoon, and then finding himself on a patch of warm, soft, sea-scented sand, squinty-eyes turned into a full-on nap in no time.


 
All in all, a very long, but very beautiful day with my boy. Beach-going difficulty aside, I'm already scheming about how and when to zip back to the land of salt marshes and killer-good seafood (Wellfleet - your Littlenecks are AMAZING)... And if you're planning a trip to the Cape with your dog, here are some additional links with useful information (and the all-important list of "NOs", to keep you from racking up $50 fines): CapeCodPets.com (lots of good, general Cape canine info), InsideCapeCod.com, OnCape.com (listing of hours & fees by town) & Ptown.org (we only did a drive-by, but from the sounds of it, Provincetown leads the way in dog-friendly logistics).

Comments

[Beth Abbott]

Hello, love your blog. Where are the stone sausage dog statues from please? I love them!

[Natalya]

Hi Beth - Glad you enjoy the blog! Oscar and I LOVED visiting the Cape this summer. We found the stone dachshunds in the photo above at a place called Woodworks Gallery (http://woodworksgallery.com) in Brewster (right on 6A). The shop is in a little complex that includes The Cook Shop and Art By the Bay... definitely check them out if you're in the area!