About Hair of the Dog
We're a whole lot like you
Who We Are
We are people that go all in on our dreams. We are people that inspire each other and lift each other up. We realize that life is damn short and this is it. This is our LIFE and we better make it count.
We are chasing our dreams like our hair is on fire…and that looks different for everyone. We are people that are happy in their day job but have this pet photography passion on the side, we are people that are giving it their all to build their business to leave their 9 to 5, and we are people that have made the leap and are doing pet photography full time.
What do we all have in common? We are living a life that we have designed. We are doing the things that we love to do and living our best life.
We are Hair of the Dog.
Let's Create Community
Values are basic and fundamental beliefs that guide or motivate attitudes or actions – they are the motive behind the action. Here at Hair of the Dog HQ our number one value is to create community.
There aren’t many people in our regular day to day lives that really understand what we do. We’ve created Hair of the Dog as a place for you to connect with other pet photographers but also as a place to support you and nurture your growth. We believe that a rising tide lifts all boats.
The leader of the pack
Nicole Begley
Nicole Begley, M.Photog.Cr., CPP, is a zoological animal trainer turned pet photographer and educator. She created Hair of the Dog in 2012 to empower pet photographers to turn their dreams into reality by helping them improve their craft and grow their pet photography business.
Nicole has authored a book “Pet and Equine Photography for Everyone”, available on Amazon. She established Nicole Begley Photography in Pittsburgh, PA in 2010 but now serves the market of Charlotte, NC.
Nicole shares her home with her husband, two small humans, and her Puerto Rican rescue dog Zoey. Oh yes, she is also Chief of Staff to Emma the cat. She is the creator of the #selfiedog series, a travel addict, and a chocolate martini connoisseur.
Hair of the Dog Academy Coaches
Say hello to the Hair of the Dog Academy coaches, who also act as coaches in the Elevate coaching program.
Charlotte Reeves
Addicted to creating lightbulb moments for students, Charlotte has been teaching pet photographers in person and through online courses since 2013 at Learn Pet Photography. She relishes simplifying tricky concepts and helping people achieve their goals by making the learning fun, practical, and positive.
Heather Lahtinen
Heather Lahtinen is a professional wedding and portrait photographer based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She is the founder of the award-winning Weddings by Heather and the Flourish Academy has been a professional photographer and instructor for 16 years.
As an Adobe Certified Expert in Photoshop, Heather has also been teaching and instructing photographers in both Lightroom and Photoshop. Heather is driven by an overwhelming desire to see others succeed and, as a result, her workshops do more than just instruct, they inspire.
Kim Hartz
The images Kim takes for her clients capture the unique essence of each subject, producing a true work of art that is both timeless and precious. Kim teaches pet photography and business of photography workshops and consults with studios all over the country. She is dedicated and experienced instructing students on the creative process and building a successful photography business.
Megan Murray
Megan Murray, CPP is a professional dog photographer based in Houston, Texas, as well as a Certified Professional Photographer with PPA. A numbers nerd, she worked as a chemical engineer in corporate America for 15 years before jumping into entrepreneurship. She enjoys the business side of photography just as much as the creative side, and helps other photographers understand and get strategic with their numbers and business practices.
Hair of the Dog Academy Contributors
Please meet some of our Hair of the Dog contributors who have created classes which are included in the Academy membership.
Caitlin McColl
Caitlin J. McColl began her career as a fashion photographer. Photographing beautiful people was good work, but her heart yearned for something more. More meaning, more passion, more SOUL. In 2010, after adopting her scruffy dog Lyra, it was clear what she had to do. Caitlin quit the fashion industry and launched Ragamuffin Pet Photography.
Nine years later, Caitlin is the author of three books (Tails of Melbourne, Tails of Tasmania and Tails of Adoption) and found of the Tails of the World Collective. She has raised thousands for animal rescue charities, is co-host for The Pet Photographers Club podcast and enjoys teaching aspiring photographers around the world how to grow their own businesses with heart and soul.
Caitlin is a bit of an introvert and a lot of a dork. When she’s not out with her camera or getting geeky about business, you can likely find her snuggled up on the couch with her furry family and a good book.
Terran Bayer
Terran is a Crazy Dog Mom, dreams of living off-the-grid high in the mountains (with high speed internet and Thai takeout), and thinks road trips make the best vacations. She's a foodie, Netflix binger, and loves s’mores roasted to golden perfection over a roaring campfire.
She discovered her love of photography and design in high school (but we won’t talk about how long ago that was). She started her career as a graphic designer, working for businesses of all sizes, from solopreneurs to Fortune 500 companies.
After adopting her pup, Terran realized she was meant to be a photographer, too — a dog photographer! Now, she works with private families and commercial pet brands, like West Paw, P.L.A.Y., and GoldPaw, to tell stories through bright, colorful, and emotional imagery. Terran absolutely loves what she does and loves teaching others the skills they need to do it, too!
Kim Buccheri & Bud Thorpe
Kimberly Buccheri and Bud Thorpe are full time dog and pet photographers based in Manchester, New Hampshire, USA. They offer their clients carefully crafted fine art images in the form of wall art, but also provide their guests a beautifully orchestrated luxury customer experience. As photographic artists, Kim and Bud are recognized for their personal style, elegant artistry, and technical expertise. With their caring and open personalities coupled with their witty sense of humor they are known for making their sessions fun and enjoyable for everyone. Bud and Kim also run The Master Lighting Course, a comprehensive online studio lighting program that was over 15 years in the making. This easy-to-follow program features over 120 video lessons that show you every step of the way. Their course also features an entire program dedicated to photographing pets in the studio.
Danica Barreau
Danica Barreau is a PPA Master Artist, Master Photographer, and Certified Professional Photographer with a studio in Grove City, Ohio. Specializing in pet photography and digital art, Mrs. Barreau has been photographing pets for rescues since 2005 and opened her own studio in 2015. She has won multiple PPA Grand Imaging Awards for her animal portraits and is currently both Photographer and Artist of the Year for the state of Ohio. She shares her home with two English Setters, an Akbash, a school teacher, and an undisclosed number of cats.
Craig Turner-Bullock
Self confessed crazy cat daddy, puppy parent & patisserie addict Craig Turner-Bullock has been photographing pets since 2001. Craig’s business, Furtography, is based in Christchurch, New Zealand, he works with private and commercial clients all over the world to capture their dream images in bright and glorious Technicolor!
Craig is an accredited Master of Photography and Fellow of the New Zealand Institute of Professional Photography. In 2018 he won the title of New Zealand Portrait Photographer of the Year, the first time in the 80-year history of NZIPP that the award has been given to images of non-humans. He is an official ambassador for Fujifilm Global.
In 2019 Craig launched the Furtography Academy, online training focusing on helping pet photographers around the world find their own style.
Craig is also the photographer/author of three bestselling books, Quake Dogs (which spent 10 weeks at #1 on the NZ Bestsellers list), Quake Cats and A Dog’s Life, published by Penguin Random House.
Tori Mistick
Tori Mistick is our Hair of the Dog Instagram expert. She is a style obsessed dog mom living in Pittsburgh, PA. She’s been a social media consultant for over a decade, sharing her expertise with a variety of brands and non-profits including The Andy Warhol Museum. When her blog for stylish dog moms, Wear Wag Repeat, took off in 2016 she was inspired to niche down her social media consulting business to focus on Instagram marketing. Tori's strategies are gleaned from her own experience growing her Instagram account to over 40,000 highly engaged followers. Additionally, her podcast, online shop and experience in event planning, acting and community organizing all contribute to her specialty in helping entrepreneurs grow their pet industry businesses with the help of Instagram.
Jess Bell
Jess Bell is a Canadian animal photographer based in Toronto, Ontario. She has a flair for the dynamic and artistic, and is addicted to animal action photography. She strives to capture crisp, highly detailed photos of the most fleeting of moments to commemorate the beauty and raw athleticism of the animals with which we share our lives. In addition to being a photographer, she’s also a mother, wife, and, of course, a dog lover.
Haron Haghuis
Haron Haghuis is a pet photographer and photography coach from the Netherlands.
He's had a love for dogs ever since he was a little boy. That, along with a passion for art and technology led him to turn dog photography into both his creative outlet as well as his profession.
When he's not creating moody portraits or getting his caffeine fix, you can find him at the beck and call of his Border Collie, Milo.
Join the Academy
CONTENT & COMMUNITY
I want you to think back to the most insanely decked out brunch buffet you have ever experienced. You know the one…not just with an omelet station but the crab legs, bloody mary bar, and ALL of the toppings for the waffles. Now, imagine if that buffet was all geared towards helping you grow as a pet photographer.
The Hair of the Dog Academy not only gives you all of the content, but also gives you full access to the largest and most supportive community of pet photographers in the world. By becoming an Academy member, you will have full access to all of the Academy content for as long as your membership remains current.
These programs have a value of over $5,000 if purchased separately.
Here's just a taste of what you will have access to inside the Hair of the Dog Academy:
- The Business of Pet Photography course
- Post-Processing for Pet Photographers course
- Pet Photography EDU course by Kim Hartz
- Instagram for Pet Photographers by Tori Mistick
- Office Hours with Nicole Begley
- Critique Corner with Charlotte Reeves
- 1:1 Laser Coaching with Nicole Begley
- Guest Instructors from the world's leading pet photographers
And if all that isn't enough, Academy members have access to some of the best pet photographers in the world in our private Facebook group.
You'll feel understood, supported and inspired.
If you are ready to become the pet photographer that you want to be – the Hair of the Dog Academy can help you get there.