Jerrabomberra pet photographer Ina Jalil is on the lookout for pooches to feature in her upcoming coffee table book.
Applications are open for dog owners who would love to showcase their beloved pets in the Tails of Canberra – Volume 2 Book Project.
It will feature stunning portraits of local dogs against Canberraโs breathtaking landscapes, all while raising funds for Completely Rescued, a Canberra-based animal rehoming organisation.
โIโm looking for all sorts of dogs in Canberra (and the surrounding areas) with a story behind them: Iโll be including a photo from each session, and also a love letter from the owner to their dog,โ Ina told CD.
โIโm looking to cover a variety of dogs, all types of breeds can enter, thereโs no criteria for that.โ
Ina said any dogs who have, or havenโt, had their photographs taken professionally can take part.
Think your dog wonโt sit long enough to have their photograph taken? Think again.
She said all the photographs were professionally edited to remove leashes, distractions, or unwanted objects.
This means owners can be in the shot (and will be edited out) if it helps the dog to pose for the camera.
Some of the locations Ina hopes to feature in the upcoming book include Yarralumla, Commonwealth Park and Lennox Gardens, the Lindsay Pryor Arboretum, Australian National University, National Gallery of Australia and Braddon.
Ina said she hoped to do about 30 sittings, with $75 from the registration fee from each booking going to charity.
She has selected Completely Rescued, a dedicated volunteer group assisting animals in the Canberra and NSW Region.
โTheyโre a reasonably new one but theyโre quite small so I thought it would be good to help them out,โ Ina said.
Volume one was compiled in 2021 and printed in 2022 when Ina worked in the public service. Now, she works as a pet photographer full time, under the business name Ina J Photography.
Ina was inspired by Melbourne-based photographer Caitlin J. McColl, to do the book.
โShe runs the Tails of the World Collective and sheโs also a pet photographer educator,โ she said.
โItโs an all over the world initiative.
โThe initiative behind it is you charge a registration fee and then about half, or a portion of that, gets donated to a charity of your choice.โ
Ina donated about $2,000 from sessions for the first book to ACT Rescue and Foster Inc.
She also organises other fundraising events throughout the year for other animal organisations in the area, including a dog calendar which has raised more than $50,000 for ACT Pet Crisis Support over the past five years.
Ina studied photography at high school but was encouraged by her parents to pursue other career options, so photography became a hobby.
Later in life, she started out with portraits of families and newborns, and events and weddings.
But in 2019, when her dog Mac suffered heart failure and later passed away, she decided to become a pet photographer.
โI was looking for a pet photographer because I had lots of photographs of him, but I didnโt have many photos of me and him,โ Ina said.
โHe passed away and I wished I had more photos of him and me. I was doing photography so thought โWhy not do that?โโ
Apply for your dog to take part in the book at inajphotography.com/tails-of-canberra-volume-2-book-project.
Local businesses can also jump on board to sponsor the initiative.
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