Spiders and Scorpians and Snakes, Oh My!

My children and I had the pleasure of attending a presentation with an educator from Curious Creatures. They offer hands-on educational animal programs for kids of all ages. They are available for Birthday Parties, Schools, Camps and other private events. Being the animal lover I am, this was right up my alley! I even got to hold the tarantula and the Boa! Whoo Hoo! The kids loved every minute of it and learned a lot about the animals. They all had such inquisitive minds and had so many intelligent questions. It was a great experience all around!

Legs, legs, legs!!

I don't know what it is about taking photographs of legs, but I love it. I just recently photographed a Birthday Party and it had been raining. The puddles provided for lots of fun and photo opportunities. The two leg shots that I took there got me thinking about some others I've taken in the past, which then gave me the idea to post my favorites. You may have seen some of these before, and I hope you enjoy seeing them again. So go get low and photograph some legs!
-Tanya

St. Petersburg Beach

Last Friday night we joined some good friends at the Bon Aire Resort Motel on St. Petersburg Beach. Located on the beach side is Sandbar Bill's Bar and Grille, at great place to grab a beer and a burger and watch the sunset as the kid's run around! I, of course, went off with the camera and took some pictures of my friends girls. You can see more from this session and many others at the Tanya Sharkey Photography website.

Key West and back...

It's 6am on May 31st in St. Petersburg, FL. We are in the car on our way to Ft. Myers Beach to board the Key West Express. We are part of the live broadcast 97x is doing at Hog's Breath Saloon in Key West. Why not? We board the Express for a 3 1/2 hour journey. Wow, nice! There is a full bar, the food is pretty good, movies being shown and a top deck to enjoy the ride. We spent most of our time on the top deck in the wind and sun. My husband and I prefer the outdoors. We get into Key West around 12:30 and head over to Hog's Breath. As many times as I've been to Key West, I 've never been here. Always thought it wouldn't be my scene. I was pleasently surprised. Good food - Good Music - Good People = Great Time! The entertainment was fantastic. The unbelievably talented Raven was singing and Badda Skat from 97x joined her on stage for several songs. We picked up her CD and now it's a staple in our iPod. After the broadcast we had an hour to kill before re-boarding the Express so we showed Husky John and Badda around a little.

One of the things about Key West I love is the attitude that resides there. So open and laid back. Anything goes. I love the cats and dogs and roosters that seem to be everywhere. I've taken a couple of local pup shots below. We passed a fisherman who had just come in with some fresh Dolphin (not the porpoise!). He was getting it ready for the local restaurants.

It was hot! But what a great day. We got back into Ft. Myers around 9:45 and back home after midnight. A whirlwind of a day, the way I like it!

Hogs Breath!

Badda on stage with Raven!

Badda and Husky John in Mallory Square!
One of the local pups enjoying his day at Hog's!

I couldn't resist this Japanese Akita. Her name is Keeta. What a gorgeous girl!

And this is Raven with her mom and again with Shark and Badda of 97x! What a voice!

A little girl and her room!

Meet Anna! She was a little younger and a little less excited about the photo shoot then her sister, but even she came out of her shell. Her room was so perfect, the lighting, the colors....
Her mommy is due with little girlie #3 at the end of the month. What a bunch that will be. I can't wait to get them all together in years to come. You'll be seeing more from this photo shoot in the coming weeks, but I just had to show you these.

It goes so quickly!

We just celebrated our sons 7th Birthday on the 1st of June! He's going into 2nd grade in the fall. Such a cliche to say but so true, time goes by so quickly. It's so important to capture all these special moments and milestones. I love to look back at all the pictures in my past, and there are many:-) What great times, and so many more to come too! Happy Birthday to my little man!

And the winner is...

Peanut the 'RePUPblican' candidate! Just look at him excepting his nomination! You should have seen him working the campaign trail, lots of face kissing was had by all!

What could all of this be about you ask?? The 6th annual Tuxes and Tails put on by the Humane Society of Tampa Bay. This is one of three events they hold every year to help raise money for those who can't help themselves! It took place at the Pepin Hospitality Center in Tampa and included a Celebrity Fashion show and both a live and silent auction to benefit the Humane Society of Tampa Bay. This years theme was, "Vote for the PAWS: DemoCAT or RePUPblican".

It was such an honor for me to photograph this event. I'm incredibly passionate about the well being of our pets and they were everywhere. If a Celebrity didn't bring there own doggie with them, they were provided with an Adorable Adoptable to share the CATwalk with them. It was such a nice experience to be in a room with 400 humans that adore our pets as much as I do. Here are some of the little precious ones I was able to get up close and personal with!

Korbin the DemoCAT, who lost by only 15 votes. He demands a recount!


This is Ian Beckles so cute Bull Dog named Bruto!


One of the Adorable Adoptables named Rookie!


Another Adorable Adoptable named Pasha. She was such a love!


The absolutely unforgettable Adorable Adoptable, Harriet. She's a 10 year-old hairless Chihuahua. She was missing many of her teeth which made her little tongue hang out the side of her mouth most of the time. This is her backstage waiting for her turn on the CATwalk. She was a star!


This is Channel 28 Action News Anchor Wendy Ryan with her little love hitting the CATwalk in style!



What a night, and a great night for so many little ones that are waiting to find there 'Forever Families"!!

Please visit The Humane Society of Tampa Bay. They have a wealth of information on how to care for your pet. If you're interested in adopting a rescue, they have links to all the rescues in the area and then some!!

The Moore Family

Thank you John and Marisal for a wonderful session. It was great to see you again and meet your family. You've got quite the handsome little man there! Here is a sneak peek for you to enjoy !

Lara & Jim

Hey you two, look how cute you look! Little love birds! Thank you Lara and Jim for letting me get up close and personal. Here's a little something to hold onto until we meet again!

The Smiley Family

Tiffany and Rick, thank you so much for a wonderful photo shoot! I wasn't just saying how smiley you all were to make you smile more, I don't think you needed any help with that. You are such a great family, so cute!! I look forward to doing some work at your new house, Wow!