Westway Studio

What do ice cream, beaches, and 24 dogs have in common? 🤔 Between a stop at Tillamook for outrageous amounts of cheese and ice cream, a second bucket-list beach horseback ride, trip sponsor photo shoots with 7 dogs, and volunteering with Clatsop Animal Assistance to photograph 17 of their adoptable dogs, we were going-going-going this month! Visit the blog to see all the photos!

The Great American Road Trip Season 3, Part 3: Northern Coastal Oregon I have to tell you: I love the PNW! So many good things happened around every bend this past month! Some friends came to visit for a few days, we met so many incredible new people and dogs, and I somehow lucked out with another bucket-list beach horseback ride! Plus, we had nothing but sweater-weath...

You know it's been a good day when you are absolutely covered in beach sand and can't stop smiling from ear-to-ear. Keely had a blast at our photo shoot for our trip sponsor, a few weeks ago! She got to enjoy the most delicious Wellness Puppy Bites treats, get lots of love, and run full-speed on the beach! Best day ever!!!

I cannot even tell you how much I love this ridiculous bulldog. He is full of personality and will make you laugh at every opportunity. In this photo, Archer was taking a little snuggle break with his mom before we started out shoot for . I knew if we wanted any snuggly and cuddly photos, we were going to have to do them before the food & treats came out — because once they did, they were all Archer could think about! Yum!!!​​​​​​​​​
We are so grateful for our amazing models, Archer & his mom, and our incredible trip sponsor, Wellness, who has been with us since day one of our Great American Road Trip series that started three years ago. 💛

Choose adventure. Always. 🌿

Getting to shoot photos in Oregon has been an absolute *dream!* We've had the most amazing models (who have driven from extreme distances), the most picturesque locations, and a wonderful mix of sun, clouds, fog, and rain (sometimes all in one shoot). Good luck getting me back home, that's all I'm sayin'.

A big THANK YOU to our flagship trip sponsor, Wellness Natural Pet Food for Dogs and Cats for joining us for all three years of our travel adventures and always putting their trust in us to create something special! We love sharing Wellness products with all of our models!

Want to know what we think of Oregon? You better read the blog to find out! But here's a little teaser: I checked off TWO really big bucket list items. ✅✅

The Great American Road Trip Season 3, Part 2: Southern Coastal Oregon As we drove north and said goodbye to California for the next few months, Oregon welcomed us with open arms — and rain, wind, and wonderfully cool temperatures. In other words, I was thrilled! No, really, I was. It was exactly how I always pictured this beautiful state and it did not disappoint. ...

Season 3 of our Great American Road Trip is officially underway. It has been a season of change but we are happy to be on the road again. April was spent traveling up through California to visit friends & some of our favorite redwood trees! There are lots of fun photos on the blog so check it out!!

The Great American Road Trip Season 3, Part 1: A New Beginning | Westway Studio | San Diego, CA The one constant thing about life is change. And change came for us in some serious ways over the past few months. In late January, we helped Roxy over the rainbow bridge to meet up with her friends and family, who I am certain welcomed her with a great deal of love and excitement. I...Read More

And the Oscar goes to... ​​​​​​​​​
Archer!

Our trip sponsor, GoldPaw, wanted to get some inside shots of their full-body Sunsie because it's awesome for dogs who are healing up from an injury or surgery. We told Archer he needed to pretend that he wasn't feeling 100%. Never one to miss a dramatic moment, he gave us this. 😆

Thank you to for sponsoring our third Great American Road trip! We are THRILLED to share their amazing dog gear with pet parents up the west coast this year!

What's better than pizza Friday?​​​​​​​​​.
Pizza Monday.

Thanks to our sponsor for being a part of our first, second, and third Great American Road Trips and for helping us share the most drool-worthy toys with dogs all around the county! 🤤

Our 2024 Great American Road Trip kicked off this month in sunny San Diego! It is home, after all, and we'd be remiss not to share a little sunshine with you all! ​​​​​​​​​
For our first trip sponsor photo shoot, Archer, the most lovable bulldog with the biggest personality, stole the show (as expected). With his joyful energy and waggly little b***y, Archer truly embodies the spirit of "dog." 🐶

Thanks to our flagship sponsor and their drool-worthy WHIMZEES dental chews — that were always Roxy's *favorite,* by the way — Archer's playful nature was on full display. He had us laughing hysterically with all his "GIMME THE TREAT, MOM" snorts!

Join us on our unforgettable 2024 journey filled with lots more laughter, joy, and wagging tails. 🚗🐾

As we set off on our next big road trip today, I have news to share. I shared it on my personal FB a while ago but wasn’t ready to post it publicly. But it’s time. It is with both sadness and gratitude for the past 16 amazingly adventurous years, that I share the news of Roxy’s passing in late January.
Roxy passed peacefully at home, outside on her bed in the warm breeze, surrounded by love. Two of her aunties came to see her and Greg, my mom, and I were with her the whole time. We are heartbroken but know she lived the very best life and we made the right choice. It wasn’t a day too soon nor a day too late. She let us know, without a doubt, that she was ready. She’s now out of pain and running free with her friends at the rainbow bridge.
I don’t want this to be a sad post, though, because, as I said, we also feel immense gratitude for every single day and adventure we had with her. I thought, instead, I’d share a few of Roxy’s adventures, accomplishments, and favorite things:
States visited: 29
National Parks visited: Yosemite, Death Valley, Zion, Bryce Canyon, Grand Teton, Yellowstone, Glacier, and Acadia
Favorite places to be: anywhere with her people but especially the ranch or out adventuring with the Airstream
Favorite travel destination: anywhere cold and snowy, especially Big Bear and Mammoth
Least favorite travel destination: Death Valley (“where the heck is all the grass, mom, and why in the world is it so hot?!”)
Favorite weather: anything below 50º is great but anything below freezing is strongly preferred
Least favorite weather: thunder and lightning
Favorite foods: cookies from Grandma, ground beef (boeuf, as we would call it), deer legs (a true ranch dog!), alligator-shaped dental chews, hickory pill pockets ("puppy pill time is the best time!")
Favorite drink: ice cold water straight from a creek
Favorite holiday: Thanksgiving (yum!)
Least favorite holidays: Fourth of July & Halloween (so scary!)
Favorite toy: anything stolen from another dog
Favorite thing to manage: other dogs having too much fun ("Bark, bark, bark! Settle down!")
Favorite boyfriends: Max, Tank, Cooper, and Baxter (all very big, very young, very energetic boys — except for Tank, who was a tiny chihuahua!)
Favorite nicknames: Puppy, Gouda, Drama Llama, The Queen of the Block, The Huffington Post (she huffed a lot), Hufflepuff, Panter Q. Pantington, and more
Total number of cozy beds: 10 (A girl's gotta be comfortable!)
Favorite place to sleep: anywhere within ear shot of her Mama
Least favorite activity: anything with water
Life's best moments: playing in the snow in Big Bear, sitting by a beautiful river in Montana, camping under the stars, "skiing" in her carriage in Mammoth, riding in her carriage on the Carriage Road in Acadia, growling at an alpha female wolf in Yellowstone from the comfort of her truck den, running & playing with her doggie friends, chasing & growling with Maya on our puppy play dates, beach days spent watching the waves and napping under an umbrella, napping in her carriage next to a warm campfire in the wilderness... and so many more.
Roxy was the best road trip companion, protector, and adventure buddy. She is missed beyond measure.
We love you with all our hearts, Roxy-girl. ❤️

The weather in Bozeman sure kept us on our toes! As much as I love dramatic skies, my internal monologue goes something like this: please no big hail, please no big hail, please no big hail...​​​​​​​​​ ​​​​​​​​​The rain sounds so amazing inside the Airstream, though, so I really do love stormy weather when we're camping. It taps on the aluminum roof and skylights in the most soothing way. At night, it puts me right to sleep!

Head on over to westwaypets.com/blog to read the Season 2 finale of The Great American Road Trip!

Happiness is a day spent outside with your best friends, don't you think?

Wyoming better move on over and make some room because Montana now shares my heart. We spent 45 days in the western half of the state this year and I did NOT want to leave.​​​​​​​​​ ​​​​​​​​​On our last day, Roxy and I sat out by the Gallatin River together. I sipped my morning tea, we listened to the birds, and watched a little squirrel eat a nut in the tree next to us. It was pure perfection.

Read The Great American Road Trip, Season 2 Finale on my blog:

The Great American Road Trip Season 2, Part 5: The Finale It feels like our 2023 Great American Road Trip was over in the blink of an eye! Our final month-ish of travel was spent alongside the jagged Bitterroot mountains and alongside creeks and rivers in the quiet pine forests of Southwest Montana. I told Greg more than once that I wasn’t leaving — an...

We're officially back in San Diego but I'm still dreaming of Utah! Photographing Rey and her mom among the red rocks was one of the highlights of our trip. Rey's beautiful brindle tones worked so perfectly with the red rocks and I just loved the happy, natural smiles both mom & pup had when they were together!

I absolutely loved this peaceful spot in Jackson Hole. Down a gravel road, away from the tourist crowds, the Teton range stood nobly in the distance while tall trees, yellow wildflowers, and a friendly little chipmunk called this hilltop home. This was such a special evening and Mother Nature's dramatic sunset is not one I'll soon forget.

Here's a little Montana sunrise sparkle and a big smile from Henry to start your day!

Hello, Las Vegas! Shutterhound starts TOMORROW!!!! I know how hard the conference founders, Kaylee & Sam, have been working to pull this all together and I am 1,000,000% confident this will be an event to remember! I am honored to have been asked to teach two separate classes at the event and am so excited to get up there on stage and share what I've learned over the past 13 years as a pet photographer! Are any of my social followers here at the conference, too? Are you ready to have your socks knocked off????? I am!!!

Who's ready to go have some fun this weekend???

We wrapped up this year's road trip in Big Sky, Montana and this was our final hike. Roxy rode in her carriage and was as happy as a little clam the whole time. She loves being out in nature and I'm just so glad we can still provide her with special outings like this one.

This year's Great American Road trip flew by way too quickly. It feels like we were in Wyoming just yesterday, staring out at my favorite mountain range in awe, and photographing the amazing Harley and his mom.​​​​​​​​​

​​​​​​​​​I'm flying out to Las Vegas next week to teach at Shutterhound, *the* conference for pet photographers. I'm excited to see old friends, meet new ones, and teach two classes! I am so honored to be part of the "rockstar speaker" lineup, which includes some of the very best, most iconic, and talented pet photographers from across the globe! Can Vegas even contain so much talent? As the conference founders are telling us, expect your socks to be blown right off more than once!

Montana taught me that I can plan and plan and plan — but Mother Nature likes to have a little fun with those who get a little too confident in the weather! ➡️ We got completely drenched at one of our photo shoots this month and it will be one of my favorite memories from our entire road trip!

Sunshine-filled sunrises have become one of my favorite things to photograph during this trip. There has been something so incredibly special about the morning light as it rises above the mountain peaks and sparkles through the trees, warming the tall grasses and bringing pure summertime goodness with it each day.​​​​​​​​​ ​​​​​​​​​Mylo is wearing his Featherweight Harness & Sun Shield Tee from , the perfect combination for a quiet nature walk in the mountains!

Cool, rainy days in the mountains are my favorite. Montana was everything I had dreamed it would be — and I'll admit that I got a bit teary as we had to say goodbye after 45 days. I may not physically be there anymore but my heart remains.

PSA: There are a select few products in Roxy's life for which I am so incredibly grateful. Brushzees WHIMZEES are one of them. Roxy has had terrible dental health her entire life (despite daily brushing) until we were introduced to these chews. I was so excited when our trip sponsor told me they were sending some for us to photograph this month! This magical little dental chew has made a world of difference for us and I *l-o-v-e* sharing it with others. The Brushzees pictured are Roxy's favorite and they truly keep her teeth sparkling white and plaque-free. As you can see, Ollie was pretty excited for them, as well! YUMMA!

When we're out on the open road, exploring new places, and having new adventures, we do still think about home! We love getting text messages and phone calls to say hello. Photos of home and all the fun things going on while we're away are always appreciated. Video calls are great, too! I had one with a friend recently and it was sooooo nice to see her and chat face-to-face.​​​​​​​​​ ​​​​​​​​​I also often get questions about how we are able to make phone calls and text while we're on the road. We're not always in great cell coverage areas and RV campgrounds have notoriously poor internet — so, we bring our own. Just as we took off for our inaugural journey last year, announced their satellite internet for RVers. We immediately signed up and have been so grateful for it ever since. We can be in the middle of nowhere and still be connected to the outside world (there are pros & cons to that, am I right?).

If you're an RVer, what's your favorite way to stay in touch with your friends & family back home?

It was a sunny day and the forecast said sun, sun, and more sun. We were mid-way on a mile-long hike up to a gorgeous waterfall when we heard a *huge* boom of thunder. We walked as quickly as we could up the steep terrain but the clouds rolled in, bringing the thunder with them. It started to drizzle on us as we got closer to the waterfall. When we finally got to our destination, I trekked cautiously through the frigid mountain water to a little island for a better shooting perspective. That's when the skies opened up and it began to pour! I positioned myself under a pine tree to protect my camera gear from the rain as best as possible. Our doggie model, Goose, ran and played in the water without a care in the world! He was so happy to be playing with the InfiniDisc and didn't mind the storm one bit! The rain continued to get harder and harder so we packed up and headed back down the trail before it got too slippery. We were all drenched by the time we got to the parking lot!​​​​​​​​​ ​​​​​​​​​Montana has kept us on our toes this entire trip so it's no surprise she decided to put her own spin on our photo plans. I'm so glad she did; I love how they turned out!

When I found out that Josie, the incredible German Shorthair Pointer you see here, loves to go paddle boarding with her mom .pterry, I immediately envisioned her on the front of the board, in the middle of one of Montana's gloriously blue-green lakes, wearing a Sun Shield Tee. I'm so glad her mom was on board (literally) to not only go out on the water for our shoot but to also meet two strangers waaaaay down a dirt road in the middle of nowhere! 😆​​​​​​​​​ ​​​​​​​​​This particular morning was a bit cool to start but warmed up quickly as the sun rose over the tall pines and illuminated the crystal clear water. Josie had an absolute blast floating around and watching the nearby loons as her mom paddled around. Don't worry, we didn't bother the loons!

Swipe over to the next photo for a little behind-the-scenes of me working on this shot! When I couldn't quite nail my vision from shore, I trekked right on in to the brisk water!

Funny story: while shooting, I felt something tickling my foot and thought it was a fish but when I looked down, it was a happy little crawdad checking me out! 😆🦞 I said hello and asked him to please not pinch me. Thankfully, he obliged!

Last summer, a client came to me and said, "Terran, we need a pit bull type dog running through a creek, straight at the camera, with a smile on his face, splashing water, and trees in the background." Never one to turn down a challenge — and trust me, it was a challenge — I excitedly accepted! After scouting locations across multiple states and searching high and low for the most perfect dog models, here’s a little behind the scenes of me nailing the creative brief. ➡️ What do you think of the results?

In case you didn't know, I'm a planner. I leave very, very little up to chance. When I found this spot along one of the many gorgeous rivers in Montana, I pulled up my favorite app that tells me when and where the sun will be at any given time of the day. When I saw it was going to come up over the mountains with this view, I knew, hands down, I had to shoot it for our trip sponsor, . I saw this shot so clearly in my mind; now I just needed the perfect models!​​​​​​​​​ ​​​​​​​​​Enter a big ol' hunk of Chocolate Lab named Henry and his beautiful mama! I kept my fingers crossed that they would agree to a 5:30am sunrise shoot and when they did, I knew magic was going to happen. (Listen, I'm not a fan of waking up before the sun but trust me, when I ask you to meet me at sunrise, it's for a good reason!)

Henry and his mom were absolutely incredible in front of my lens! Henry is the sweetest boy and was all about the treats. 😋 I can't wait to share more of their photos with you!