Amanda Jones

New York Times Article: 11/13/2005

Thu, 13 Nov 2025 15:27:09 -0800

20 years ago today this article in the New York Times changed my career and my life. It is hard to say how things would be different if this never saw the light of day. But it did and it led me to twenty years of working with amazing dogs and their humans all over the country. I am so grateful to Andrew Adam Newman for the idea of the story. 🙏

Here is the article:

Smile and Say Bone

By Andrew Adam Newman

Nov. 13, 2005

On a recent Sunday morning, Amanda Jones arranged lights, set out snacks and erected a stark white backdrop in a rented a photography studio in Chelsea as she awaited her clients. Briscoe, her 11 o'clock, bounded in with so much excitement that his companion looked worried.

"He totally went on the way but sometimes when he gets excited -

" explained Jessica Pell, hurrying in after him in.

"Don't worry, it happens all the time," Ms. Jones said.

Ms. Pell then quickly passed a check to Ms. Jones. Her mother would be arriving soon, and Ms. Pell didn't want her to know that she was spending $850 to have her dog photographed. Ms. Jones, 38, kicked off her shoes and got to work, setting off the flash to get the 11-month-old Brussels griffon accustomed to the bright light and feeding him Pup-Peroni.

"If you get a dog who doesn't care about food, you're sunk," she said as she squatted and waved a treat with her left hand. She moved it to the left and Briscoe looked to the left. Click. She held her hand over her head and Briscoe looked up. Click. She meowed and his ears perked up. Click. She squeezed a squeaky toy and he cocked his head. Click.

"I had to learn how to shoot with one hand," Ms. Jones said. Click.

"I set the focus where I...Read More

Dog Years

Fri, 17 Mar 2023 11:00:57 -0700

I was a teenager, lying on the living room floor of our family home in Connecticut, flipping through the classified ads in our hometown newspaper. There was nothing that stood out to me. I was only sixteen, not of the age to seek employment as an accountant, secretary, or law clerk; waitressing was a guaranteed opportunity, but I was looking for something more enjoyable, something more exciting. I wished that “photographer” would appear somewhere among the lines of printed text. It was a job I had seen in action: my parents spending hours in our darkroom, the chemicals and the reactions and the precision all melding to form one beautiful image. Rolling Stone. Annie Leibovitz. A vision. But nothing more, seeing that the job I found that summer was as a camp counselor in Long Island.

Much like the difficulty of taking one small, personal moment and etching it into a collective memory, photography is a fickle job, one that must be molded from your own efforts and advances. That vision never left me, and I resided in doing whatever it took to realize it. I finished high school and moved on to Ithaca College for their well-known photography department. After many hours in the darkroom, I received my degree and faced the difficult task of creating my own job.

When a dog is a puppy it doesn't know anything. It has to forge a new world, a small existence, from the beings that surround it - the humans and the dogs - to acquire the skills it takes to be a part of a pack. To gently bite when play-fighting, to lap water from a bowl without dribbling. How to heed a command. How to avoid tripping over too-big paws.

I began my work as a dog photographer with very little knowledge. I didn't know how to...Read More

Amanda & Annie

Mon, 13 Jan 2020 18:14:30 -0800

Amanda Jones & Annie Selke

Annie Selke has been a friend and an inspiration to me for many years. For those of you who might not know her, Annie is the force behind the brands Pine Cone Hill, Dash and Albert and recently, Annie Selke. She is a huge dog lover and that's where our worlds overlap!

Annie has long featured dogs in her companies' promotional materials and branding. Her rug company, Dash and Albert, is named after two of her dogs. I have had the good fortune to have photographed for her companies and for her personally on numerous occasions. She enjoys a good dog photoshoot and is always up for the energy they take! The above video will give you a glimpse into that world... we photographed her basset hound puppies, Googy and Impy when they were just a few months old.

Recently Annie has launched a line of dog products: 'The Well Appointed Pet', that includes grooming products, dog beds, collars, leashes and very cute bandanas. We were asked to create some of the signature images for the launch. Here are a few behind the scenes images from that shoot:

Here are some of the images they used in the promotion of the new line:

We look forward to future collaborations. You can see her new dog products at annieselke.com!

The Nose Knows

Mon, 28 Oct 2019 14:24:16 -0700

A collection of some of our favorite snooters!

Do you hear me?

Tue, 22 Oct 2019 08:39:45 -0700

A million different ears...

Some stand straight up.

Some flop in half.

Some dogs ears can even fly.

The variety of shapes and sizes is endless.

Some dogs take years to grow into their ears.

Ears are one of the best parts of a dog.

In Your Eyes

Wed, 09 Oct 2019 07:04:15 -0700

I start with the eyes...

When a dog comes into the studio for their portrait session, I always start with the eyes.

I have the dog sit on the set and I set the lens squarely on their eyes.

Their eyes tell me a lot about what is going on with this dog. Are they confident or scared? Whether or not they trust me. And whether or not they are game for their photo session.

Just like humans, dogs' eyes are they and humans read each other. It's how we make strong connections with these fabulous creatures.

Don't you just love how your dogs eyes light up when you start talking to them about how it's time for dinner, a walk or a trip to the park?

I know it makes my heart sing!

The eyes are how the owners relate to their dogs, so it makes sense to make the starting point of the session their amazing eyes!