I was showing my book of pet photography the other day and, blush, blush, the person looking at it said the photos were really good... even of the ugly one.

Well, the ugly one is my "niece" Lola, a 6-year-old Schnauzer ensemble that was rescued from a bad Midwest puppy mill when she was about 7 months old. She ended up with my sister Denise and it's pretty safe to say that Lola is the love of my sister's life. And the feeling is quite mutual. They definitely have the feels for each other. In fact, my sister's husband pretty much knows he's No. 2. 

Now Lola is beautiful in the way all of God's children are beautiful. But her personality? Oh Lordy, that girl has personality. Her eyes... deep pools of sensitivity. Now a lot of dogs are just happy, happy, happy but Lola has a joie de vivre you hardly ever see. She knows the sweet life my sister has given her and she gives it back to her fullest. 

I just came back from a trip to Arizona where they live and I didn't want my pet photography skills to become rusty so I brought along some pillows and blankets to shoot Lola. 

We ran out of time, of course, but we managed to find a big bank of window light where I made a little set for Lola that I thought she would look good against. 

I whipped out treats and toys from my bag of tricks. With Lola, you want to see her flying ears. And she delivered.

Here's my niece Lola. Beautiful, no? 

OK, you've twisted my arm. Here's the first slideshow I did of her last year. 

I'm Diana Lundin and I'm a pet photographer in Los Angeles. Call me at 818.481.5214 and let's make an appointment for your dog or cat!