Bender

To continue on the theme of cats, I have decided to dedicate a blog post to Bender – also known as Mr. B or “the most beautiful cat in the world”. I have known Bender for almost 7 years, so he was only a young 1-year-old when I first met him. The very first test pictures of my (then) new SLR camera were of Bender the cat, and these pictures are still some of my favourites, because they mark the beginning of my interest in pet photography.

I have seen Bender getting older and wiser, cuter and lazier (and also gain a few inches around his waist!). He is a Bengal cat, with beautiful stripes and spots, bred to look like a jungle cat. The rumour has it he’s only five generations away from a tiger… well, maybe not a tiger, but a wild cat anyway! Despite his size and the “wild” look, he has the softest and kindest nature, and he doesn’t have a single bad bone in his body (unless when it comes to scaring off neighbours’ cats from his territory!). He is friends with the local squirrel in the garden who regularly visits his family for a nutty snack, and generally tolerates everyone… that he likes ;)

The more pets I photograph, the more I learn how every animal is different in terms of how they respond to the camera. Some love the attention they get and are very willing models, some are just not bothered and not particularly interested at all. Unlike Saffy who followed me around the house, ready to pose, Bender doesn’t give a monkey’s about having his picture taken. Any photo session has to go by his rules, wills and moods, and not by the photographer’s schedule. In a way I feel it’s not a bad thing, because that makes the photos show his real character, exactly the way he is, every day.

Have a look at some of the photos I have taken of him over the years, and let me know what you think in the comments below :)

One of his favourite things is sitting or sleeping on the ironing board. It gives him a good view over the kitchen and the garden.

He also loves drinking water from the tap!

On garden watch!

This is the very first picture I took of Bender with my brand new camera in 2012. My photography and editing skills have improved a lot since then, but this picture is still one of my favourites!

Also one of the early pictures. Playing around with different effects.

Frosty garden!

Another one if his favourite things is woolly blankets!

Bender's Christmas portrait

Hope you enjoyed! :)

Kaisa x