ABOUT ME

Any modern marketing guru is going to tell you to "find your why." Why you do what you do.

Ugh. I hated that.

"I love photographing beauty." So do a million other people.

"I love animals." It's a given.

"I want to be my own boss." True, but lame.

I dug deep and it made me cry.

I have a fondness for black animals, it goes back to my childhood. Our dog was Diablo, a black cockapoo. I just adore black animals and since our first dog, I've had a lot of them.

One day quite a while ago, a black kitten came into my yard. A towel had fallen to the ground and in the morning, she was sleeping on it. So I fed her. I had two other cats at the time.

And I honestly fell in love with this little cat I named Junior. She never left.

A feral cat, Junior couldn't be touched for at least six months because she didn't know the pleasures of being petted by a human hand. She lived outside with everything... a heated dog house, warm bedding, shelter from the rain and meals every day along with vet care. When she moved into the house, she became my constant companion, truly my little soul mate.

And guess what. I don't have one decent picture of her. At that time, phones weren't quite the thing they are now. So I have a few lousy film photos of her. A black cat in the bright sun. Or a black blob in the shade. You can imagine how gorgeous those are. I won't keep you in suspense, they are not gorgeous.

Around her 14th year, she became ill. And her spirit was leaving her. The happiness and contentment were no longer in her face. She was fading. I took a few phone photos on the bed. She doesn't look healthy. I don't even know if I can find them now. I took photos of her at the vet on that day. I can't bear to look at them.

So I offer my photography to you now. When I began photographing animals, it was everything I wanted it to be. It ticked all the boxes. If anything I grow even more obsessed with crafting beautiful pet photography.

My hope is is that everyone with a beloved pet gets a professional photography session at least once. In fact, it doesn't have to be with me but get it done in the style you like. And be in it! Then you can see how much they mattered.

You will never regret having those and that I promise you.

 This 1991 photo of my then-6-month-old boy Typo still makes me happy every time I see it, especially because he's been gone for so many years.

--Diana Lundin has lived in Los Angeles since 1989. A former newspaper reporter, television producer and website editor, she has been a Los Angeles pet photographer since 2013. Her first book, "Dogs Vs Ice Cream," was published in 2019 by Familius.