+ WHERE ARE YOU LOCATED? DO YOU TRAVEL?

I’m located in Scarborough, Ontario, Canada, and travel throughout the Greater Toronto Area, Hamilton, Niagara, Barrie, Burlington, Belleville and beyond.

I do not travel to the United States or other countries to work. If you wish to work with me, I suggest you travel to Ontario and schedule a session. Road trip!!!

+ HOW DO I SCHEDULE?

The first step is to contact me at info@jessbellphotography.com to discuss available dates and to ask any questions you might have. We will then schedule a time to speak to go over details, chat about your pets, discuss what you hope to get out of the session and to review samples, products, my contract and pricing. A deposit is due at the time of booking to secure a date, and any remainder is due the day after your session.

+ WHAT IS INCLUDED IN A PORTRAIT SESSION?

Once we have decided to work together, there are three distinct steps that we will go through.

• DESIGN & PLANNING We will discuss exactly what you would like to achieve on the day of your photo session and how you would like to display your artwork afterward.
• PHOTOGRAPHY SESSION Your experience will be completely unique to you. Your portrait session will take place at a location of your choosing and will last between one and three hours. Each session is fully customized to your wants and needs.
• IMAGE REVEAL & ORDERING After I have processed your images, you will be provided a link to your online gallery. This is the time that you make your image selections and decide which you would like printed.

Once we have selected your favourite photos and how best to display them, I will edit the images to perfection, review them with you then send them off to my printer. You will receive your art within 4 to 8 weeks of our ordering session. Smaller photographic prints will be sent to you via mail. Larger pieces may be hand-delivered or couriered.

+ HOW FAR IN ADVANCE SHOULD I SCHEDULE?

Expect to schedule at least 2-3 months in advance. Special efforts to schedule sooner may be made for terminally ill or elderly pets.

+ WHAT KINDS OF PRODUCTS DO YOU OFFER?

It is my job to help you find the very best ways to display your art. I will personally walk you through the process of planning your images, capturing them, selecting them and finding the very best method to display them.

I offer a variety of beautiful options of wall art, albums and prints. All print orders are filled by a wonderful Toronto-area print lab which produces high-quality work and offers professional framing.

My favourite items are high-gloss metal prints to give your images some serious WOW factor.

+ DO YOU OFFER DIGITALS?

My photographic packages are bundled with collections of watermarked digitals for sharing online with friends and family. These images do not come with a print license.

If you would like high-resolution digital files and/or printing rights, they are purchaseable. Contact me to discuss rates.

+ WHAT DOES MY PET NEED TO KNOW? WHAT IF MY PET MISBEHAVES?

Your pet is not required to know anything! I can work with any level of training.

It is helpful to have a pet that knows how to sit or stand still while I move around them to set up a shot, and while their handler is several feet away. (But this is not a requirement!)

Some helpful and picturesque behaviours are perch (paws up on an object), head down on the ground, the animal holding an object in their mouth, paw/wave, stand up on back legs and recall. Dogs that will play fetch, and animals that are reliable off leash/at liberty make for some great photos.

WHAT IF THEY MISBEHAVE? Animals will be animals sometimes. They keep us humble. Even if your pup won't hold a stay, or if your horse won't settle, I can still find ways to create beautiful images for you. I have a few tricks up my sleeve when it comes to managing "misbehaviour".

FOR POWDER SESSIONS: Powder photography is a very specialized medium to use in photographs. Due to the complexity of the sessions, I do require that animals have a moderate-to-high level of competency in agility or similar sport. Frequently, the higher the level of training, the better the photos. If you're unsure of whether a powder session is suitable for your animal, contact me to discuss. I can review footage and if the requisite skillset is not quite there, I can provide resources to help you train for a future session.

+ WHAT IF IT RAINS? WHAT IF I HAVE TO CANCEL?

When we schedule a sunrise or sunset session, I normally try to schedule a rain date as well. I keep close tabs on the weather reports as our chosen date draws closer and will contact you if it looks like we may need to postpone our session to the rain date. If it is also raining on our rain date, we will reschedule to another mutually convenient date.

In the case of illness or accident, we will work together to find a mutually convenient date to reschedule.

Cancellations for other reasons may result in the forfeit of your deposit.

+ DO YOU OFFER ONLINE COACHING OR MENTORSHIP?

I have begun offering online mentorships and a powder photography Masterclass for those interested in taking their work to the next level.

I am happy to speak with you briefly if a fellow photographer has specific questions about my work. Email me at info@jessbellphotography.com with any questions you might have.

+ DO YOU SELL COMMERCIAL PRINTS AND LICENSES?

Yes. Much of my work is available for purchase as display prints to hang on the walls of you home, commissioned work or for commercial licensing. Email me at info@jessbellphotography.com to discuss usage, availability and rates.

+ WHAT GEAR/PROGRAMS DO YOU USE?

I shoot with a Nikon D5 or D850 and usually my Nikon 300mm f2.8 for action photography or my Nikon 105mm f1.4 for portraits.

I edit every image with Adobe Photoshop CS and Lightroom CS.