Dogs at play are exhuberant, combative, and uninhibited. The do all the things pack animals will do...despite the fact that these are not wild dogs, but our own pampered pets, perfect to us in every way- great dogs! So friendly! When the dogs start playing, though, the humans become insignificant...almost invisible. Everything is probably as raw and honest as it can get. Certain dogs will be dominant, others fearful, and others joyfully brainless. They sniff butts, circle each other with aprehension, and body language signifies how the interaction shall proceed. Running, peeing, humping, biting, licking, and sharing time and space for awhile are the things that make up the world of the unofficial dog park where I photograph.

Rarely do I look thru the camera (Holgas) to take my photos. I have learned from experience that pre-focussing, instinctive aiming, and timing the shot well is what's needed. For each camera that I load, I get only 12 shots. Taking the time between shots to roll the film to the next position takes just seconds, but in the fast paced world of the dogs at play, it is an eternity. This project has spanned 2 years now, and it is something I look forward to every week...shooting, developing, scanning negs. It is a body of work that I am very proud of.

Holga cameras are inexpensive plastic cameras that use medium format film. Holgas are considered a creative "alternative" camera- exposure and focus are not exactly controllable (for exposure, you get a choice of "sunny" or "cloudy" and for focus you get "close", "kinda close", "not so close" and "far away"), so you never know what you're going to get. Vignetting is one of the different effects from the camera.

To all dog owners: I am printing small test prints from my quick digital scans. I bring them with me in the hopes of running into you again so I can give them to you. If you'd like to contact me about a particular image, you can call me 508-459-1251 or email erikasidor@yahoo.com, or I will see you at the park.