While dog books litter bookstore shelves--cute, poignant or educational--Nice Nosing You stands apart. "A declaration of love for three rescue dogs who became life-savers, beloved family members and photo models," German photographer Elke Vogelsang's first book is a thank-you to the two of the family's three rescue dogs who saved her husband's life on Christmas Day, 2009. (Ioli, the one-eyed smallest one, joined the family as a foster dog two years later, and was invited to stay.)
Noodles (a Spanish sighthound, in the cover's center) and Scout (the buff-colored sighthound mix) were barking and agitated. When Vogelsang followed them, she found her husband, Carsten, unconscious. Doctors declared him "moribund," and for months he struggled to recover from a brain aneurysm and resulting strokes. "To have a creative outlet to cope with the nerve-wracking pressure" of Carsten's uncertain future, Vogelsang began a "picture a day" project.
Carsten eventually recovered fully, and Vogelsang's photo diary prompted a career change, from translator to photographer. Nice Nosing You, in a comfortable 10" x 7" format, sandwiches technically stunning photos with dog-centric quotes from famous people. Noodles, Scout and Ioli are posed in the studio, captured in nature, and shot in playful drapes of clothing. "Nosing" shots, featuring their distinctive black schnozzes, add humor. A final image is a lovely portrait of a hardy-looking Carsten with the dogs.
An index of thumbnails of each photo includes whimsical captions and specifics of cameras and parameters Vogelsang used, intended to be "helpful with your own photography work." Other photographers might hope for her eye and heart, as well. --Cheryl Krocker McKeon, manager, Book Passage, San Francisco