Close Up With Petograpiya

Fur-mom photographer craves the candid

- Stef Dela Cruz, Md

We live in a click-happy era where social media is part of life, right up there with food and water in our hierarchy of needs. But not all clicks lead to filtered selfies, a fact many are secretly thankful for, and some even yield memorable photos of loved ones…

…Even those born with tails and fur.

Yes, pet photography has officially arrived! Ask Gia Lara, the lady behind the lens of the truly pioneering and now-famous “Petograpiya” brand, and she’ll tell you why having your pet photographed is worth every click.

THE “PETOGRAPHY” PHENOMENON

Of the many subjects photographers can focus their cameras on, why pets?

“Why not?” Gia answers. “We spend a good chunk on them [when it comes to] time, money, and love. It is like taking pictures of what is precious to us. Pets are more than just pets; they are family.”

An animal welfare advocate herself, Gia is the proud human of ten cats and one almost-eleven-year-old bunny.

“Petograpiya is all my passions combined. I’ve always wanted to become a photographer and I still vividly remember starting to take pics of Booni, our rabbit, with a point-and-shoot camera.”

A few months after, she bought a DSLR. “You can say that my skills grew along with my pet bunny.”

Starting her pet photography in 2010, her business started to grow—and so did her furry family. “From having one bunny, the family expanded to having multiple cats. Imagine all the practice that comes with having a lot of muses. I literally took pictures everyday.”