Kaylee Greer - Dogtography: A Knock-Your-Socks-Off Guide to Capturing the Best Dog Photos on Earth

Writing a book is hard. (Understatement of the century.) And all the tiny steps it took to get where I stand today were somehow even harder. There are countless hearts behind the one I call my own. People who have come into my life and sprinkled their particular brand of light through the streak of my reality. Theyve molded me, supported me, loved me, and inspired me into existence. In some small way, theyve all had a part in the making of this book. For all the parts of these pages that are me, there are a thousand tiny parts that are them. Heres my moment to make sure they know it:

Some people give you life and leave it at that. Others give you life and then teach you how to fly. How lucky I am that my parents came together to be two of the latter.

To my dad, Charlie, the brightest light in any room, anywhere on earththank you. You taught me genuine kindness. You taught me honesty. With your hands, decorated in the battle wounds and scars of endless years of hard work, you taught me perseverance. I will never be prouder to have the kind of dad that shows up in dirty jeans, with calloused hands and motor oil-covered shirts, rather than having the kind of dad who wears snazzy business suits but never shows up at all. I will never stop trying everyday to be just like you.

To my mom, Lauri, whose astronomical ability for support could carry the entire sphere of earth on her tiny shouldersthank you for always believing in me, especially at those times when even I didnt believe in myself. The kind of love youve shown to me cannot be replicated anywhere, in any capacity, in any corner of the earth. Youve guided me through all the hard parts and cheered me over every mountain. You light up my life with love.

Together, Mom and Dad, you both taught me that I could do anything. And I believed you.

To my soon-to-be second set of parents, Fran and Dave, who have accepted me into their family with the warmest open arms. Their support has never wavered. They lent the money for my first-ever camera, believing in me from the very first moment I began to dream this very big dream. Thank you. This is a gesture of love that I will never forget, and one that I will never be able to properly repay. Your love and support drive me every day.

To Ted Waitt and Scott Cowlin at Rocky Nookthank you for looking at me and seeing more than just a hyperactive, overexcited kid in red overalls. Thank you for believing in me and all my wacky dog hair-covered adventures, and for inviting me to be a part of the family of renowned and talented Rocky Nook authors.

To Maggie Yates, my kind and brilliant editor. Thank you for your hard work and for dealing with my many dissertation-length, emoji-laden, 1 a.m. emails. Thank you for knowing when to take out the extraneous stuff, but more than that, thank you for what you let me put back in.

To Scott and Kalebra Kelby, Jean Kendra, and the whole team at KelbyOne. I will never forget the kindnesses you have shown me and how you lifted up an errant redheaded girl with nothing but a camera, some dogs, and a dream. You helped me share my story with the world. Your support and friendship is a gift that I cherish everyday.

I am lucky enough to call some of the most talented colleagues in this industry my dearest friends. A handful of those legendary talents leant their patient eyes and ears to me as I navigated the challenges of the writing of this book. For everything from the cover design to proofreading the content: thank you to Craig Turner-Bullock, Terran Bayer, Charlotte Reeves, and Nicole Begley for your unending support.

To Joy, Meghan, Alayna, Emily, Paul, Doug, and Dobby. You guys rooted for me the whole way throughthanks for checking in and lending your hearts when I needed the shoulder of a friend. And yes, the last name on that list is a dog. As it should be.

To all the shelter dogs who have inspired me, to all the clients who have turned into lifelong friends, to all the fellow artists who have shared kind words, to all the perfect strangers who have followed my adventures and enthusiastically supported me over the yearsthank you.