Northport, Alabama

This is my 22-pound “kitten” Rusty, one of a litter of four rescued from beneath a barn near the newspaper office where I worked four years ago. Because he and his siblings are the youngest in my household, I still call them “the kittens,” but the reality is that they are strapping specimens of feline health and vitality. With a soprano yowl that can wake the dead and curdle milk, he missed his calling to be a Siamese. Little escapes his notice and nothing escapes his piercing, multi-syllabic commentary, delivered in a wide range of chirps, trills, mews and meows.

Because of his happy, outgoing nature, this photo was surprisingly easy — it was just a matter of setting up the props and inserting cats at random. Boogie posed very primly for this photo like the good boy that he is, but Rusty won the day when he arrogantly strode towards the camera, tail high and slightly curved. Of course, he jumped off the table right after that, but even the fastest fat cat can’t evade a camera shutter tripped at just the right moment. The focus is a little soft, but this was hands-down my favorite photo from the session. Now if I could just convince him to start selling some of that art work…