The Art & Technical Expertise of Michael Kloth
I started this business because of a dog.
Not because I planned to be a pet photographer. Not because I had a five-year business plan. I had a thirteen-pound terrier mix named Little Bit who was diagnosed with lymphoma in December 2004, and I picked up my camera because I didn't want to forget a single day of whatever time we had left.
I'd had the camera for about a year at that point, shooting landscapes and flowers, nothing too serious. But something about that diagnosis made me want to document everything, the daily walks, the treatments, the rawhide negotiations, the naps in the sun. So I started photographing her every day and writing alongside the photos in her voice, because Little Bit had opinions about things and it seemed wrong to let them go unrecorded.
That journal found an audience. By spring 2005, Dogster had featured it as diary of the day, and Little Bit was getting mail from dogs across the country. Reader's Digest picked up her story. People I've never met still count themselves as friends from that time. What I didn't fully understand then was that the daily practice of making those photographs, finding the right light, the right angle, the expression that said exactly who she was, was teaching me something I hadn't set out to learn.
Around the same time, I enrolled at the Academy of Art University to study photography formally, starting in the undergraduate program before moving into the MFA. My application portfolio wasn't landscapes or florals. It was shelter dogs, photographed around Lexington, Kentucky, and in the studio. The work I was doing for Little Bit had pointed me somewhere specific, and I followed it.
In 2005, friends introduced me to Sandy Davis, the marketing director at Woodford Humane Society and an accomplished artist in her own right. That introduction started a volunteer relationship that has never really stopped. Sandy passed away a few years ago, but her words about that early work are on my community involvement page, and they still mean a great deal to me.
Little Bit died in August 2006. The business I launched that same year grew out of everything those two years had taught me. Not shelter photography as a side project added later, but shelter photography as the foundation the whole practice was built on. I've been photographing shelter animals across three states ever since, first in Kentucky, then in Washington, and since 2011 in Tucson, where I've worked with Pima Animal Care Center since 2013 and the Humane Society of Southern Arizona since early 2025.
Where I Am Now
I'm based in Tucson, where I've been working since 2011. I serve clients throughout the greater metro area, including Oro Valley, Marana, Vail, and the Catalina Foothills, bringing professional studio equipment directly to your home, office, or outdoor location. I don't have a studio you come to. I bring the studio to you, which produces better photographs anyway, because people and animals are more themselves in familiar environments.
My work divides into two specializations that inform each other more than most people expect. I create fine art pet portraits for families who want to celebrate the animals that matter most to them. And I create professional headshots for executives, entrepreneurs, and professionals who need portraits that do real work in the world.
The Heart of the Practice
Nearly 20 years of photographing shelter animals taught me something no classroom could: you cannot rush an authentic moment. Anxious dogs don't perform on command. Stressed cats won't pose for treats. The best images come when subjects feel safe enough to show you who they really are.
That patience translates directly to photographing people. The professional who's uncomfortable in front of a camera isn't that different from the shelter dog who needs a few minutes to trust the process. My job is creating the space for authentic moments to happen, not forcing them.
When you work with me, you're getting someone who's spent two decades refining both technical expertise and the interpersonal awareness that makes subjects comfortable. I've photographed thousands of subjects, dogs, cats, executives, entrepreneurs, families, and learned that the authentic moment everyone wants in their photos comes from the same place: feeling seen, not just photographed.
That's what I've spent 20 years learning to do.
Credentials, Translated
I hold an MFA in Photography from the Academy of Art University. In practical terms, that means I understand light design, color theory, and how images work compositionally, not just how to operate a camera.
I'm a Certified Professional Photographer through the Professional Photographers of America. The CPP designation requires passing a rigorous technical examination and meeting ongoing continuing education requirements. It's the photography industry's clearest signal of professional standards.
I'm a member of the American Society of Media Photographers, the professional organization for photographers working in commercial and editorial contexts.
My work has been featured in exhibitions including the Washington State University Exhibition Center, 1650 Gallery in Los Angeles, and Projekt 30. I've been published in PDN Photo Annual and recognized in competitions including the Moscow International Foto Award and PDN Faces Competition. A selection of my photographs is licensed through Getty Images.
I'm the author of two books on shelter animals, Shelter Cats and Shelter Puppies, published by Merrell, and the German edition Findelkatzen from Knesebeck. The books were reviewed internationally, including in Amateur Photographer and the Daily Express.
My work appears in the TMC Foundation's permanent Healing Art collection at Tucson Medical Center. I've presented lectures at Washington State University and appeared on NPR's Dog Talk and Martha Stewart Living Radio.
I served on the Advisory Council of HeARTs Speak as Artist Development Specialist from 2010 to 2016. HeARTs Speak connects professional photographers with animal shelters to raise the visual standard of adoption photography nationally. It was a natural fit. More recently, I've been writing about AI, craft, and what it means to stay a photographer in a fast-changing industry at artofphotographyai.com.
My fine art paper prints are produced by me in my studio on a professional Epson 9900 large-format printer, the same class of equipment used by fine art print studios. Each print is hand-inspected before it ships.
The Volunteer Work
I photograph regularly at Pima Animal Care Center and have since 2013. I started volunteering at the Humane Society of Southern Arizona in early 2025. Before Tucson, I photographed for rescue organizations in Kentucky and Washington, including the Washington Department of Corrections Ridge Dogs Program and the Kadlec Hospital Pet Therapy Program. I've also worked with Arizona Greyhound Rescue, PAWSitively Cats, AZ Beagle Rescue, Hope of Deliverance Rescue, and a number of smaller organizations over the years.
This isn't a marketing strategy. I was doing this before I had a business card and I'll be doing it after. But it does mean that when a nervous animal needs me to slow down and wait, I know how to do that. And it means that when a client tells me their pet is shy or reactive or has never cooperated for a camera, I've probably worked with something harder.
You can read more about this work, including a note from Sandy Davis about those early years at Woodford Humane Society, on my Community Involvement page.
Service Areas
I serve Tucson, Oro Valley, Marana, Vail, and the Catalina Foothills. If you're outside these areas, contact me. I'm often willing to travel for the right project.
Let's Work Together
Whether you're looking for a portrait of the animal who has your whole heart or a headshot that finally looks like you on your best day, I'd love to hear from you.
Contact me at mike@michaelklothphotography.com or call 520-301-3340.
