About Sanctuary Studios

Sanctuary Studios was created in the Fall of 2004 and is making huge strides toward becoming the Baltimore area's premier source for pet portraits!

Our Services

Sanctuary Studios is a full-service pet portrait photographer with a difference. We come to you!

Your pampered pooch or favorite kitty is a sensitive creature. They get skittish and nervous in strange surroundings, and they like to be in an environment where they feel safe and secure. Why have their portraits taken by a photographer who requires that you drive them and all their personal props halfway across town to a strange studio? The poor things will be stressed out by the time the first frame is taken.

Our services are different. We pack up a fully functional studio's worth of equipment and bring it to you and your pet, to wherever they're comfortable. And it shows in the final result. Relaxed and happy pets take better pictures. Our mobile portrait studio serves Baltimore, Baltimore County, Harford County, Carroll County, Frederick, Anne Arundel County, Annapolis, Howard County, Laurel, and Montgomery County. Don't despair if you're not there! Give us a call, and we'll be glad to discuss your needs.

When you call us for a sitting, we'll arrange a half-hour consultation by phone or in person to discuss the location, meet or hear about your pets, and talk with you about the style and type of photography you're looking for. Once we set a time and date, we'll arrive for a sitting of up to two hours. We'll make it as formal or informal as you like, with whatever props you want to use.

At the end of the sitting, if you like, we'll show you any digital proofs from the session and allow you to pick your prints. Or, alternately, you can take a proof CD so that you can look them over at your leisure.

We hope you'll consider Sanctuary Studios for all your animal and pet photography services.

The Photographer

My name is Theresa Calvert Novak. I'm a pet portrait photographer. Your pet portrait photographer.

I've always been an artist. Asking me "how long have you been an artist?" is like asking me "how long have you had two eyes?" If you mean to ask me when I started formal art training, the answer would have to be since I began formal schooling. I've spent all of my life learning to "see" rather than to just "look".

Photography provides instant gratification unlike any other art media. We hear all the time that a camera, no matter how advanced, is still just a box with a hole in it. With that in mind, doesn't it seem much more magical to be able to permanently capture a fleeting moment of light and shadow that will never occur exactly that same way again?

A good photograph is riveting. You'll want to look at it again and again. I like things to be beautiful and interesting. I do pet photography because I love animals and they respond well to me. I think that translates into my work, and as a result I'm able to provide you with photos you'll enjoy for years to come.

The Dog

The sable Sheltie you see all over the site is Bonnie, our little furry girl and mascot for Sanctuary Studios. She's a patient model and test subject for propping and lighting setups.

Anything you'd like to say, girl?

BARKBARKBARKBARKBARK!!

We thought so.