02/09/2026
🌸 Celebrating Women Behind the Lens | Emma O’Brien 📸
Women's Month may have come to an end, but we're continuing our celebration of the incredible women behind the lens and the stories they tell. 📸🌸
My Story
My journey into photography was inspired by W. Eugene Smith, whose documentary work showed me that photography could do more than create something beautiful; it could tell important stories, make the unseen visible and create real change.
After studying photography in the UK, I began my career as a wedding and portrait photographer. But after moving to South Africa, one unexpected adoption changed the direction of my journey.
In 2011, I adopted Jeremy the Dachshund from Sandton SPCA and volunteered to photograph a fundraising calendar. That same year, I began photographing dogs looking for homes at CLAW and became an accidental dog photographer.
I saw that when a shelter dog was photographed as an individual and allowed to show its personality, its chances of being adopted increased enormously.
Fifteen years later, I still photograph CLAW's dogs. Along the way, I've won awards, created exhibitions and published Mutts, a book celebrating mixed-breed shelter dogs. I also photograph much-loved family dogs, creating beautiful memories their people can treasure forever.
My Message to Women Behind the Camera
✨ Know your why and discover what is uniquely yours.
💛 Find that strength, value it and build upon it. Know your worth and recognise the individual value you bring to every shoot.
