If you live in Carnegie and have been out walking lately, you have probably already met Harry and given him a pat.
Looking like a fluffy teddy bear, Harry gets attention wherever he goes – he’s adorable! And just a little playful….
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Cavoodles — Melbourne’s Favourite Dog
Harry is a Cavoodle, and if the streets of Carnegie are anything to go by, he’s in very good company. The Cavoodle — a cross between a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and a Miniature or Toy Poodle — has become one of the most popular dog breeds in Australia over the past decade, and it’s not difficult to understand why.
They are, almost without exception, extraordinarily good-looking dogs. The teddy bear description that follows Harry wherever he goes is one that Cavoodle owners hear constantly — that soft, wavy coat, the large expressive eyes, the compact rounded face. It’s a look that stops people on the street and prompts strangers to ask what breed they are approximately fourteen times per walk.
But the appeal goes well beyond aesthetics. Cavoodles inherit the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel’s legendary gentleness and affection alongside the Poodle’s intelligence and low-shedding coat — a combination that makes them genuinely excellent companion dogs for a wide range of households. They’re typically great with children, sociable with other dogs, adaptable to apartment living, and deeply attached to their people. The flip side of that attachment is that they can be prone to separation anxiety if left alone for long periods — they are, at their core, dogs who want to be with you.
Photographing Cavoodles
From a photography perspective, Cavoodles present both a gift and a mild challenge.
The gift is that face. Those large, round, dark eyes — inherited predominantly from the Cavalier side — are among the most expressive in all of dogdom. A well-lit close-up portrait of a Cavoodle is almost impossible to get wrong. The eyes draw you in immediately, and the soft coat frames them beautifully. Harry’s teddy bear quality isn’t accidental — it’s the Cavalier’s rounded skull and large eyes combined with the Poodle’s soft coat texture, and it photographs with a warmth that clients consistently tell me is exactly what they hoped for.
The mild challenge is that coat. Cavoodles come in a range of colours — gold, cream, chocolate, ruby, black, and various combinations — and the lighter-coloured dogs require careful attention to exposure. A cream or apricot Cavoodle in bright sunlight can easily blow out to a featureless white mass. The solution is soft, even light — open shade, early morning, or overcast days — which is fortunate because those are the conditions that produce the best results for almost any dog.
Harry’s playfulness — that slightly mischievous quality the caption hints at — is also very typical of the breed. Cavoodles are curious and engaged, which means they’ll give you wonderful natural expressions, but they’re also easily distracted by anything interesting happening just off-camera. Working quickly in burst mode and having a good treat strategy pays off with this breed.
Carnegie — Shooting in Melbourne’s Bayside Inner South
Carnegie sits in that pleasant pocket of Melbourne’s inner southeast — close enough to the bay to feel its influence, surrounded by leafy residential streets and the kind of neighbourhood dog culture where everyone knows everyone else’s dog by name before they know the owner’s.
For pet photography sessions in the Carnegie area, a few locations work particularly well. Koornang Park is the obvious starting point — a well-maintained local park with good tree coverage and open grass, close enough to the suburb’s heart that it feels genuinely local rather than a destination shoot. Caulfield Park, a short distance north, is one of my regular recommendations for clients in this part of Melbourne — large, mostly off-leash, with mature trees that provide consistent soft light through much of the day.
For clients who want to incorporate the bayside character of Melbourne’s southeast, Brighton Beach and the surrounding foreshore are accessible within fifteen minutes and offer that distinctive coastal backdrop — the coloured bathing boxes, the open bay light — that photographs with a very specific sense of place.
If you’re based in Carnegie, Caulfield, Murrumbeena, Bentleigh, or the surrounding suburbs and you’re thinking about a session, I know this part of Melbourne well and have a shortlist of go-to locations depending on your dog’s personality and energy level.
Thinking about a session for your Cavoodle? View our packages and pricing here — sessions start from $150 across Melbourne and the Mornington Peninsula. Get in touch here to discuss locations and availability.
