Spirit Pictures

Every now and then I come home in the middle of the day when the dogs aren't expecting me, and I catch them in a nap. They've jumped up to greet me, but they're groggy-eyed and cozy and the bed is still warm from their body heat. One hollowed-out hole beneath the sheets indicates where Reggie's been sleeping, and a smaller swirl of blanket marks Paco's domain. My little bears.

These images of deer beds by photographer Katherine Wolkoff capture the spirit of the animals long after they've moved on. Each print is 40x50"—nearly life-size—allowing the viewer to truly experience the essence of the deer. James Danziger sums up the moving series best on his blog, The Year in Pictures:

Katherine’s latest series are photographs of deer beds, and they are both subtle and stunning. (Deer sleep in beds of deep vegetation they press down with their bodies in order to hide from predators. They never lay down in the same bed twice, but the imprints can remain for several days.) What we see in the photographs are swirls of trampled grass, wild flowers, and a shadow outlining the hidden impression of the deer’s body. What we feel is the animal’s spirit, if not something deeper.