"She encourages cat owners to resist the urge to clutter the photo with props such as fake flowers, stuffed animals or cat costumes. 'Cats are beautiful creatures,' Flick says. 'They do not need adornments.'"
This quote from a professional cat show photographer was featured in an article about photographing your cat in Cat Fancy from Jan. 2009. I was a little peeved when I first read this advice since my philosophy of cat photography involves adorning the cat with as much as it will tolerate.
I realized that this "purist" view is typical of Cat Fancy magazine with its preference for pristine purebred physiques. At first I was amused by their centerfold poster inserts, with the selected breed of the month posed like a Teen Beat idol, but in reality it's a little creepy. A magazine of nude cats with ads in the back for how to go about purchasing them. And dressing your cat up is supposedly humiliating? (To the cat.)
The key to writing a good story is to make sure something's at stake for your characters, to put them in situations and ratchet up the tension until something is revealed about who they are. This works just as well in situations of dire absurdity. This is the basis for my approach to photography with the cats. It's not about adornment. It's about seeing how my cats react to being thrown into a situation he or she hadn't previously contemplated, to being partnered with objects he or she might not normally be drawn toward, to be adorned in vestiments that provide that glimmer of who your cat might be if he or she walked on two legs and pants were required.
Strombeek prances upside down and pants-less.
The addition of a red ruff brings out Strombeek's inner drunkard so she can bond with her inanimate rat brethren. 
While shiny things bring out her inner hoarder. She especially likes to hide pennies under her paws. 
Louie's pants-less afternoon. . . 
With a tie, becomes unwinding from a hectic day at the office. 
I think you get the picture.
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