That Arizona Girl Photography

Based out of Benson, AZ. I am lucky enough to live in the unique and diverse Sonoran Desert, which provides beautiful photo opportunities of our local landscapes and incredible backdrops for photos with our 4 legged companions.

My Story

Hi ! I'm Monique Vargas,

I have always loved photography and have always had a camera with me for as long as I can remember. I also have always had animals in my life, and when I turned 16, I knew I wanted a career with dogs. I quickly found a job working in a boarding facility, and when I turned 18, I worked my way up to working in veterinary clinics as an assistant and technician while I went to school to work on my prerequisites to apply for veterinary school.

Well, life took a change when my husband joined the military. We started to move around, and school was put on hold. My love of always having a camera with me would play a huge role at this time of my life, as I wanted to document everything as we traveled, especially living overseas. This also changed my career path with dogs.

We took in our second dog while moving duty stations. She was a complete handful, but I loved training with her and seeing that her "handfulness" was just that we didn't know how to communicate. Training with her gave us a closer relationship, and we would go on to have so many adventures together.

This also slingshotted me into the world of Professional dog training, which I absolutely fell in love with. I would go on to become a certified dog trainer when the military offered a grant for spouses to attend a trade school.

Since then, I have enjoyed a successful 15-year dog training career, but photography has remained a passionate hobby of mine. In 2023, I decided to take that passion more seriously and return to school to pursue a degree in Digital Media, concentrating in Photography.

I started That Arizona Girl Photography when I decided to take my love of adventuring with my dogs, the outdoors, travel, and Photography and turn it into a career.

Having been a dog trainer, I have a unique perspective in keeping your dog feeling comfortable during our sessions. Having had dogs of my own, I understand the importance of documenting memories with your pets.

I would love to go out on an adventure with you and your dog and capture those memories of them for you. I would also enjoy photographing unique, exotic pets that most other people may feel uncomfortable around.