Photogenic Sämpy looks so perfect in the snowy Finish landscape. They go together like Finnish blueberry pie and ice cream. They live in Kalimenkylä (Kalime), just north of Oulu which is in the north of Finland. The landscape reflects that location: majestic forests and wide open nature.
“I think that in a good cat picture the cat needs to be natural and do its own cat things.” – Riikka Redman
Sämpy looking at home, sprinkled with snowflakes. It is as if he has been decorated like a Christmas tree…Photo: Riikka Redman
Sämpy looks like a purebred Norwegian Forest cat with his beautifully dense tabby coat which is so right for the icy landscape in which he loves to play, explore and be photographed.
More precisely he is a tabby-and-white, a coat pattern which fits the landscape. The tabby pattern has that entirely natural appearance. It is the way domestic cats should look because it is directly inherited from the wild cat ancestor of all domestic cats.
Sämpy has a very light pattern on his dense and full coat. We don’t see spots, swirls or stripes but the famous M tabby mark is there for all to see on his forehead.
Sämpy in the meerkat position surveying his domain, the snowy forest landscape of north Finland. A wow picture. Photo: Riikka Redman.
He has this cheeky, charming face. It is a very open and friendly face, slightly mischievous as if ready to enjoy every moment of his great life in the north of Finland. He loves to hunt mice and voles like most domestic cats.
He also loves his food and a lick of butter pleases him. His ‘secretary’ provides dry and wet food with some treats such as salmon. Yes, he is royalty. His mates at his home are Elmeri, Hiski, two more male cats. I must mention Nelli, who sadly passed away in early 2019.
His photographer (‘secretary and servant) is Riikka Redman. Some of her best photos are of Sämpy jumping over obstacles. Sämpy and Riikka have really mastered this genre of picture. I love his focus and intent in those photos and the way his coat flows like water in the breeze.
Sämpy is a celebrity cat. It all kicked off when Riikka won a great camera in a photo contest in 2014. She photographed Sämpy jumping and it was published in in a local newspaper. This lead to Facebook and Instagram pages and voila, Sämpy was well on his way to becoming famous.
Sämpy, doing what he does best: jump over barriers having fun.
You know..in the world of cat photography (and that is a genre) there is almost nothing better than an attractive, longhaired cat enjoying himself or herself in the dense snow within the forest. It’s magic.
Location
Note: these are embedded photos from Facebook (and one from Instagram). They may disappear someday. See more on his Facebook page.
