RSS
Home
Pet photography: Get to know your subject
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
Memphis patiently awaiting instruction from his owner.
Getting to know your subject is a key element in portrait photography. It is of utmost importance with pets.
With a human client you can question their likes and dislikes and find out a bit about what makes them click, and do so in a relatively short amount of time. A brief conversation with a few key questions is all it takes to determine what will be the best environment or setting to photograph your subject in or what look you are going for.
When photographing pets the process is not accomplished so quickly.
The conversation you will have will naturally be with the pet owner and not the subject of the portrait themselves. A few questions you might ask the pet owner are:
1. What is the pet breed?
2. What is the pet’s temperament?
3. What is the pet’s energy level?
4. What environment would be most comfortable for this pet?
5. Does this pet have a favorite toy or treat?
6. Is there anything this pet absolutely loves to do?
7. Is there anything they absolutely will not tolerate?
Once you know the answers to these questions a little research is in order. You might try doing an Internet search on canine breeds. Typing in canine breeds will produce hundreds and hundreds of search results such as The Canine Information Library or K9Power.
Most any results will give you a great deal of insight on the breed you will be working with. Research of this type is especially important when you are working with animal breeds you are unfamiliar with.
At session time the fun begins. It’s now time to get to know the pet by interaction.
You will need to spend some time earning your subjects trust in order to allow you to see their real personality. Just like humans, each pet you encounter has a personality all their own. Use the information you have gathered from the pet owner and your research to interact with the animal in a way that is best suited for them. You should spend several minutes or more with any pet before shooting. The out come of your portraits depend on it.
After you and your subject have spent the time getting to know one another you will be able to work with the animal to accomplish the shots you need for the best portraits.
It is important when photographing pets to be patient, persistent, and prepared to move. But that’s another story all together.
Gila Todd, St. Louis Pet Photography Examiner
All text and photography in this article, Pet photography: Get to know your subject is © Gila Todd , unless otherwise indicated. Available for reprint and/or publishing only with written permission from author. Contact Gila with your comments, suggestions, questions, and ideas
Related articles: Pet photos in the right environment
Related Articles:
Comments
