Tips on photographing your dog, part one

"Enough with the camera, already!"

I've had a few comments asking how I get Cloud to sit so nicely for his pictures, so I thought I'd make a series of posts about it. I'm in no way an expert, this is just what I've picked up over the years of photographing Cloud and what seems to work for me.

First and probably the most important thing, is to get your dog used to the camera. If your pet starts running around when he sees the camera, or stops doing the "cute" thing you wanted to photograph, or is afraid of the camera, then you need to go slow and get him used to it. Make him think the camera is just part of the scenery. (Cloud thinks the camera is an extension of my arm, lol.) Just take a few photos throughout the day, whenever you think about it, and act like it's no big deal. They don't have to be anything spectacular, (you can always delete them.)

If your pet is extremely camera shy, take pictures of something in the same room until they get used to any noise the camera makes. In fact, if you pointedly ignore them, they might feel left out and decide your attention with the camera is a good thing! You can also try to put your camera up to your eye and give your dog a treat. Soon they will start looking forward to the camera. Of course if you plan to photograph your dog often, you might want to try to get him comfortable with the camera without needing treats, lol. Remember - always be patient, keep your sessions short, and don't get discouraged... your dog will pick up on that and dislike the camera even more.

I always act very nonchalant when I pick up the camera. No, "Oh boy, lets take some pictures boy!!!" You don't want to get them all revved up. Oh, and if your dog is clearly not in the mood to sit still, then let him play or run it off and try again later.

So now that you've got your dog used to the camera and not acting like a dork when he sees you with it, there are several things important for a good portrait shot: a calm dog, good lighting (NO flash!), the right perspective, a little patience and LOTS of photos.

1. Calm dog - Clouds best photos are when he's relaxed yet alert, lounging in his favorite chair or hanging out in the yard. I'm always aware enough of him that I can tell when there's a good opportunity for some photos.

Here is Cloud lounging, focused on me. Pretty much waiting to see if I'm going to do something important like leave the room, lol. Not a great photo, but a good example of 'calm but alert.'


I got some great shots of him in the chair that session. In this one, I'm sitting on the floor so that I'm at his eye level, and moving my hand on the floor to get this lovely shot of him looking down. Oh, those ears!


You can get wonderful shots when your dog is distracted by something in the background. They don't always have to be looking at you.


Profile shots are beautiful too, I love them! Here is the photo I used for the painting that's my blog header. To this day, one of my favorite paintings! Looking at this older photo, you can really see how my baby is starting to go gray around the muzzle.


Stay tuned for part two - Lighting, and why you shouldn't use flash!

Because dragons like flowers too...

Sometimes you just have to draw a happy dragon!

I've been busy the past week working in the yard, planting lots of flowers, and helping hubby build a fence (I'm now a pretty good shot with a nail gun, lol!)

Before:

After:

Look at this gate he built, I love it!!! I call it the hobbit gate. :-)

Yesterday I planted honeysuckle to climb the arbor. It smells so good!

We still have to make flowerbeds along the section of new fence. I guess that is the next project. Have a great weekend everyone, and don't forget to stop and smell the flowers!

Wordless Wednesday - Barred Owlets

I know it's Wordless Wednesday, but I just had to tell you that a. These owls are living in my friends backyard, and b. I wish I had a longer lens, lol! In the last picture you can see the parent is carrying what looks to be a dead squirrel to the babies. When he saw me taking pictures (I was a good 40 yards away) he flew away.

Wordless Wednesday - After the rain...

Wordless Wednesday - Moss, Magic, and Mist

Back from vacation!

Hubby and I spent a week in the great state of Washington. For me it was love at first sight! So green and lush, so much to do and see. Here are some of my favorite photos. The first picture is from a hike we took at Olympic National Park on our first day. It was so misty you could barely see the tops of the tall trees. It was magical, silent except for a creek and the birds.

We spent a day and night in Vancouver BC. Tim Hortons and all you can eat sushi, yay! This next photo is from the beautiful Stanly Park.


We went to the Vancouver aquarium and got to see Beluga Whales up close. There was even a baby! It was so cute to see it nursing from it's mama.

In front of the aquarium was this beautiful Orca sculpture.

View from the front. I loved the face carved into its forehead.

Here is the spectacular Snoqualmie Falls, just north of Seattle.

We hiked down to the bottom.

Driving through the countryside we found these skulls perched atop a fence outside of someones house. Kind of creepy, but way cool!



Spent a lot of time in the urban jungle of downtown Seattle, where we drank WAY too many mochas, enjoyed the best people watching EVER, and took in the art museum.

Seafood at the famous Pikes Place market:

Obligatory Space Needle shot. Is that blue sky??? YES! It was sunny a lot of the time we were there.


We went back to Olympic National Park for a day, this time driving down to the Southern area of the park. There were lots of waterfalls and the moss grew thick on the trees. It was very surreal.

If you can stand another waterfall picture. I know, they're pretty hard to take...

The awe-inspiring Kalaloch Cedar:

This tree is huge, the biggest girthed Red Cedar in the world. To give you an idea of its size, here I am standing in the "door."

Side view:

The beach was a stones throw away. It was COLD, and windy, and so beautiful!

Facing the wind and watching the sand snake towards me was incredible! If it wasn't so cold I could have stood there for hours...

Hope you enjoyed the pictures. There's a tendency (at least for me) when taking photos to become so wrapped up in the photography aspect that you miss out on what you're taking pictures of. I could feel myself going there sometimes, and had to bring myself back by just setting down the camera and taking it all in. So I actually didn't take as many photos as I normally do when traveling. (I think I have 4000 photos of Sedona, lol!)

I feel so inspired by the beauty and Native artwork of the Pacific Northwest. Time to get back to work!

Vacation mode...

Just wanted to let everyone know I'm on vacation this week, so there may not be much in the way of posts for a bit, lol. I'll catch up on posting, and everyones blogs next week. Have a great weekend, everyone!

Wordless Wednesday - Gold rush!