Photographing pets I (02.01.2017)

Text and photos: Kaire Rjadnev-Meristo

Chairman of the board of The Tibetan Mastiff  breed club
The member of the board of Estonian Tibetan Mastiff  Rescue
Member of Estonian Kennel Union
Member of American Tibetan Mastiff Association
Member of World Dog Press Association

Today’s photography has become really exciting for both, the professionals and enthusiasts. The choice of lenses and cameras is very wide and there is something for everyone – whether you want to photograph the eye of the spider or something bigger.

Pets are an important part of people’s lives today. It is possible to take part in different event meant for pets – from puppy schools to different formal and non-formal shows. More active dog owners may take part in agility trainings and competitions and of course, it is very exciting to capture all this on photos.

You don’t have to go to an event to photograph your pet – you can get nice shots of them at your home or in the garden or in some nice place in the nature.

Since it is quite hard to photograph animals and pets, you should start with the very basics – pets sitting, lying and standing up photos and from there on, photos of actively moving pets. If your dog is trained, it is worth thinking about what kind of commands you can use to achieve your goals. A family member or a friend might be helpful as well.


Choice of camera
When in 2014, I had an opportunity to purchase a new camera; we really looked into it at home. We preferred to stay with Nikon since my last camera was Nikon D7200. Our purpose was to buy a camera for very different situations – from photographing architecture until agility, dog sports and dog runs. In the end, we decided on D4s.

Since all the important dog shows are held indoors and these are very different, fast autofocus and good light sensitivity were an important aspect. Now, Nikon’s new D5 has come out that could meet my expectations even more.


Preparations
Photographing can be spontaneous or planned. When it’s spontaneous, the results are meant to be random – captured emotions, light, background, the composition, balance and quality can be very different.

When the shoot is planned, the results are going to be more even but there’s usually neither suddenness nor freshness that comes along with spontaneity.

If the shoot is planned, you should have equipment ready to catch the attention of the dog (treats, toys, sounds). You should pick a background and place to shoot. It is worth to clean the dog’s eyes, ears and comb their coat – you can do all that later in the photo processing phase but why waste hours on processing the photos when you can avoid this by doing it beforehand?

The height of the shooting
When shooting pets, drop to their height. If the pet is standing up or sitting, then crouch or knee to their level, if they’re lying, it is worth lying yourself. In that case, you get a front view of your dog and the proportions are correct. Often, people shoot downwards and that distorts the appearance of the pet – its head looks enormous and its paws small. With smaller animals, you can put them on a higher level – like on a chair, table, pedestal, and shelf but make sure that it is safe.


Getting attention
If the pet is lying or standing up, it is good to use a squeaky toy and make some sounds yourself to gain attention and get interesting expressions. I know a photographer whose phone is full of interesting sounds – from barking to baaing and mooing. Of course, you have to consider the reaction of the pet – when hearing an unusual sound, they might want to learn the source of the sound and then you have to start all over with getting their attention. You can call out their name to get their attention (this cannot be used when the dog is used to react to it as an invitation and leaves the spot), crackle cellophane or a plastic bottle. Treats and food are suitable when it is a dog but not with empty stomach – in that case, they will leave the spot to get it for sure. With cats, toys with feathers attached to a stick are what work very well when you move them to get attention. But this trick might not work many times in a row and thus, there should be different tricks.
 
The reactions of cats and dogs are very different – it depends on a specimen or breed. Since we choose the breed according to what kind of companion we want, it is important to consider their temperament and personality while shooting.

Spare some time and patience

Sometimes you get a perfect photo with the first click but usually, it takes a couple of hundred bad or unsuccessful photos to get one good one. If you would like to take photos of a lying or sitting dog, choose a time when they are a little tired – like after a walk. If you would like to shoot a playing or a running dog, it is better to do it before the walk.

Photographing puppies is a separate subject. The little ones mainly do three things – sleep, eat and play. The first activity makes up most of their time, during the second, they are hidden under their mommy’s belly and the third one may only last for half an hour. So, it is important to find the right time to get good photos. When they get older, their movements are fast and unexpected and in that case, you should let them ”play it out“ first and start shooting only when the pups have stopped running around like crazy.

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