We love our pets, and we love taking photos to show them off to friends, post pictures online and frame their adorable faces on our walls. But, taking a good photo of your furry family member can be tricky. Your dog doesn’t understand what you’re doing, and your cat probably isn't going to respond when you’re calling her name. Here are some quick tips to help you get better shots:
Lighting
Paying attention to the lighting is the most important step you can take to getting better photos. Natural light is your best bet to give you a photo that’s visually preferable. Different times of day and different seasons can all impact lighting. Avoid indoor lighting if possible, but if indoors is your only option (like, if your cat is an indoor cat) try to take photos using indirect sunlight near windows. The light should hit the most featured areas in your photo. Avoid using a flash as this could result in discoloration of your photo as well as red or yellow eyes for your pet. It can also scare them which will make them want to run away, and then your photo shoot is over.
Location
The spot you select for photos should ideally be an area that your pet is comfortable in and at ease. Consider spending some time petting or brushing them before taking pictures, so they’re relaxed and happy. That way, they’re more likely to stick around longer, so you can get that great shot.
Focal Point
Get down to your pet’s level and focus on their features. This will come across in the photo that you’re in your pet’s world. Their face, particularly their eyes, are a great place to highlight. It’s hard to get your pet to look where you’d like, so having someone assist with noises or treats is helpful. You can also focus on other adorable features such as their ears or paws.
Capture their Personality
A great photo doesn’t have to be your pet looking directly at the camera with a perfect head tilt pose. Don’t get me wrong, those are fantastic! But, whenever you can capture their character, personality and quirks, it’s a successful photo shoot. Snap photos of them batting at a toy, gazing out the window, yawning or laying sprawled out waiting for a belly rub.
Experiment
There are a lot of photography programs and applications that can take your photos to the next level. You can brighten and enrich the color to make things pop, blur the background, crop and edit. It’s amazing to look at the "before" and "after" of the same photograph with some enhancements.
Try Again
You may not get the stunning photograph you’re hoping for on your first attempt. Your pet may be too sleepy, too energetic or the image just didn't turn out as well as you were hoping. That’s okay. It’s your pet, so you’ll likely have ample chances to try again. Enjoy it. Try different situations, lighting, angles and approaches. Eventually you’ll capture moments that you’ll cherish forever.
