Taking the perfect pic of your pet doesn’t have to be something only a professional photographer can accomplish. You happen to be one of the best suited for taking pics of your pet. Why? Because, for starters, your furry family member LOVES you and loves getting attention from you. Also, you know all of your pet’s best poses, expressions, and angles!
All you need is a camera or camera phone, your pet, and these tips:
Keep It In Focus
Blurry photos rarely make it into photo albums or fine art photography, and for good reason – it’s hard to recall the moment the photo was taken crisply when you’re looking at smudges of color! These tips should help you to get your pup in focus:
- Make sure that you can get your pet to sit or lay still before taking the picture. If your pet is hyperactive, try to play a game of fetch or tug of war to tire him or her out. That way your furry friend is much more likely to relax for a bit and sit for you.
- Keep treats handy so you can reward your pet for sitting still.
- If you’re using a smart phone, make sure you know exactly how to bring the camera to focus on your subject. For example, if you’re using an iPhone, tapping the subject of the photo on your screen will force the camera to focus on your subject (and will often adjust the lighting automatically as well).
- Take a bunch of pics and look through them later to find the one that is most in focus.
Your Position Is Just As Important As Your Pet’s!
Sure, your pet may be making an adorable pose or expression and you just have to snap a pic, but if you’re too close or too far away, it’ll be hard to tell what your pet is even doing – what a bummer! These tips will help you nail down the proper distance and orientation for your photo:
- Don’t shoot your photo top down or looming over your pet. Often times you’ll get the rest of his or her body beneath and it can sometimes blend in weirdly.
- Keeping your camera or camera phone at around eye level with your pet will make for the best photo and Pawp Shop artwork.
- Don’t take the picture too close and make sure your pup’s face is not touching the edge of the picture.
- Unless you have a high quality zoom on your camera (most cell phones do not) take the picture no more than 6 feet away if you have a small dog, or 8 feet away if you have a large dog.
Be Picky About Lighting
Lighting is so important – without light, you wouldn’t have a picture, would you? Too much light is just as much a problem as not enough. Consider these lighting-specific factors when taking your photos:
- Natural, ambient lighting is ideal. If the sun isn’t out, just make sure to turn all the lights on in the room.
- If you have a darker colored pet, make sure there is enough light on them.
- Avoid too much light (overexposure). Direct sunlight can often wash your pet out, leading to a photo that almost appears to have white out smeared across it.
Set The Stage
Picking the right setting is important, though maybe not as much as you might think. What we mean is, it’s easy to get carried away with scouting the perfect location as if it were a wedding venue. You can take a beautiful pic of your pet in your living room with just a few quick tips:
- Pick a place where your pup is comfortable and not too excitable – the calmer, more familiar the environment, the better as your pet will be much more amenable to a photoshoot and much less likely to run off chasing a squirrel or stray ball.
- For a Pawp Shop art piece, taking your photo in front of a solid background (like a wall, a solid printed couch, or in the grass) is ideal.
Just Have Fun
Have fun with it! Get your pup’s personality out! If you’re having a good time, your pup is much more likely to enjoy their photo shoot. Again, employ some treats to get your dog behaving and excited.
What’s Pawp Shop?
Pawp Shop is our custom art program for your pet in which you submit your favorite, high quality photo of your pet to be celebrated and memorialized in a beautiful, custom piece of art. Pawp Shop art pieces make for great gifts and are a wonderful way to showcase your pet’s unique personality as well as remember pets who have crossed the rainbow bridge. Learn more on our Pawp Shop page!
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