P#15 Q1: What Is the Single Biggest Mistake People Make when Taking Dog Photographs?
How to avoid the most common mistake people make when taking dog photographs
When it comes to taking dog photographs, there are common mistakes and pitfalls you want to avoid. Fortunately, you don't have to tread into this territory blindly. Jenni Bidner was more than willing to share some tips on how to avoid the most common dog photography mistakes during her 7 Photography Questions interview.
Don't Leave Home Without It
Jenni Bidner: I'm going to answer this question in two parts. The first is really obvious -- don't leave your camera at home.
I'm guilty of that too because I don't want to lug around a big old SLR camera, but there's almost no excuse to leave home without a camera with all of the point-and-shoots that are out there today.
I have a little Powershot. It has aperture and shutter priority, cost under $200, and anytime I go out for a walk with my dogs, take them out to play, or go to agility class, I put that in my pocket. I've taken a number of professional shots for my books with that camera.
Sure, it's not quite as good as the digital SLR, but if the light's right and the dog is right, and everything comes together, you want to be able to take pictures without having to bring a bulky SLR with you wherever you go.
The Right Angle
From a tech point of view, the single-biggest improvement you can make is to avoid getting too close, too wide, and too high.
We're so used to having our dog on a six foot leash that we tend to take our dog photographs from that angle. It's just not complimentary.
What you really need to do is zoom your lens all the way to the telephoto setting -- or put on a telephoto lens -- move way back, and then get down low to the dog's eye level.
On your Pomeranian, that means you're on your belly. You have a little bit of an advantage with a Great Dane.
Angle really makes a difference. It's just like photographing your children, and it makes sense. Since "dogs are people too" you should do that with your dogs. That little change will take your pictures from snapshots to wonderful images.
Audri Lanford: I love it. That's such a great suggestion.
Jenni Bidner: You can break that rule too. I'm just going to cut in and add that if you want to, for effect, break the rule when you want to get a little lower and make them look like king of the mountain. Or if you want to make them look really, really cute and cartoon-y, you might break that rule and shoot close and down or close and high.
But always start with the other and break the rules only for legitimate reasons.
In Summary
Avoiding the most common pet photography mistakes really isn't too hard. First and foremost, keep your camera on you at all times. Then, make sure you photograph your dog from an eye-level angle. These two simple steps can make all the difference in the way your dog photographs turn out.
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