Special Feature: Pet Photography IN THIS ISSUE’S Special Feature we are looking at pet photography. When we surveyed members of the PSNZ Facebook group, this was the second highest category requested. We covered the most popular category in the last issue. Rather than coming from a single contributor, this article incorporates content from online articles written by Judit Ruiz Ricart (Editor of the Wix Photography Blog) with additional content by the editor. Simplistically, pet photography is capturing animals which have been domesticated, however it is much more complicated than that. Pets become intricate parts of people’s families and we need to approach the photography of them in exactly the same way as we would any other family member. There is an old Hollywood saying that you should never work with children or animals. It is based on the fact that in many ways they can both be as uncooperative as each other. In fact there is a complete crossover set of skills between capturing pets and children. For the purpose of this article I have defined pet photography as falling into three different types: posed, candid and action. Posed images are completely staged and you will generally be trying to gain the full attention of the pet which will be fully aware of your presence. In candid images, the pet is being recorded doing its normal activities and may not be aware that you are photographing it. Finally, in action images the pet is actually doing something. The article is also written from the viewpoint that we are dealing with a planned shoot, rather than images grabbed when your pet is doing something cute. Having said that, many of the tips contained within it apply in both circumstances. Image by Anita Ruggle-Lussy
Well before you shoot
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Know your gear
As with other aspects of photography, the more familiar you are with your gear the better the results that you will achieve. Knowing how the camera handles certain lighting situations gives many more options to play with at the shoot. Most important is the ability to nail focus and exposure. As with portraits involving children or adults, pets’ eyes are the window to their soul and the key to a great photo. Having the eyes in focus is a must for any type of portrait but, like everything else, it becomes more complicated with pet photography.
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