I love photographing dogs. However, like with most animals, it can be a struggle to capture that perfect image of them. I believe everyone wants a beautiful photo of their dog, so if you're a beginner photographer or just a puppy mommy/daddy wanting to learn, I have a couple of tips that can help you get a better photo.

Have Fun

All dogs just want to have fun, so have fun with them!

They can pick up on our moods pretty quickly, so it's important to project what you want from the dog. For example, if you want a calm photo of them, talk softly to them and use treats. But if you want a playing photo, act excited and bring out their favorite toy.

Don't get frustrated with them. Mainly, because it's pointless, but the dog will also feel your frustration with them. It'll make them confused, and more unwilling to work with you.

Timing

Getting your timing right is going to take a lot of practice, but it's worth it. Dogs will quickly flash us an adorable smile or give use goofy eyes, and we have to be ready for that moment. It's the difference between an okay photo and an amazing one.

Fast Shutter Speed and High Continuous Shutter

Having a fast shutter speed and putting your camera on high continuous shutter will help a lot with your timing. Dogs move really fast, you'll blink and they're off doing something totally different, so having your camera set to these two settings will be extremely helpful in getting your timing down. Plus having a shutter speeds that's too low will just give you a bunch of blurry photos.

Good Lighting

To have a fast shutter speed, you need good lighting. I love capturing a dog's photo outside, typically a cloudy day or when the dark shadows have gone away from a sunset. This is my preference, because I like the images lighting to look soft.

However, this may not be your "perfect" lighting. You may like to have harsher light in your photos and that's okay too. As long as you can have a fast shutter speed, outdoor photos are based solely on your preference.

When capturing indoor photos, window light typically has the best results; however there are also continuous lights you can buy or a hot shoe flash (make sure it's directed away from their eyes).

Use Toys and Treats

Dogs love toys and treats, so they're very helpful to get a dog's attention. I would suggest using treats for the calm, portrait photos. Toys can easily over excite the pup you're photographing, which is great for the active, playing photos! Overall, they're an excellent way of getting the pup to look at the camera and keep their attention on you.

Use Props

I feel as though props are underused in pet photography. In other genres of photography, props are used all the time or at least once in a photoshoot. However, in pet photography, they seem to be an afterthought.

Props can really add more to the image, so definitely use them whenever you can. Blankets, backdrops, sticks, the pup's favorite toy, pumpkins, and anything else you can think of. The options are limitless and it'll really add more to your image.

Focus on Their Eyes

This can be a struggle with dogs who have longer snouts. Knowing where the camera is focusing is something you need to be aware of at all times when photographing them. Dogs have very expressive eyes, so keeping them in focus when photographing them is crucial.

I understand a lot of people love the photos that are close up to their noises and have their eyes out of focus, but I hate them.

Get on Their Level

Since our adorable pups are usually much smaller than us, we always see them from above. Photographing the dog at their level brings the viewer closer to them. It will also have more impact on the viewer and it shows off the dog's personality better.

This will mean getting down and dirty with the pup, which they will love! And why I always wear old jeans to outdoor dog photoshoots.

Be patient and take some time to get to know the dog before you start photographing them. Working with dogs is very rewarding, so I hope my advice helps beginner photographers or puppy mommies/daddies wanting to learn.

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