Shooting the family dog.

[Joel Bookhammer]

So last night I was asked to shoot a family dog along with their son this coming spring. What I would like is some pointers on how to incorporate a family pet in with a picture. The candids shouldnt be too difficult but what Im loathing is getting the dog to pose with the up and coming senior for some nice portraits.


Any pointers on what works well for getting the dogs attention, should I tripod the camera with a remote, go handheld, which lens would be best (24-70 2.8, 70-200 2.8 IS, 85 1.2) etc.Im leaning more towards the 85 1.2


So any help with the posed portraits would be great....if you have examples, feel free to post them at will. Oh the dog is a chocolate lab.


Thanks


Joel

[Alan]

So last night I was asked to shoot a family dog along with their son this coming spring. [;)]
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Say it isn't so, Joel!

[clemmb]

Oh the dog is a chocolate lab.
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Lots! &amp; Lots! of patiance.


Any of these lenses would be great. I think I would lean to the 24-70. I always start with tripod but sometimes have to handhold. The lens and hand hold alows for faster adjustments. Us a clicking type noise maker to perk the dogs ears up but be careful. I tmay make him jump up. Just play around and have LOTS of patiance.


Mark

[piiooo]

Any pointers on what works well for getting the dogs attention


Treats is the answer. Use the type that the dog likes and (very importatnt) his/her stomach is used to. You don't want to swamp them with a vet bill. Believe me those things happen[;)]



should I tripod the camera with a remote, go handheld


I usually go handheld at high ISOs. Its usually the pet that moves most, so tripod does not help too much. Have the owners help you with posing and keeping their dog's attention.



which lens would be best (24-70 2.8, 70-200 2.8 IS, 85 1.2)


My favorite lens for kid and pet shots is 70-200 2.8. You can frame a moving target easier with a zoom. You do not need anything wider than 2.8. Too shallow DOFmay blur dog's muzzle which does not look natural.


My last piece of advice iscontrol your technique but foremost take manyframes.In my personalexperience there aren't a lot of keepers when you shoot pets.

[Cory]

I would probably say that I am a Dog owner first and Photographer second. Always have had 1-3 dogs in the house.


I'm no expert... but while it will depend on the dog... I would say use the 70-200 2.8 IS Lon autofocus for the casual running around candid shots if you're shooting in a larger open area and maybe swap to the 85 1.2 on manual focus for the 'portrait' shots (make sure your DOF is sufficient).


If needed (i.e. if it's a dog that has a hard time holding still) wear the dog out before the portrait shots. You might end up with a little more panting, but you can always give the dog a few minutes to cool off or just take a lot of shots and pick out the good ones (which you should do anyhow).


Hopefully the dog won't mind the camera being pointed at it. It's not real common, but one of my current dogs doesn't like it when you're pointing the camera at her. I suspect it's a previous owner problem (was a rescue), but it's really hard to get a decent photo of her if she isaware of you doing it. If this becomes a problem the longer lens will probably be mandatory and you'll need to make an effort to not get noticed by the dog.


I'm at work right now, but when I get home I'll post a couple shots of past and present pets.

[Joel Bookhammer]

Alot of good advice so far.



Alan: I figured that fraising would raise an intersting response :)


I like the idea of attempting the wear the dog out before hand, as well as using a treat or "clicker".


With the 85 1.2 I was planning on using a higher aperature to insure sufficient depth of field, I have only been able to use it a couple of time so far on jobs, and in the results I have had so far the 85 1.2 is significantly sharper at 2.8 then the 70-200 is, but when I get past 5.6 so far they have seemed about even with full body shots.


Thanks for the advice so far and Cory I lookd forward to seeing your pictures.


Thanks


Joel

[Dave Johnston]

Haha Alan, Totally what I was thinking!

[Sean Setters]

So last night I was asked to shoot a family dog along with their son this coming spring.


I'd use a deer slug on the dog, but leave the kid alone--unless he's really annoying you.

[Joel Bookhammer]

Thanks Sean, I was planning on leaving the kid alone it, but unfortunately I donot own a slug gun, closest is a 300 win mag. :)


Sean have you shot anyone with a pet or an animal along with flashes? The only thing I've ever shot was a girl with her horse, and the horse wasnt too spooked by the flashes going off, not sure if you have any input with flashes and animals but if you do it would be greatly appreciated.


Thanks


Joel

[Sean Setters]

Hmm....let me think. I do remember one shoot where a family wanted a dog in their family picture (more of an after-thought, really), but they couldn't get the dog to stay still so we simply didn't do it. So as far as how well pets react to the flash, I don't know.


However, I do know that when I set up and shoot, I'm shooting in that particular location because that's where the lights are. I move when the lights do. Sometimes it's hard to get pets to sit still right where you need them. That's when the painter's pole and Kacey Pole Adapter comes in handy (assuming you have an assistant). You could simply follow around the subjects until the opportunity arises where they're both still and comfortable wherever they are. Amber and I used this technique while photographing a wedding reception not too long ago. The mobile setup worked relatively well (and look how happy Amber looks to be carrying around the lighting rig...she's so cute!). I purchased a 25" Creative Light translucent umbrella specifically for this use. I figured the smaller umbrella would still soften the light a bit while allowing for much more maneuverability in a crowd. For your use, I can't think of a reason why you couldn't use a normal 43" umbrella for even more flattering results.






http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2608/4010039550_b45dd705e6.jpg ("http://www.flickr.com/photos/budrowilson/4010039550/)
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2484/4010043096_3f5b82ac47.jpg ("http://www.flickr.com/photos/budrowilson/4010043096/)
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2629/4009273649_c2b0b063b6.jpg ("http://www.flickr.com/photos/budrowilson/4009273649/)



http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2507/4009278495_72a3d6df91.jpg ("http://www.flickr.com/photos/budrowilson/4009278495/)

[Cory]

My old Doby/German Shep mix (Misty). Probably, hands down, the best dog I'll ever have owned and by far the best to date. Smartest, most obedient, most well mannered, social yet appropriately protective... all of it. There is only a single time I remember having to actually discipline her and (unfortuantely) it was simply a 'pack' reaction when she was younger. She lived to almost 15. I'm working on setting up a wall of 'floating frame' pictures on a stairway wall and this will be among them.


I like this shot simply because it looks natural. If you are trying to get a good shot of just the dog try to get a distance shot of it trotting towards you (i.e. the owner next to/behind you) and into the light. Get it's attention with a treat or command, but try to keep it from running full tilt towards you. The only thing I wish I could change about this one was the dark spot on the right side of her face.


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One of the current dogs (Max). Perfect light and angle (well maybe not PERFECT but...). It's hard to get coat and eye detail on a dark colored dog.


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[BES]

My thoughts...lab is an energetic dog, will want to check out you and your stuff. I would use 70-200, big time!


I have two bulldogs and I use my 70-200 because if I use something shorter while in the park they come running to me for cookies, so being a tad in a distance gives me advantage. At home, different story. They are so used to me pointing that thing at them that I use my 50 f1.4 all the time few inches away from their noses because it is so light and I do not need to use flash to annoy them. Then again...they do not move much, so there is a big difference in breeds and personalities.


Consider it a challenge and have fun. I am a big dog lover and love taking pictures of my pups, cannot wait for you to post your pictures--if you can. Good luck.

[Cory]

Random shot caught with a cardboard point and shoot.


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The Jeckle and Hyde cat. He's not quite all there.


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And another former dog and current cat.


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[twistedphrame]

I did some head shots for my roomate today and my other's dog was over so I did some shots of her. As far as flashes goes test one first away from the dog, general dogs that are gun shy or hate thunder will get really really scared others don't mind too much, I would think the amount of ambient light already in the room or outdoors would affect how badly they react. My roomates dog was really hyper the entire time she was at the house but once we set her on the couch she calmed right down and actually posed really nicely, so if theres a spot the dog likes I would put him/her there.


heres one of the nice ones today of the dog


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[jimgarvie]

Joel,


depends on whether or not the dog has any obedience training: if he won't sit/stay, you're going to have a long session. I use my 17-55 F2.8 for pet shots and I get their attention with a squeaky toy or a Milk Bone. In the studio, I use one or two dog-wranglers to actually do the baiting and I hand-hold on the floor either sitting or laying on my belly. You need to get low.





Outdoors, I'll use my 580EX for fill and, again, have somebody else bait the dog while I do the shooting. Only if you have an extremely well-trained dog can you both do the baiting and take the photo. At dog show when I'm doing the formals, I toss the toy with my left hand and hand-hold the camera with my right. Takes some practice.





Here are a few shots of my boy, Rowdy, that were taken on his 10th Birthday a couple of years ago. The first was taken with my 85 F1.8 wide open; the second with my 70-200 F4L. I tossed Milk Bones and Rowdy would hold his stack until I told him to "go get it". He was an awesome dog. He just passed away a couple of weeks ago.


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Good luck!





Jim

[jimgarvie]

One more: a family came into the studio for family portraits. After they had met Rowdy, they asked for one more photo of him with the kids. Here it is.





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If you use someone else to get the dog's attention, make sure the dog is looking in the same direction as the people (if possible). But it all starts with a dog that understands the command "stay".[:)]





Jim

[elmo_2006]

I snappeda cute little 'pooch' whileperforming a photo op' at a baseball tourney. This guy was perfect, as soon as he saw my camera, he posed and did not even 'flintch'. 'Sit booboo sit, good boy'!


Enjoy...


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Canon 450D, 28-135mm @ 4.5, Spot, Shutter Priority, focal length: 30,ISO: 200, Exposure: 1/500.

[Tom Alicoate]

Does it need to be strictly posed? Have them interact and just take photos. Take posed but then let them chose which they prefer. Here are two of my favorites.


http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3510/3895557294_4de970946e.jpg


http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2362/2265821834_cf98b24ed9.jpg


I hope you don't get a dog like mine. He is very camera shy, even though this photo doesn't show it.


Good luck!


Tom