Pet Photography

A co-worker asked me to photograph her dogs when she found out that I was a photog.  I agreed, but was a little unsure about how to shoot them.  Then, while listening to the CameraDojo podcast featuring a prominant pet photographer - I was inspired to learn a little more.

Recently, my wife picked up a cat(Misty) from one her co-workers.  I don't really care for cats, but I wanted to take some shots for the family.  After putting it off for a few weeks, and being inspired the the pet photog, I decided to give it a go.

I realized that photographing an animal is not that different from photographing a human.  The goal is to capture the personality of the subject.  The new kitten acts a little goofy, and appears to be cross-eyed.  So, I decided to shoot a headshot that highlights the eyes(above left).  My main concern was to ensure that I got some nice catchlights wish I accomplished.

The lighting setup wasn't that elaborate.  I used a 180ws strobe in a softbox at camera right, and a Nikon SB-600(with Sto-fen Omni-bounce) for fill at camera left.  Also, I used a silver reflector to the left of the subject aimed at the background.

Misty behaved fairly well for all of about one minute before wanting to get off the stool.  Getting a pet to sit still for a "Studio" shot can be difficult.  Shooting a cat can be even more difficult because they are often spooked by the strobes.  Misty didn't even flinch though, so I was able to do my thing.

Overall, I think it went as smooth as can be expected for a first attempt.  I'll practice a few more times before photographing my friends dogs.  Next, I'd like to try some environmental portraits using natural light.  I still have a lot to learn about pet photography.  But, like I've said before, it's all about the journey...not the destination!