Dog Photography Blog

Line

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Ever have one of those photography themes where you can’t think of a jazzy blog title?
– Get in Line
– On Line
– On the Line
– Lining Up
– In the Lines

Hmm… each feels a bit vague for the way a line can be a quintessential part of photography.

Commonly found as a rule of composition in leading lines, these types of lines lead the eye of the viewer into & around the scene of the image, frequently landing on the subject. Done correctly they have huge impact, done poorly your viewer will miss the subject in your image or miss where you want them to look. 

This image is by my friend Kristine featuring her German shepherd Reilly. The day was hot, the shot a quick one. Reilly is very regal. The leading lines in this image don’t quite work well. The dashes lead you out of the frame with the road, while Reilly’s eyes lead you out of the frame on the left. 

I did a couple of “dirty” edits to show her (and you) how different placement of Reilly within the frame would have changed the impact of the lines. 

The first “dirty” edit shows a better placement of Reilly farther down the road so that the road and dashes lead to him. BAM! Instant impact with regal Reilly!

The second “dirty” edit merely has Reilly flipped. The impact is a bit more subtle, but his gaze leads you into the road and dashes that move out of the scene. 

The general “rule” I have for dogs is to give more space in the direction they are looking. If they are looking to the left side of the frame, the dog should be positioned from the middle to the right of the frame. If they are looking right, they should be in the middle to the left of the frame. This gives the leading lines of the eyes some room to lead the viewer instead of just dropping them out of the frame. 

Crazy how head placement or placement of a dog can make lines work or not work in an image!

More on lines!

Basically lines move from point A to point B. They can be straight, curved, diagonal, horizontal, vertical, organic, manmade, subtle, bold and implied. 

  •  Horizontal lines. Typically found in the horizon of an image. They are calm, relaxed & static. 
  • Vertical lines. Lines that go from top to bottom instead of side to side. They imply power, strength and are dynamic.
  • Diagonal lines. Lines that move on an angle within the image. They create movement, are dynamic and add tension to an image. Diagonals also create depth when they converge at a point. 
  • Curved lines. Lines that flow throughout an image. The classic example is a winding road in the mountains or a river that flows lazily across the landscape. 
  • Organic lines. Found in & made by nature. Trees, shells, animals, rocks etc. 
  • Manmade lines. Created & crafted by a human hand or machine. Fences, playgrounds, roads, bridges, and beyond. 
  • Implied lines. Lines that don’t physically exist but are implied. Frequently found in spaces between objects and in the direction of eyes. That dog sitting and looking up at something that makes everyone stop and look to see what the dog is looking at – that’s implied lines in motion. 
There are tons of ways to have lines in your image, and you can have more than one line as part of your image too! Try not to go too overboard and have the lines work for & with you instead of becoming a hinderance & messy!
 
How many different lines can you see in the images of Blue?

Vertical lines! Both Blue & the gate to our fence! The edge of the sideway is a diagonal, and Blue’s eyes are implied diagonal lines. I have no idea what he was watching but it caught his attention solidly! 

All the lines! Playgrounds have ample styles of lines! This playground has orange horizontal bars, plus orange curved bars. Dark green supports make chunky vertical lines, while the wood of the steps and platforms is horizontal… except when its viewed at different angles!

In fact, the shadowed lines between each wood plank lend to a ton of diagonals! Another diagonal is found in the steps for the slide in the background plus the shadow from one of the vertical green columns! Plus the angle change of the horizontal orange bar adds even more diagonals to the scene. 

And we can’t forget the vertical lines of Blue when he’s in a sitting position!

Ample horizontal lines in this image of Blue! The sidewalk, the road, our fence and the edge of the garden along the fence! (And those rectangles of color? Spray painted repurposed picture frames!)

Not only are there strong horizontal lines, but a strong vertical line from Blue in a sit. Did you see the diagonal line of his tail? 

Lines are great elements of composition that can lead your viewer’s eye into the image and to your subject. Additionally they can create depth, movement, and add or calm tension in your image. Used well, they will amp up your images. Used haphazardly, they can make your image weak and your viewer’s eye might just bypass what you want them to look at. 

Huzzah for lines!
(Boo for hard to concoct blog titles!)

We’re in a blog ring of pet photographers around the world! Next up: Toronto based dog photographer Terri of Terri J Photography shares how to use the technique of leading lines to get better dog portraits.

Line Read More »

Fall Colors Update #2

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Hot dang, summer is doing its best to hang on knowing that tomorrow is the official start of fall. Pert near 90 yesterday! 

I’m not one to argue with warmer temps, especially since there is a prediction that this coming winter will feature many subzero days and just be a bitter season to live in Minnesota. Sucks for snowboarding, skiing and for Blue’s first winter. Though it is merely a prediction (though if you’ve ever read a Farmer’s Almanac there is some crazy voodoo in those predictions…) so the hope is always loads of snow and temps in the 20 to 30 F degrees range. 

Who wants to talk about winter now? Not this girl & her puppy!
Instead, let’s talk fall, colorful leaves and Halloween! 

I saw a picture on one of the socials and it looks like the colors are arriving up around the North Shore! Classically peak leaf colors start up north, then trickle down to the southern parts of the state. Minneapolis and St. Paul sit in a neat pocket, with fall colors showing up later in the season (mid October). And of course there’s always the eager beaver trees like the one in the park near our house – it is already pushing into its golds & oranges! 

The current map from the DNR:

Here comes the color! 

Remember there are only two fall color sessions left:
– Sunday October 2nd
– Sunday October 16th

If you’d like to snag either of these sessions, email, call or text!

What to do until the spooktacular arrival of Halloween?

September 21st celebrate:

  • National Chai Day
  • National New York Day
  • National Pecan Cookie Day (NO your dog can’t eat pecans, walnuts or macadamia nuts!)

September 22nd celebrate:

  • National States & Capitals Day
  • American Business Women’s Day
  • Car Free Day
  • Diary Day
  • Elephant Appreciation Day
  • Hobbit Day (The Hobbit was published September 21st, 1937)
  • National Centenarian’s Day
  • National Girl’s Night
  • National Ice Cream Cone Day
  • National Legwear Day
  • National Online Recovery Day
  • National White Chocolate Day
  • Autumnal Equinox

September 23rd celebrate: 

  • Bisexuality Day
  • National Dogs in Politics Day
  • National Great American Pot Pie Day
  • National Snack Stick Day
  • Innergize Day – Day after the Autumn Equinox
  • National BRAVE Day
  • National Gay Men’s HIV/AIDS Awareness Day

September 24th celebrate:

  • My sister’s 35th birthday! Happy birthday sister!

Want to celebrate more known & obscure national days? Pop over to National Day Calendar!

(BTW Halloween arrives in 40 days…EEEEEK!) 

Blue is getting bigger! 12 weeks! His legs are longer and his body is getting longer, making him a bit awkward to hold as we navigate Petsmart & Petco (no feet on the floor until after the last round of shots in October). Potty training has been going well with very few accidents. He crates easily, loves food, enjoys training and learns new things quickly, though keeping him from being so bitey has been taking a bit more work. We are working on bite inhibition & mouth manners as well as teaching him to be a cool cucumber and not a crazy ape (a good portion of the biting is arousal biting for over stimulation during play or from motion). 

Last time we did a weight he was 21 lbs!

 

The most common breed he gets confused for is a beagle or beagle mix… I guess I could see it in his ears? Perhaps in the his blaze too… but classically there is more brown/tan/red on the face on a beagle especially adult beagles (he’s the size of an adult beagle lol!)

Blue the Swissy
Beagle puppy

Blue has also gotten Bernese Mountain dog (they are related – but Blue isn’t fuzzy!) and he’s even been asked if he’s a basset hound… his ears aren’t that big!!!

Bernese Mountain Dog puppy
Basset Hound puppy

Do you think Blue looks like a beagle?

Puppy Kindergarten started last week on Wednesday and it was a good learning experience.  Blue was scared/shy of the new people (something I knew would happen). He was very shy & scared of the other puppies – hackles up, tail tucked, ears back and he’d sit when they approached so they couldn’t sniff him. All of the other puppies respected his shyness and by the end of the group play Blue was starting to join in. 

After play, we did training things. I feel like we’re rather ahead of the others in the class as we’ve been working on sit, lay, touch, leave it and other skills since he’s been home. Blue was only a little distracted and once I had his attention he did his touch & lay exercises easily. 

We needed a little work on touch as the only time we had practiced it was from a sit or laying position and Julie our teacher/trainer wanted him to move his booty in a bigger motion. Easy peasy and we’ve got it down solid, though sometimes I have to wiggle my fingers to entice Blue into the first touch if he’s sitting haha!

The fall series of blog posts are going to continue weekly as the fall colors transition into their peak colors. There will be updates about Blue, possibly recipes, national days to celebrate and tips & tricks for photographing your pup with fall leaves. 

Once the leaves drop, we’ll continue weekly with recipes, Halloween fun, Thanksgiving ideas as well as holiday ideas for gifts or photographing your pup with holiday lights. And anything else that comes to mind as the seasons transition from fall into holiday & winter season. 

Let me know if there’s anything you want to learn!

Fall Colors Update #2 Read More »

My dog is not well behaved…

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My dog is not well behaved, is that ok?

We would LOVE to do a session but my dog is not well behaved. 
And by not being well behaved it means my dog:

  • doesn’t listen to commands like sit or lay
  • is MEGA hyper active
  • goes bat shit crazy in new areas
  • has selective hearing
  • or any other assorted not well behaved behaviors your dog may have

Fret no further! Your dog can be a total doofus, with not sit stay stills and we’ll still be able to capture EPIC images. The images I capture of your dog will make it look like he or she is an obedience school superstar! And we only need a brief, mere second or too worth of attention to create these images. 

How it works:

  • Your dog on a leash – it helps to wrangle him or her in the area we want & keep them safe
  • Add in my camera with a whopping 12 frames a second to capture even a half second of stillness
  • Cue the tasty treats! I’ll bring out the Canine Carryouts in burger or sausage flavors
    (if your dog has allergies or dietary restrictions, we’ll use treats that they can have)
  • Enter in noises – from kitty meows, to raspberries, barks, buzzes to squeakers and favorite catch words (outside, ride, walk, grandma etc)
  • Your dog is intrigued for a moment
  • Shutter click & viola! An epic image of your dog looking like an obedience superstar

How do you know it will work? My dog has some epic bad behaviors…

About A Dog Photography has been capturing personalities of dogs with playful, classic & vibrant images for 10 years! I have met many shy, boisterous, overexcited, bored, busy, bat shit crazy and calm dogs and have been able to coax the inner superstar out of each and every one. We’ll take the session at your dog’s pace and ask for sits, but work with lays and stands, always asking your dog for a behavior but not forcing him or her. 

 What can we do before the session to help our dog be better behaved?

Work on the basics! Think back to the puppy days (or early days of your dog’s adoption), grab a liberal amount of treats and head outside. Start with sit. Remember your dog doesn’t need to have an eon long sit, they just need to sit for a couple of seconds. Do each exercise at least once a day for a week prior to your session, do more if you and your dog find it fun!

  • Sit = dog’s bum on the floor = treat
    – repeat as many times to get your dog to 90% reliability
    – amp up the challenge by changing locations, find somewhere new, noisier, more distracting, repeat above

Once your dog has sit nearly spot on no matter the distractions, add in lay/down. Follow the same steps as sit. You can work on wait/stay as well, though we may not need to utilize it during your session. You’ll have a dog who behaves better for their session, plus a dog who is also more well behaved at home! 

If your dog giving you the “I can’t hear you mom” routine and blowing off your requests for a sit, you may need to up the value of the treats. The every day Milkbone biscuit is just that – everyday, boring, the same. Break out something stinkier or novel – hotdogs, squeeze cheese, cooked chicken breast, dehydrated carrots or pieces of baby carrots, freeze dried salmon or liver (Blue’s favorite).  You’ll know which is the winner when your dog willingly and happily parks their booty on the floor at your feet. 

If your dog is meh about food treats, then break out the toys! If you know your dog’s favorite toy, bring it with and use it as the reward for the sit/lay etc. Same process as the above method, though you’d swap out a ball throw, tugging a rope, tossing a stuffed toy etc as the reward for bum on the ground. They’re not getting excited about the same old ball or toy, then break out a new one! (Yes bring it with to the session!)

After you work on these skill drills your dog should be better behaved for their session. Huzzah! Though remember we most likely will be going to a new location teeming with loads of new, exciting smells and things to oogle at and your dog might forget all of the skills you just worked on. No worries! We’ll let your dog explore & sniff and when the novelty of the area wears off we’ll ask for the skills to be put into action. 

What your dog’s session looks like to you:

What a professional photographer sees (and captures):

Blue is mega cute and at 11 weeks he’s already becoming a photography pro!

And because he’s mega cute, here are a few more of him:

So my dog not being well behaved isn’t a problem during a session with About A Dog Photography (or with any other professional pet photographer)! Huzzah!

It’s a blog ring of pet photographers from around the world! Next up visit Angela Schneider of Big White Dog Photography in Spokane, WA, addresses one of the most common concerns dog lovers have about their photo shoot.

My dog is not well behaved… Read More »

Fall is coming!

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The season of fall formally arrives on September 22nd (a mere 9 days away!) then carries into the midst of December. Winter formally arrives just before Christmas on December 21st (yeah I think it is odd as well…). Fall is coming!

Though the pumpkin spice push arrived early in August, subtly creeping on the fringes of back to school supplies. Halloween also began to creep in throughout the early part of August, though its arrival was more delightful than overzealous as pumpkin spice can be. 

Halloween Baking Championship is on Food Network, Halloween costumes & treats are at the big box pet supply places, and Dairy Queen has launched their fall treat menu. Who’s excited for fall? Or at least Halloween? (It will be Blue’s first Halloween!)

And with the arrival of fall, that means fall leaf colors! Minnesota DNR has started the leaf color tracking (oogle it here) for the season and way way way up north is starting to head into the change. Found this cool typical peak date graphic too!

Now there are tons of variables that can affect the fall colors, such as drought & moisture, weather and temperature! Who knew trees changing leaf colors was so in depth!

What’s the big deal about knowing when the fall colors are peaking?

For your photography session duh! Fall leaves add a ton of color and pizzazz to your images. Big bold reds, oranges and yellows make for epic and playful images. And if we happen to miss peak, or the trees have decided not to hold their leaves in display, then we’ll take advantage of the leaves on the ground!

Plus fall holds temperatures that are pleasant but not too hot or not too cold (though we’ve been a little closer to summer temps for the start of September…) which means dogs of all types will be comfortable as we adventure during your session!

That being said, when are the sessions that will land within peak leaf color?

The last two fall color sessions:
– Sunday October 2nd
– Sunday October 16th

We can still do a session after the fall colors peak and take advantage of the ground leaves, cool temps and possible dusting of s-n-o-w.  The only sessions available after peak colors are November 12th & 13th. Note, these sessions must take place in the St. Cloud area! This is also is the last time to order prints & product and to be able to get them in time for Christmas!

This fall season there will be weekly posts about the fall colors, fall adventures with Blue and there might even be some tasty recipes thrown in too! Heck I can even talk about tips & tricks if you want to attempt fall pictures yourself. Anything you’d like to learn?

Fall is coming! Read More »

Blue at 10 Weeks

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Originally the blue collar boy of the Baked Goods litter of Tanger & Gus, Remington’s Pride Blueberry Buckle aka Blue is now 10 weeks old! And what better way to celebrate our growing pup with a puppy session?

Last Friday marked one week with us, while Labor Day Monday marked his 10th week age. Blue is full of personality and tiny little shark teeth. He’s becoming more comfortable with new people, as long as they don’t move fast, let him approach and have treats handy. We’ve adventured to Petco, Petsmart & Pet Evolution (no floor contact) as well as Home Depot, Ace Hardware and Fleet Farm. 

Blue is a champion napper, is learning the basics as well a dead, rollover and place. He’s smart and its fun watching him learn. But man those baby shark teeth!!! OUCH! He tends to bite when he’s overly amped up (enthusiastic play, brisk walking or running, or just being overly tired). Hands, shirts, pants are all open to be chomped on. We’re working on communicating that baby shark teeth and people aren’t compatible as well as some bite inhibition (bite pressure that’s ok vs too much). Being people and not fellow puppies or dogs, the communication isn’t always conveyed perfectly, but we’re working on it together!

He’s warmed up to Kris, is still getting to know Kellen, and thinks my mom is rather happy & pleasant (as a “grandma” ought to be!).

Oh did I mention how HANDSOME and CUTE Blue is when not in baby land shark mode?

For Blue’s portraits we hung out around our yard – the flowers are blooming and there’s a ton of variety for backdrops! We wrangled Hickory the fox for some grow with me images – Hickory will always stay the same size, while Blue will get bigger!

And check out the blips Blue is good at! A blip is when a puppy or dog’s tongue just sticks out very slightly haha!

And what is like doing Blue’s portraits? Half crazy! He got excited about each weird sound I made, which turned on the baby land shark. Luckily mere seconds are what are needed so the bouncy, squirmy Blue looks like a superstar poser! 

Blue at 10 Weeks Read More »

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