How to take the best photos of your dog
On vacation, my phone never leaves me. I take pictures of everything, especially my dog. Musher at the beach, Musher on the port, Musher with his life jacket, Musher and his friends… in short, I take pictures of her all the time and from every angle to keep as many memories as possible of everything we share together. Except that very often, the photos are not terrible. It's blurry, there's a trash can in the background, the light is too low...
In this article, I have gathered all the tips and tricks that I read or that I learned by dint of taking photos with Musher to help you take the best photos of your dog. A while ago I interviewed Julien Pignol, professional photographer passionate about dogs. During the interview, he gave me some of his photo expert secrets. Don't worry, you don't have to be a pro to take a picture of your dog, you just have to prepare a little for the photo shoot.
Brightness, the key to a nice photo
You don't need a professional camera to take pictures of your dog while on vacation. Your smartphone or your digital will do the trick provided you know their limits. I have an Iphone, it takes magnificent photos when there is good light, but when it's darker in very bad weather or at the start of the evening, the photos are rather mediocre. I know it so if I want beautiful photos to share with you on the Facebook page of Emmenetonchien.com for example, I avoid these moments! Good brightness for less powerful devices is essential.
On the brightness side, also pay attention to the backlight. Better a light coming from one side than from behind or facing the animal. From the front, the dog risks closing his eyes because he will be dazzled. I have already tested photos with the sun in front with Musher, I let you judge the result.
Decor and framing
Your dog may be the most beautiful dog in the world, but if you take a picture of him on a vacant lot on a gray sky day, it's a safe bet that the photo will be missed. The decor is indeed an essential element of the photo. Stage your dog in a nice place with good light and the photo will already be 50% successful.
Take advantage of spring to have your dog rest in the middle of a pretty flowery meadow, for example (watch out for ticks However).
If you have props on hand to add a few pops of color to the photo, that might be a good idea. A brightly colored balloon, a parasol, an EmmèneTonChien.com bandana… Your dog must be comfortable with the chosen accessory to be able to take a nice photo. If he is afraid of it, your dog's expression will be affected. He will be tense... and may even run away from the frame.
Stand at the level of the animal. If you stand it will look a little squashed in the picture...it won't show it off at all. At his height, you will be able to better capture his gaze and his expressions. Let it be, that's where you'll capture beautiful, natural looking photos. I often end up with wet knees or even more because the most photos I've taken of Musher are when I was lying in front of her! Taking a nice photo is not limited to “click clack kodak it's in the box!”. You have to wet the jersey!
I take my dog with me on all my adventures: hiking, paddleboarding, canoeing… So I take pictures in all circumstances. So I had to find suitable equipment. I opted for the selfie stick, tripod with remote control trigger, a submersible pouch to protect my phone from water but which allows me to use it and especially to take pictures and of course, the best of the best: a Gopro. I opted for the Gopro Hero7 which has a video stabilizer. As much as the first accessories are not very expensive, so much the Gopro, I grant you, it's an investment... but I'm super happy with it and I take magnificent photos with it, in salty and fresh water... It follows me everywhere .
The photo session, a moment of complicity
As a rule, dogs don't like pictures. They don't like being watched too closely. Quite often, they look away, yawn or lick their lips the moment you click to take the picture. These are calming signals. The situation stresses them out and in canine language, these signals mean "I'm not comfortable, I don't like what you want me to do or even I don't understand what's going on, reassure me . Or worse: stop immediately, otherwise I will defend myself.
To get an "interested or smiling" look from your dog, promise him a treat or his ball so that he looks in your direction and is less uptight. The photo session should be quick and pleasant for him. It is a moment of complicity to share together. Musher doesn't usually drool but if I promise him his favorite candy, I catch drool drops in the photos! You can also put your dog in action. Toss his favorite ball into the frame and click when he arrives. I often use burst mode to take lots of photos. And then I spend a few long minutes sorting out the failed photos…
If your dog prefers to have fun, do not insist! The photo will be missed anyway because his expression won't look good if he's forced to do something he doesn't want to do. Your model should be comfortable and motivated. And it must remain a beautiful moment of complicity between you. The more demanding and impatient you are, the more he will do the opposite of what you want to achieve. As I often say: the game, the game, the game! That's true! Your dog can do wonders if he has fun with you.
Before getting THE photo, you will surely need to take several dozen… To capture the perfect moment when your pooch will make his most beautiful smile, you have to know how to be patient and put him at ease so that he has a blast. .
One last tip: the selfie stick can also be a great idea to be able to take a picture of you both and share the shot with the hashtag #emmenetonchien or the hashtag #wouafementbien! As I told you before, I invested in this tool a few months ago. She no longer leaves my backpack. It's super convenient.