Camera and Lens
You can use any camera, though a DSLR will give you more creative control over your pet photography.
The gear you have will influence the kind of shots you’re likely to be successful with your pet photography. You might struggle to get good action shots with a compact, but static pet portraits should be no problem.
While a telephoto lens is good for shots of your dog running in the park, a standard lens is ideal for documentary style pictures.
While a wide angle at close range can be a great way to inject a sense of humor to your portraits.
Monopod
A tripod is a handicap for most pet photography as you need to be able to move and recompose quickly. However, a monopod will provide stability for your camera without impairing your capacity to react quickly to events.
Flash
Generally not a good idea when photographing pets. Direct flash is unflattering, and animals get red eye too. Even off-camera flash can bounce off shiny fur and look unpleasant.
If you must use flash, bounce it off a wall or ceiling, but it’s almost always better to set a high ISO instead.
Camera settings
You need to work quickly when photographing pets. Even if they’re dozing, a cute expression can disappear in an instant, so choose one of the auto modes.
Aperture Priority is a good choice because it gives you more control of your depth of field.
If the light is consistent you could also set the exposure manually and leave it there.
For static shots at close range a wide aperture such as f/5.6 will help blur the background and concentrate the viewer’s attention on the subject.
If you’re doing action shots of, say, your dog running you may prefer a smaller aperture to increase your depth of field. This will help compensate for any small errors in focusing as you track the subject’s movement.
Shutter Speed
For static pet portraits you only need to ensure the shutter speed is fast enough to handhold without risking camera shake.
If you have image stabilisation or a monopod this can be as low as 1/15sec. For action shots a faster speed will be required to freeze movement. Try 1/250sec as a starting point.
If the light level is not that bright you may need to increase your ISO to 400 or above to enable this.
Don’t overlook the chance to use a slower speed and pan the camera with your pet’s movement. This can create a more dynamic result.
Select Continuous AF for shots of your pet in action. This will ensure the camera keeps refocusing on your subject as it moves.
Also, crucially it allows you to shoot at any time, whether the lens has focused or not.
In single-shot mode the shutter won’t fire if the lens hasn’t locked focus.
This will ensure you don’t miss the decisive moment and, if you’ve stopped down to a moderately small aperture, your subject should still be reasonably sharp.
Viewpoint and Composition
If they’re at ground level, as opposed to on the window ledge or the sofa, this will entail getting down on the ground with your camera.Just like when photographing children, the best pet photos are usually obtained when you get down to their level.
If your camera has live view you might find it easier to set the camera down low and view things on the screen from higher up. This is much easier if you have a tilting LCD screen.
On the other hand lots of great pet portraits have been taken from the most unusual of angles. This includes looking down on them from directly above (ideal for showing them isolated within a landscape) or even looking up from below (perfect for emphasising the height of a tall dog).
Choose a viewpoint to suit the subject, and what you’re trying to say about them.
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