How lucky is this family to have two of the number two dog on the AKC list? We’re talking about German shepherds, of course. Meet Marshall and Jager! Marshall is the black German shepherd and he visited the studio first. He was brought in for a surprise photo session as a gift for his mom’s 21st birthday. What a great idea! He photographed very, very well and was a lot of fun. After seeing his images, Jager’s mom made an appointment for him. It wasn’t right that her own dog didn’t have his own portrait! Jager did well too, especially since he is still a pup.
If you’re considering having your pet photographed, you should have a plan. Consider your final product. Do you need just one amazing photograph for your wall or would you rather have many images that you can make into a coffee table book or an album? Before we even schedule an appointment with our clients, we have a consultation, either in person (and pet) or on the phone. Jager’s mom had seen our work at a local veterinary clinic and really liked our plexiglass and brushed aluminum pieces, and she was leaning toward black and white images. During our discussion, she also mentioned that she really liked the more quirky shots that we had on display in the office. All of this information is really important for your photographer to know before your dog walks in the studio door.
The first image below is straight out of camera. You can see that the image needs some work, in addition to cropping. We tried five different crops for this image and the final one is shown with the plexiglass piece on the wall. We love the extra white space!
Marshall’s image out of camera
Marshall’s image cropped, version one
Marshall’s image cropped, version 2
Final image of Marshall in black and white on plexiglass
The next two images show how much retouching is involved with pet photography, especially when working on seamless paper. You see every hair, every spot of drool, every paw print.
Marshall out of camera
Marshall’s final crop for printing on brushed aluminum
The next two images are of Jager. His mom wanted an aluminum piece that she could set on her desk. The first image is out of camera and you can see how different the cropping was for the final product. We wanted to have a lot of white space next to Jager’s mouth because we added some text that we are not showing here. Suffice it to say that the final product is a lot of fun. 🙂
Jager out of camera
Jager in black and white
Jager’s mom really liked the image below. We did too. There is just something about the way he is looking down. We decided to make the dog look diminutive by adding a lot of white space and placing him in the corner. Your images don’t always have to be centered. We’re fairly left of center here at Fetching Fido Fotography, so we love it when our clients are too! 🙂
Jager’s image out of camera
Jager’s image cropped
Jager’s image on plexiglass
It’s important to choose the appropriate sized art for your space. Jager’s mom wanted to have two long and skinny plexiglass pieces of each dog looking at each other on the same wall. We played with both of the shots that you see below until we got to the final product. Love it!
Marshall out of camera
Marshall’s image cropped for a plexiglass piece
Jager’s image out of camera
Jager’s image cropped for a plexiglass piece
Time for YOU to make a plan for your pet’s session! Thanks for checking in! 🙂
