a.e.Hotchkiss Photography |

Alabama, Deering Oaks Park, Feb. 2009. All rights reserved.

April has, so far, been the month of wet noses and wispy whiskers. With the thaw of the North East came a flourish of inquiries for all things four-legged. So far, I’ve had the opportunity to photograph two puppies, a kitty and am in the process of making my way to a horse farm south of Portland to do some work there

Animals are hands-down the best subjects to photograph. Although sometimes it takes the strategic placement of a tennis ball, dog bone or feather toy I am ultimately capturing the real personality of the subject, who is completely free of being self-conscious. Babies and young children are like that, too, but more on that later.

The spree began in late February when Alabama joined a couple on their engagement photo shoot, so at the end while they still had my time I photographed an entire roll of the very giddy Keeshond. I changed the photographs that resulted from color to black and white (per the request of the clients) which have a really soft look to them…partially due to the very short depth of field but mostly due to Alabama’s amazing double coat which probably kept her much warmer than myself and her owners on that wet February day!

Alabama’s shoot was so satisfying to me that I pursued more pet-specific work. I was lucky enough to come in to contact with Logan, an 8 ½ year old yellow lab, father of two litters and as energetic as a puppy. The technique we used to capture Logan’s attention was to hold a tennis ball as close to the camera’s lens as possible (thank you, Jess!) in order to keep him still for the shots, which although they were shot at a relatively fast shutter speed would have ended up blurry if he wasn’t so focused on fetching!

Coincidentally, April is Pet Appreciation month and the coffee shop I work at is having a Pet Photography Contest with suggested donations of $1 to a pet re-homing shelter. If you’re interested, you should stop by and see us with your photograph for submission as well as a dollar (or more!) to donate. Additionally, if you need a photographer to take that photograph, well…I’m your girl!

Taking pictures of our furry families is, for many people, the amateur photographer’s dream. You can stay in your home, the subject is more than willing to be the object of your attention, and the pictures that result will inundate your refrigerator and make your coworkers go “Awww” every time they pass your desk.

Logan, Munjoy Commons April 2009. All rights reserved.

Here are some tips for amateurs and professionals alike for taking successful pictures of pets:

1. Team up with someone. Unless the cat, dog, lizard, horse, etc. is asleep, animals move unexpectedly and, with the exception of some well-trained dogs, don’t exactly take direction the way human subjects do. Having an additional helper armed with treats or a favorite toy will keep the attention of your subject and make it much easier to get a good shot.

2. Get close! So many times I’ve seen pictures of animals doing cute things from way too far away. For example, how distracting is a cat snuggling with a stuffed animal on a bed with a floral duvet and posters on the bedroom wall? The picture you’re really trying to get is the cat snuggling with the stuffed animal…so cut out the duvet and the posters and you’ll have a much better picture on your hands.

3. Exercise your subject first. Action photography can be very fun with animals (a dog catching a Frisbee, a horse galloping) but is not something I’d recommend for the beginning photographer. Shutter speeds and camera work are complicated and need to be practiced, so make sure your subject has already been exercised before starting to take pictures. As you get more comfortable with your camera and your subject, feel free to try and take pictures of jumpy giraffes and giddy parakeets.

4. Be patient and take twice as many pictures as you think is necessary. While potentially all pictures of animals are ‘cute,’ there are definitely some shots that are more striking than others. Don’t be afraid to wait until a head turns just so, a tail flips the way you want it, or one paw lifts off the ground. Take two pictures of every pose – they’ll be subtly different and sometimes that makes all the difference. Some digital cameras have multiple exposure settings (three boxes with corners overlapping) that might be helpful to take photos in rapid succession to up the chances of having a winning shot.

If you have any questions for me regarding pet photography techniques or if you are in the Greater Portland area and are interested in pricing for a session, please email me at aehotchkiss@gmail.com