Welcome, my name is Marcin Lewandowski, and
you're watching The Viewfinder on
AdoramaTV.
In this episode, we'll work on a quick
pet photography assignment, and include
a few tips on how to be creative when time
is of the essence. Last time we had a
program about photographing pets, I gave
you a few general tips on photographing
animals while keeping your options open.
We Illustrated that episode with
photographs from my own collection but
this time I'll try to put my own advice
to work, we will have one hour to make a
few photographs, and we are likely to be
able to visit Sar'anne O'Rourke, based in the
South of Ireland. Sar'anne is a dog lover,
but also offers emergency fosterage to
vulnerable dogs. We will also meet Benjamin who
has an amazing dog called Isaac, and see
how important these animals can be in
someone's life. Because we are recording this
piece to camera ahead of the photo shoot,
I really have no idea how these
photographs will turn out! I was lucky
enough to visit and recce the animals,
and look forward to meeting them all
again later, but sometimes that's as much
prep as you can do on a photo shoot like
this, and fingers crossed, these little
guys will work with us later today! We'll
try to create a selection of different
photographs from setups, and
environmental portraits, through to
close-ups, and hopefully if all goes well
a small selection of action shots. As the
age-old saying goes if the mountain will
not come to Muhammad, then Muhammad must
go to the mountain, and this is exactly
what we'll do in terms of setting our
portraits. We'll bring the studio to the
animals we're visiting. I will have a
large black background, and a backup
white sheet as well. This will allow us
to go from normal portrait, setting it up
wherever the animals will feel
comfortable. If we can get help from one
of the handlers, it will be much easier,
as they know these animals, but you
should always observe anyway, say how
animals behave. Figure out who's the
leader of the pack, and of course
make some tasty treats! Once we have the
handler to help us I will try to take
few close-ups, contrasting for example
dog paws and human hands... or maybe shoes.
The juxtaposition of the human and
animal elements is always a good idea
and very effective, so if you can nail
the light and composition, you have your
photographs practically done! You might
even have an option to contrast large
and small animals, or maybe even a cat and
a dog. Keep your options open.
Now I'll follow up with few bullet
points, a sort of to-do list, to try and
deploy on your upcoming assignment!
When roaming around the animals get low and
photograph them from their perspective.
If light is strong enough, freeze animals
in the air, you might get anatomically
interesting poses impossible otherwise.
And maybe even something funny take a
step back, and use a slightly longer lens
to look for graphically interesting
details, and once you try that, use also
wider lines to photograph animals in
perspective to the environment they're
in. Look around for a nice architectural
/ landscape type of photograph, and place
the animal within your composition. If
possible, try silhouette, look for shadows,
maybe think about something that will
work as a double exposure. Just having a
lot of animals in front of your lens can
help in creating an interesting
photograph as well, so be vigilant, and
keep your eyes open for opportunities.
Any direction you will choose, will be
good but have a look at the work of other
photographers to kick-start your
imagination, just to mention a few
radically different approaches, Elliott Erwitt,
Peter Marlow, Yann
Arthus Bertram and one of my favorite
wildlife photographers Nick Brandt. From
street opportunities, to cattle, to big
game, don't limit yourself when searching
for ideas or inspiration, and look beyond
photographs of animals. You never know
where your next best idea might come
from. Animals are great companions to
photograph, and as long as we treat them
well, and give them their dignity,
accompanied by a few tasty treats,
they might open up their comfort zone.
For your visit all you will need will be
a list of possible shots at the back of
your head, and a pinch of personal
approach. I hope you'll enjoy your time
around animals even more from now on!
Subscribe to our channel for more and
have a look at the Adorama Learning
Centre to find more photography related
tips and tutorials. You can also check me
out on instagram @soundofphotography
this was Marcin Lewandowski for
AdoramaTV. See you next time!