Tips for taking a great photo of your pet, suitable for a portrait.
· Try to send at least 3 or 4 photographs of each subject. Please make sure that the photo to be used for the portrait is AT LEAST 4” x 6”. The bigger the better.
· Please indicate on the back of the photos which one depicts the subject’s eye and fur color the best.
· Try to send one close- up of the head. For a standard head study, position the horse perpendicular to you. Have the head turned slightly towards you so the bulge of the opposite eye is visible.
· For a full body pose, be sure to have the animal on level ground, with the head in the same position as above. Be sure the legs are straight and separated just enough to see all four.
· For any other pose, be sure that the angles are okay so that you don’t end up with distortion (i.e. a skinny neck, a face that is too long etc).Lou posed well
· When taking the picture, have the image that you want, filling the frame. This is important. Even if you think that you are too close, if you can see the entire image that you want in the camera frame, it is fine.
· Make sure that you are at the animal’s eye level whenever possible. This is especially true for smaller animals.
· Make sure the sun is behind you when taking the picture. (Unless of course a backlit subject is the effect you are looking for.)
· Try taking pictures outside or near a window where natural light is the primary light source. Early morning and late afternoon light often provide the best pictures. Try to avoid bright sunlight, flash photography or unnecessary shadows on the subject. Pictures of this type ruin all of the detail necessary to achieve a close likeness.
· Try for an uncluttered background, unless you want a portrait with a solid color background. In this case, the background on the photo doesn’t matter.