Eight Helpful Tips for Better Dog Photography

Everyone loves pictures of those cute pups, but they can be a bit difficult to get when you're dealing with all that energy. This great video will show you eight tips for getting better photos of dogs.

Coming to you from the Cooperative of Photography, this helpful tutorial will give you eight tips for getting great shots of dogs. As you'll probably notice, a lot of it centers around either capturing the dog's attention for a brief moment to get the shot or taking advantage of their natural energy and happiness. You'll also probably notice that almost all of the photos are shot with a wide aperture. Of course, if you're working in a studio, you'll have control over the background, but if not, you don't have as much precise control, and unlike a human subject, you might have a bit more trouble getting your canine friend to stand still in front of a nice backdrop, so be sure to consider this carefully when selecting a location and choose one that offers a bit of flexibility. Even if you're not into pet photography, it can be a great way to capture some nice memories of your own dog. Get to it! 

Alex Cooke's picture

Alex Cooke is a Cleveland-based portrait, events, and landscape photographer. He holds an M.S. in Applied Mathematics and a doctorate in Music Composition. He is also an avid equestrian.

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7 Comments

I can't watch videos. Can you just tell me what the 8 tips are?

If you can force yourself to watch it, you'll be glad you did.

1 Freeze the Action
2 Lower the Perspective
3 Focus Through Frames
4 Shoot from Above
5 Play with Props
6 Clone your Dog
7 Capture Gestures
8 Wide Angle Portraits

Nice! I'm always looking for dog photography tips.

OMG all the puppies.

Putting human clothes on a dog is just ridiculous and cruel. :)

Good timing.... new puppy in the house.