Best Practices For Taking Golden Retriever Pictures

by Carol Matthews

Wouldn’t it be great to have a picture of your beautiful Golden Retriever on a tee shirt, a sweatshirt, a screensaver, a mouse pad or a coffee mug? By following a few simple tips for taking outstanding Golden Retriever pictures, you’ll be able to take high quality photos of your Golden Retriever with an inexpensive digital camera, a disposable 35 mm camera or even a camera phone.

We all know that taking pictures of a pet can be problematic. You have to get your Golden Retriever to sit still, pose and look into the camera. There are lighting and backdrop issues to deal with, and you need to be sure you’re shooting at eye level with your dog. Here you’ll find all the tips and tricks you need to solve these problems and get you started taking fabulous pictures of your Golden Retriever.

Your dog only has a certain amount of patience, so get everything ready beforehand. Put a fresh, high-capacity memory storage card in your digital camera, replace the batteries, and carry fresh batteries with you.

Decide whether you’ll take pictures of your Golden Retriever inside or outside, and secure the location if you decide to shoot outside. Check to be sure your props and backgrounds, if you are using them, are ready and close at hand. Have an idea of the different poses that you want to capture.

As soon as you pick up the camera, you have your hands full. You need to devote your attention to framing the shot and operating the camera, so ask someone to help you. Choose someone who gets along with your dog, and whom your dog likes. Taking pictures together can be a fun adventure for the three of you. Serving refreshments for the people and the dog will help make the session more enjoyable. Take plenty of breaks to keep your dog from tiring out. Thank your assistant after the session is over by sending him or her one of the great Golden Retriever pictures you took with your assistant’s help.

Your choice of background can make or break your Golden Retriever pictures, so put plenty of thought into your backgrounds. Cloth backdrops should be matte, not shiny. You might want to use a chromatic green backdrop. With a chromatic green backdrop, your background disappears in digital images, and you can place your Golden Retriever into any backdrop you can find. You can add surf, turf or snow to your picture without every going to the beach, the park or the mountains.

Whatever backdrop you use, it should be uncluttered so all the attention is focused on your dog. Props and accessories help enhance your dog’s appeal. Use colorful dog toys are popular choices for props, as are stuffed animals, tennis balls or potted flowers.

Don’t take Golden Retriever pictures while you are standing up. Get down to your dog’s eye level, and then start taking pictures. Both your candid shots and the portrait style shots of your Golden Retriever will look better if the camera is at eye level with the dog.With these quick, easy tips, you’ll soon be taking professional quality pictures of your Golden Retriever.

About the Author:

Carol Matthews is an avid lover of the Golden Retriever and has a popular website where you’ll discover how to have a happy, healthy and well behaved Golden Retriever. Among other topics at this website, you can also learn all about Golden Retriever Photography plus a whole lot more.

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