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It’s a dog’s life! Dog Photography in Kent

Posted on 26 Jan, 2017 by Sarah Hart

So yesterday I had a day off from my usual photography work……I spent the day with another photographer friend, Sam Jones from Samantha Jones Photography – if you need a Kent wedding photographer, she’s your woman! Sam lives in Faversham, Kent, so I set off early and arrived in time for a lovely (but rather chilly!) walk on the beach at Seasalter. We took our cameras and Sam’s two dogs, Alfie & Luna, and attempted to get some shots of the dogs.

 

So…..it would seem as well as newborn photography being a particularly tricky area of photography, dog photography is also incredibly hard work! Dogs move….a lot! We were not blessed with the greatest of weather – the sky was grey and it was still pretty foggy. Now clouds are wonderful for acting as a giant softbox that softens the sunlight and so you don’t get the harsh shadows created by the sun. However these clouds were so thick that the images felt a little flat and lifeless….reflecting the dull weather, which was a shame. Photographers like cloud….but not this much! In my portrait work, I aim to get a catchlight in the eyes of the children I’m photographing – these are little white reflections of the studio lights I use – that add a sparkle to the eye. Without catchlights (if the lights aren’t placed in the correct place) faces seem a little lifeless. And it’s no different with outdoor portraits….photographers are trying to get the sky to reflect in the subject’s eyes to add catchlights. Not only does a very dull sky limit the catchlights in the eyes but these two gorgeous Tibetan Terriers have rather hairy eyebrows which shield their eyes, so it was incredibly tricky to get the dogs looking upwards to the sky enough to get those catchlights. Luna, being the much lighter fur of the two dogs, was easier to photograph – my camera could focus on her eyes better – whereas Alfie’s black fur meant my camera struggled to pick out the focus for his eyes.

 

So yeah, all in all, dog photography with two lively dogs is bliming hard work!

Here are my best shots from the walk.

alfie luna low res web

 

We headed back to Sam’s house to warm ourselves up with a bowl of soup and over lunch Sam shared with me one of her favourite dog photographers, based in the USA: Dog’s Breath Photography. Take a look and honestly, you’ll be blown away by this incredible photographer’s work.  This photographer clearly adds flash (you can see the flash in the catchlights of the dog’s eyes) but she has captured the most vivid and unique portraits of our four-legged friends. Wow!

 

So whilst it was lovely to try out a different area of photography, I will be sticking with my newborn and baby work thanks!  Sam, on the other hand has got a flair for pet photography and, unlike me, speaks doggy talk! If you would be interested in having your pooch photographed, get in touch with Sam to arrange an outdoor shoot and go give her Just About Dogs Photography Facebook page a like – she has some wonderful doggy portraits on there 🙂

I’ve been back to photographing a little baby today in my warm, cosy studio…..and let me tell you, I found it far, far easier!

Sarah x

 

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Sarah Hart Newborn Photography