Portrait photography is basically a photography technique where the photographer focuses more on the emotions and mood emitted by the subject. Portrait photography makes use of several subjects. The more popular subjects are little ones and pets or animals. Yes, animals are great themes for portrait photos. But nevertheless, participating in animal shots are challenging now and then. Pets commonly tend to move every once in a while for the period of the whole photo shoot. And the worst part about it is that even when you desperately want to have them stay still, you cannot do anything since you cannot talk to them. Nevertheless, this should not stop you from taking great pictures of them. If you want some portrait photography tips, then read on.
Animal portrait photography is a favorite of both beginners and professional photographers. It does not really matter if the subject is a pet, farm animals like horses and pigs, birds, insects or even wild animals. If you want to capture great animal photographs, you should take note of the following portrait photography tips:
1. Always put safety first.
Regardless if you are shooting a wild animal or your own pet, safety must always be on top of your list. This applies both to your safety and the animal’s safety as well. When you are working with domestic pets, be sure that you will not do anything that will aggravate him or will cause him harm. Also, never be too certain. Even the tamest of all animals can become dangerous, especially when they are caught by surprise by immediate action. Shutters and flashes might cause them to attack you. For this reason, never stand too close to your subject.
2. Treat the animal subject as if it is a human.
The “animals are people too” saying might possibly be considered as a joke by other people. Nonetheless, this stating is very right in terms of picture taking. The best way of capturing great animal shots is to treat it like you would a person, especially in composition in lighting. This does not necessarily mean that the animal would act out like a person would for this idea is ridiculous. In fact, you should be the one to make modifications. The composition in frame, body position and shadow locations are a few of the factors to take into consideration when taking snapshots of animals.
3. Give emphasis on the eyes.
The eyes are the most convenient way to set up a connection between the subject and the person. It shows a lot of emotion. If you are photographing animals, you should make sure that the eyes are on sharp focus so that you can maximize impact. Try the Rule of Thirds if you must.
4. Try behavior shots.
Animal portraits are wonderful, but behavior shots are exceptional. This is similar to giving human subjects working on certain props. Once you catch the animal interacting with the environment or acting in the middle of a certain activity, you can create a great and powerful image.
5. Use different backgrounds.
That’s one of the number of portrait photography points that can be applied to both human along with animal subjects. A boring background can ruin the whole image. Waste, litter, roads, building sites and various manmade factors can lessen the quality of animal portrait shots. For this reason you should be wary in deciding upon the location of your photo shoot. Or if you honestly can’t get your pet to shift, get a look from a different outlook.
6. Make use of telephoto lens.
As mentioned earlier, getting too close to an animal subject can be risky and dangerous. Nevertheless, some photographers want to take close-up pictures, which explains why they take the risk and get up close. A telephoto lens is the formula to this problem~A telephoto lens is the alternative to this challenge~A telephoto lens is the remedy to this trouble~A telephoto lens is the remedy to this issue~A telephoto lens is the answer to this trouble~A telephoto lens is the formula to this problem}. By standing at a safe distance to the target, you offer the animal room and you will still get nice shots as if you were standing right in front of him. What is more, once you are a range away from your subject, they have the tendency to act in a natural way for they are aware of no impending danger. This gives you the prospect to take behavior shots.
7. Use wide aperture.
Knowing the effects of adjusting the aperture of the camera can be a key towards improving your shots, particularly in portrait photography. It can also affect your shutter speed.
8. Learn to adjust the shutter speed.
In case the animal is moving about, you really have to choose what kind of shot you would want to capture. To freeze the motion, you have to take the picture at 1/5000 or even greater. On the other hand, if you want the look to express motion, it is best to shoot at a speed of as a minimum ¼ or 1/8 and pan the camera.
9. Use a tripod.
You might wonder why this is included in this list of portrait photography tips. The tripod is one of the most important equipments used for portrait photograph. It can greatly improve your photo shooting. By placing the camera on a tripod, you can avoid camera shake, which often causes blurry images. You may also use a shutter release cable so that you need not touch the camera when taking pictures, hence eliminating all the chances of a camera shake.
10. Use camera flash.
As peculiar it may seem to be, using flash on a bright morning is a good idea. In such position, you are not using the flash as a source of brightness like you should in a dim place. Rather, you use this to fill in shadows and give details.
With all these portrait photography pointers, there is no way that you will fail in taking great shots of your pets. Perhaps you may even go further by acquiring snap shots of farm animals, insects and even the wildlife. Who knows, you might become one of the most successful animal photographer ayr in the future.