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November 4, 2013

My Dog Taught Me How To Use A Camera

There’s no doubt that dogs are teachers.  They teach us about love, patience, loyalty and character.  I recently realized that for the past 2+ years Eko has also taught me how to use a camera.  Here are a few of the tips I have picked up from Professor Eko in
There’s no doubt that dogs are teachers.  They teach us about love, patience, loyalty and character.  I recently realized that for the past 2+ years Eko has also taught me how to use a camera.  Here are a few of the tips I have picked up from Professor Eko in Pet Photograph 101.   Rhodesian Ridgeback, adventure, marking our territory, chicago, dogs, blog, photo  
Avoid using flash whenever possible.  I love this photo of Eko, but my flash gave him “pet eyes” (the equivalent of red-eye in flash photos of people).  Flash photography can also make photos look unnatural so I do my best to use it sparingly
     

Rhodesian Ridgeback, adventure, marking our territory, chicago, dogs, blog, photoComposition is key. I took this photo with an older cellphone so the quality is not great, but I love the photo because of the composition.  A great and simple reference for photo composition is “The rule of thirds.”  If you take a bit of time to think about composition it can make for some really unique and memorable shots

I took the vast majority of photos on this blog with the Canon S100.  It is a compact but great little camera, perfectly suited to use in one hand when you have a leash in your other hand.  As Eko has grown, so has my knowledge and interest in photography so I decided it was time to invest in a new camera.  I needed something that was portable but powerful.

After a lot of research I settled on the Sony NEX-6, and after watching for a sale, using credit card points and some earmarked money I pulled the trigger (shutter?) on the purchase.  And I am thrilled with my initial results.

Rhodesian Ridgeback, adventure, marking our territory, chicago, dogs, blog, photo

Shoot in “manual” mode to get the best photos.  When I started this blog I was afraid to ever turn the dial on my camera from the safe and comfortable “Auto” mode.  Now that I have made the foray into manual settings I can’t imagine ever going back.  I take a lot of TERRIBLE photos as I’m learning to shoot manually on my new camera, but I also take some amazing photos that would be impossible on “Auto.”

Along the way I have also discovered that photos are not finished after you click the shutter.

Rhodesian Ridgeback, adventure, marking our territory, chicago, dogs, blog, photo

To get the most out of my photos I shoot in RAW (a file format you can easily switch to on most digital cameras) and edit in Adobe Lightroom.  Editing photos can seem intimidating, but Lightroom makes adjustments as painless as possible.  I promise, if I can learn to use it, anyone can.  I highly recommend purchasing Lighroom, it can help make your photos the best they can be

When I started this blog, I had a suspicion Eko is really a dinosaur, but I could never prove it.  Now thanks to Eko and everything he taught me about photography I finally have proof.

Rhodesian Ridgeback, adventure, marking our territory, chicago, dogs, blog, photoWelcome… TO JURASSIC BARK!!!

I have learned a lot about photography in the past two years, but I am still an amateur. One of my favorite parts about checking out other blogs is to see and learn how other people take pet photos.  I can’t begin to count the tips and ideas I have seen on other blogs so thanks to all of you as well!  If I can pay it forward by answering any basic questions, just let me know.  And if you have any other tips I could use, make sure to share those too!

     

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