Dog Candids: Canine Portrait Shots

Although it’s not my primary focus in photography I do spend a good bit of time photographing dogs. The obvious reason is that I have one – one that literally falls into the Man’s Best Friend category – and he’s my go-to test subject. Get a new lens, trying a new technique, setting up a small studio shoot in the house, he’s always around. In fact he’s gotten so used to the camera that he now poses, I kid you not.

But over the past year while doing non-profit photo work for Brigadoon, a dog assistance training school, I’ve realized that my dog isn’t the only one that likes to pose. Once you have a personal connection with a dog, they all like to pose. And more specifically, they all like to pose for personality portraits: shots where the look into the camera and show emotion. If you’ve got a dog you know there’s a lot going on behind those eyes and they’re not afraid to show it. At first I thought it was just my dog responding to his owner’s obsession with the camera, but I soon learned that once you connect with a dog, they all want to pose. Who knew they had it in them? :) And now I get requests to shoot dog portraits from all my friends, and almost all BBQ’s with dogs now include a series of impromptu portraits of people and their dogs.

I’m a dog person at heart, so connecting with them is second nature to me. Giving them respect and understanding how to relate to them is paramount. Once that’s done and they know where they stand and where you stand (figuratively and literally) they’ll open right up.

I’ve compiled a gallery of my favorite dog candids at Sealed Glass Photo, both portraits as well as the more traditional dog shots. While you’re enjoying them, remember that all proceeds from the Brigadoon galleries go to support that excellent organization.