James,
here's what the final ad looks like and why the backdrops and floor were not an issue in the original images. I have a pretty good idea of what Linda is going to do with images when I shoot them and so I worry about the things that are important -- the position of the dog, the attitude, the eyes, the handler and all that other stuff that is critical to what Linda will actually use.



If it were simply a portrait session, I'd be concerned about the rest of the environment. Not that portrait sessions are simple but the end product there is a print of the entire image. In an ad shoot, it's the dog and the handler and everything else is irrelevant unless I'm shooting environmental portraits.

Hope that answers your question.

Jim