Yesterday, we headed off to Bellevue, FL (about 1.5 hrs from Orlando) to photograph some of the top show dogs to include in advertising in the Westminster Issue of Dog News. I'd like to share some of those shots with the forum and would welcome your comments.

The first dog I photographed is a Rottweiler known as Brito who is one of the Top 10 Rotties in the country. Then we took a few shots of the #1 15-inch Beagle in the country. Both are handled by Professional Handler, Jeff Brucker, who is one of the best handlers in the country. So, setting up the dogs was not an issue

Here are the Brito images:




Julie, that last shot of Brito is what I call a 3/4 stacked shot.

Here are the Beagle shots:




And, because I love puppies, here's a shot of one of the Rottie pups that was there.



Some technical info: Canon XT at 200ISO, 50mm F1.8 lens, no sharpening in post-processing (the lens is simply sharp).

I look forward to your comments.

Jim

This is great, to see some natural lighting shots to compare with your indoor shots on the other post. Beautiful. You have some harsh lighting situations but you made it work really well! Did you use any fill flash? And how did you choose where to set them up (what time of day was it?) Sun vs shade, etc. I'll bet at this point, it is second nature to you and you don't even have to think about it, you just do it!

While I'm bombarding you with questions...:) how is the canon XT different than the 20D and why did you choose it? Do you have a backup body? I really want one but can't see spending that much for another 20D body that would only be used if the first one went kaput at a bad moment...

Thanks so much for sharing these, I know I'm learning a lot.

DeeDee,
I did not use fill flash for these because we were trying to create a "spotlight" feeling with the dog highlighted and the handler somewhat more muted in the background. The lighting was perfect so that's how I shot it.

The close-up shot of the Beagle has no eye highlights because we are going to create an image of the handler in the dog's eyes for the ad. So, no catchlights. The location is at the handler's home with 8 acres of pines and dappled sunlight. Shot at noon (believe it or not).

I chose the XT because of how I shoot: handheld and often having to bait with my left hand while I shoot with the right. It has the same resolution as the 20D and, with battery grip, was much less expensive. And, it works for me and the way I shoot. That is all I really care about.

I think the XT would be a great backup body for the 20D.

Thanks for your comments. I love the informal shooting. But the formals are the bread n butter of the business end.

Jim

Do you use your XT for the formals also? Or are you still using MF for that?

I need to get my friend with the Saints out to the lake. I don't think she wants me to photo them at this point though, as her husband is going to become a photographer....

Julie,
I do most of my shooting with the XT with a Digital Rebel and D30 as my back-up equipment. I like the look of the images out of the XT both in jpeg mode and RAW. They are more "film-like" than most of what I see coming out of digital SLRs these days.

BTW, have you seen the new plug-in being offered by Alien Skin? It simulates the look of various films including the old Kodachrome blue. I have a trial version and it's a gas!

You might tell your friend that having a camera does not mean you are a photographer : )

Jim

Sometimes it is better to just say "Yeah, great...." and stay friends I tried to explain some things about cameras ect; but when the focus is only on MP and nothing else, I go into agreeing mode.

I haven't seen the plugins, I will have to check them out. I have a bad problem of messing with things too much. Just a little more sharpening... Just a little more this or that...

I have a tendency to shoot raw as a fail safe. I need to get more comfortable with jpg. Raw is so much more versatile though.... sigh.. I just can't stop messing with things

Hey Jim,

Very nice shot of the Rotty and his human. I like the fact that you did not use fill on the first couple of shots. It really emphasizes the dog...and this makes it very different.

The puppy shots are, of course, adorable.

James

James,
this is another case of form fitting function. I knew what Linda, who is the designer of the ads, was looking for so that's how I shot it. In a different location, I would have lighted the subjects fully and let Linda create the effect in post-production but the location gave me the light I wanted. Plus, with the Rottie on the stacked shot, I wanted to demonstrate his conditioning by showing his musculature. Believe me, that is one very well-conditioned guy!

Aren't puppies great!

Jim

Julie,
I shoot RAW too, but once I've done my RAW processing and saved to 16 bit .tif files, I have the whole gamut of plug-ins at my disposal. Hmmmm. Maybe that isn't such a great thing

Anyway, I usually stick to PhotoKit Sharpener and ICorrect as my "normal" adjustment plug-ins but the Alien Skin film effects are very cool. Whether they're worth investing $199 remains to be seen as the free trial winds down.

Sometimes having a production chain is a good thing. When I'm processing 200 images, I don't have the time to mess with micro-adjustments.

Jim

The spotlight effect worked great with this natural lighting! Will be get a peek at the beagle with the handler in it's eye? Cool idea.

I was looking into getting an XT per your suggestion as a back up body but now I'm onto the Mark II since I mostly do action shots. I got the bug bad LOL.

I have not shot RAW yet, I'm guessing that gives you a better print quality? And don't you have to convert it somehow in photoshop? You also get less shots per card that way don't you...is it still worth doing? I'm thinking of the action shots where I'll use burst and get a bunch of shots off at a time...would fill up a card pretty fast.