I did a session for a whippet breed ad yesterday. She is beautiful, her bitch is beautiful, so, it was easy. All except the black shirt and white dog I have not edited these, as I had to get ready for a garage sale this morning I do need to tone down some burned spots, open up some shadows, ect; and so on

These are 100% pro Julie! Beautiful. Is this late afternoon light too? Really nice shots. The only thing I can come up with at all is on the second one the dogs head gets a little lost in the landscape, would have maybe stood out better if it were against the water like the rest of her body. But these are all just exceptional! I love #3 too, the lighting is really nice. So is 4, love the golden light.

Julie,
very nice. There are a couple of things I find distracting, however. In #1, the fingers in her lap distract me from enjoying the head. I'd clone those out.

I like #5 the best of all of them with some cleaning up of the background, etc. #3 would be perfect if the tongue weren't out. That's the hardest part of shooting dogs outside this time of year. I was asked to shoot some Rotties at a dog show today in Orlando and it's 95 degrees outside. I told the people if they wanted to have shots of their dogs with their tongues hanging down to the ground that'd be fine but otherwise, let's try to shoot them at dawn.

The lighting in these shots is beautiful and both subjects are very photogenic. There are just a few little things to clean up in post-production.

Nice job.

Jim

I color corrected these and if you hit refresh on your browser, it should show the difference. The heat was a problem, the bigger problem was they brought out the lunge whip they use to train their dogs to race. The go as bonkers for it as they do the real lure! So, she spazzed, and wouldn't calm down. I poured some beer in her mouth a few times to give a couple of seconds of a closed mouth. Her mom put wine in her mouth. It worked.

We were on top of a ridge, overlooking the lake and it was a hike back to get water. Which is also why I didn't go further down to have all the water in the background(though I didn't really notice the trees being a problem,... until now ) It was just too downhill to place her any further down. East TN is allll hills.

What should I clone out in #5? The rock? The weeds? The tree growing out of her back?

Julie, could you have just taken a step to your right and have the handler taken a step away from you and turn the dog toward her a touch to get the water behind her head? Or would that have put the the sun at the wrong angle?

LOL well I'd probably calm down after a few mouthfuls of beer too. I'll have to remember that one.

Nothing really bothers me in #5? I just love #4 it's perfect of the owner, too bad the pose on the dog isn't a little more relaxed but I do just love that shot.

I actually had the opportunity to shoot in the golden light tonight at the Andalusian horse show. My friends with the new imported stallion brought him out for some shots, it was so gorgeous with the golden light on him, I am going to try and shoot at that hour a lot. I took notice, it was just as you said, about 8 pm to about 8:30 pm was best. This guy is 17 hands and takes your breath away, he won all his classes today.

So post photos of him! I am dying to see!

There were a bunch that were great of one, but not of another. Many with the tongue out. My friend who shows danes has taught me the pour water in their mouth trick to get them to pull their tongues in(for a couple of seconds) All we had was beer and wine. :P Not enough to hurt the dog, just a splash.

Here are some that I have cropped and edited





A couple the magazine editor liked:

BEAUTIFUL Julie. Love the highlight in the eye on the first. Nice job with the second. I like the pose on the dog in the third better! Four is another gorgeous lighting shot. I love it. I think I would have preferred the dogs head to be facing the same way as the woman's but regardless it is a wonderful shot. The woman looks like a hired model!

Oh I forgot to respond to the horse photo...I am still going through the cards but I'll post one of him on another thread for you, so as not to hijack yours.

those sure are nice. I like them a lot. she's is beautiful too, the trainer that is.

I do have a thought, not being a big dog marketer anymore, I used to breed and sell dogs, but never had to market them, anyhow, I'd like to see what happens to the shots when they get text. It seems to me that the beautiful woman in the shots is mostly the subject and the dog is just her friend. That's the feeling I got when I look at them. theres nothing wrong with that, I love the shots, but it seems that the adds would suit the woman more that the dog. . .

If she's ever out in glacier park and needs a photography lesson or someone to carry her backpack, make sure she calls me! LOL, O and the dog's cute too. . .

She is pretty and single too When you "special" a dog, which is one that has already earned its championship, you really have to advertise not only the dog, but the handler. It gives recognition to both. Which, in turn, improves their chances of winning. They took a group 1(1st place against all the hounds) at a really big show and this dog is now #11 in whippets.

So, the woman is as much a focal point of the ad as the dog. The judges are more likely to remember her, and then remember the dog, than the dog alone.

At least that is how it is explained to me. A subjective sport with politics.