Oh gosh Bob, I totally missed seeing your post! Thank you so much!! You answered a lot there. To answer your questions, #2...I had hoped to have the backdrop look just like it normally does only turn it a different color with the gels. I realize it does make a bit of a halo effect which is fine. But either the color of the gel is too weak to make it appear the backdrop is that color (it is a watered down version that looks weak) or I increase the light and it blows it out. I have tried the gels on seamless white paper and also a mottled muslin mid gray. (I am wondering if I should get seamless black and seamless gray so I can then get all the colors I want?)

I had the backlight set off to the side since the table I borrowed was too short for the light to not show behind or if the dogs were on the ground.

#3, yes my hope was to use the gel for color. I was inspired by Rachael Hale's work
http://www.rachaelhale.com/gallery.aspx
and was hoping to figure out how to come up with similar background colors using the gels (which I am only guessing is what she does).

#4 explains a lot. The frustration is usually not knowing the limitations of what you are working with and trying to get something better when maybe there isnt' a way. So knowing that helps a lot. So I shouldn't expect the gels to really color a white background very intensly?

#5...I am not exactly sure what you mean by infrared remotes vs cable releases. I use a trigger on the hot shoe of my camera, to fire the two (or three if I use the backlight) strobes. Is that what you mean by infrared remote? Is there a way with what I have to fire the camera and strobes anywhere on the set rather than having to be at the camera pushing the shutter? Since I work alone I'd love to have the freedom of standing to the side of the animal or to hold them there and let go to quickly get the shot, etc.

#6 is also very helpful thank you for that! I usually have my two front lights at 45 degree angles from the side. I have not tried up high directly in front, etc. I am going to set up at a dog match next month and practice on peoples dogs there so I will experiment.

I just checked out your site, gorgeous shots! The cats (and the one dog) are beautiful they all have a nice quality to them. Thanks for sharing! And thanks again for answering my questions it is much appreciated I am still not sure how I missed seeing your post.

Thank you too Julie for your added advice and the link to dpreview. Some good stuff there too, Chuck also mentions the gray paper so I'm wondering if I shouldn't get gray and black yet...also will write the site with the table then and ask the cost.

Here are some of the photos to show what I was talking about with the lighting. (uncropped so I could show the entire scene). First one, is the mottled gray with a gold gel, obviously was not pointed in the right direction. I thought the light would spread out farther than that.




Second shot is the samething only pointed at the middle. I wanted the whole backdrop to change color though maybe I'm not understanding what gels do though. I wanted the color spread out more...I am using a honeycomb and again I don't know where else I could put the light as off to the side seems the only place.





Third shot, since I wasn't getting the color coverage and saturation I wanted I increased the power of the back light and as you can see, washed the middle out (although color did go over the whole background then).



Fourth and last shot I tried it again with a bright pinkish gel, same problem too bright. I should have taken notes on my settings but I was just trying things and wasn't as organized with keeping track of what I was doing as I should have been.



When I set up the lights at 45 degrees alone I think my lighting is fine (here is an example). This example also shows how I learned black velvet doesn't go well with shedding dogs!



It's just when I try to get tricky and artsy or if there is a variation like more than one dog or heaven forbid the day a human gets into the shot! I'd really like to learn how to do some other more interesting things.