The Chinese Zodiac has gone to the dogs this year.  Literally.  It is the Year of the Dog.  Of course, for our dogs, every year is their year.  Well, every day is their day.  Our life story according to them, revolves around them. They live minute to minute and each and every minute is spent either sleeping upside down in some contorted position in a small ray of sunshine flopping through the window, or sitting by the treat cabinet making googly eyes and hoping someone will notice.  But I digress.

Dog, says the Chinese Zodiac, is the symbol of loyalty and honesty.  Well, we knew that, didn't we?

I created an image specifically for the Year of the Dog.  Burton has been my muse lately.   He has been following me around singing his Burton song, so I immediately thought of him and this Dog Year of 2018.  And here is what each month might look like for him so far, and in the future:

January:  Play in the snow, avoid baths at all cost, sing for my supper, hibernate.
February: Do whack-a-mole imitation at treat time, beat everyone to the couch, avoid baths at all cost.
March:  Relent and get a bath - growl the entire time.
April: Avoid grooming at all cost, let another house dog touch me, keep a vigil for Dad until he comes home from work.
May: Spend time outside mediating all dog interactions whether they like it or not. Bark at rabbits.
June:  Find the best shade, don't let anyone else near it. Sit with Dad on the yard glider.
July: High fives all around for treats, roll in the grass, sleep in the sun.
August:  Lay low, stay cool, eat bugs, hide when wash tub is brought into the yard. Shed all available hair on body.
September: Catch leaves, catch high bouncing balls, watch for that sneaky UPS man.
October: Continually bark at people wearing strange costumes.
November: Get ready for hibernation, go back into avoid-bath mode,
December:  Hide under covers, snuggle next to Mom on the couch, watch for squirrels at the bird feeders.

There you have it, the year of our silly Burton.

How I achieved this calendar look:  I took an existing, unedited photo of Burton, cleaned it up, used Topaz Simplify on it and added a texture to the background.  I downloaded a stock calendar page image, converted it to black and white and used Photoshop to place the calendar on the existing image of Burton using Multiply.  I brought the opacity down to 45%, created a reveal layer and brushed off the calendar lines from Burton's image.

Happy Year of the Dog! 

I am participating in the blog circle this week, so there are loads more photos to see.  Start here with Kirsten Eitreim  of KME Photography in Minneapolis, MN.  Have a fun filled weekend!

This week I am using my Nikon D800 camera, a 50mm 1.4 lens, a somewhat cooperative dog, and one example to point out how depth of field is not just a camera setting, but a consideration in the overall look and feel of a photograph.

Depth of field (DoF) is dependent upon your aperture setting and your proximity to the subject (how close or far you are from what you are photographing).  The lower your aperture setting, the wider the opening in your camera, the more shallow your depth of field will be. But, we also have to factor in proximity to subject.  The closer you stand to your subject, and the wider open (lower the number) your aperture is, the more blur you will have around everything but your focal point.

To illustrate, I placed my camera on a tripod and placed it three feet away from my subject.  My volunteer this week was Burton.  Well, to be perfectly honest, he did not raise his paw to volunteer, so I picked him.  I placed him on a bench with a cover and waited for him to settle.  I focused on the area just between his nose and his eyes on the bridge of his nose.  The first photo, below, has the aperture set at 1.4 (the widest it can go), ISO 100, speed is 1/125.

You can see that the image is very soft and blurred all around Burton, but his nose, the whiskers just below the nose, and a bit of the bridge of his nose are in focus.  The depth of field is TOO SHALLOW to capture Burton's entire face in focus.

Leaving the camera in the exact same location, with the focus point still on the bridge of the nose between the nose and eyes, and Burton still quietly laying on the bench, I reset the camera's aperture to 4 (narrows the opening), left the speed at 1/125, and raised the ISO to 400.  Here is the result.

This time the depth of field allows for Burton's entire face to be in focus, yet still gives me the blur I am seeking for the rest of his body and backdrop. 

If I wanted more of his body in focus, I could change the camera settings again, or I could change the distance between Burton and I, moving farther back, to gain additional areas of focus.  Understanding the depth of field capabilities of your lenses is an important factor in planning and setting up your photography work.

A little bit of Burton trivia.  He will be nine years old this year and has been deaf since birth.  He is very vocal and actually sings for his supper.  He was rescued by Another Chance for English Setters and we adopted him at the age of 4 months in 2009.  He knows countless hand signals, and reads our body language better than a body language specialist.  He loves to play with tennis and chuck-it balls and can leap a good 5 feet in the air to recover a ball on a bounce.  He has one lovely blue eye and a bit of blue at the bottom of his light brown eye.  I think his ears look like lamb ears.

For more depth of field photos and more discussion, check out this week's blog circle.  Start here with Mikahla Dorey of Brackson Photography, Pet & Equine Photographer in Nova Scotia, Canada.