Develop an Eye for Framing

This week's blog circle topic is "frames," and I have decided to talk a little bit about how to find good framing opportunities in nature, helping you to grab better pet photos.

I'm not just talking about camera photos, but also cell use.

I decided to scope out my own backyard with our hardest-to-photograph dog, Billie.  Right now our landscape is fraught with downed ash trees and branches that need to be cleared out.  High wind and ice storms did a number on a large quantity this past winter.

Nevertheless, if you think about three things when searching for an optimum framing element, you should be able to improve your photos of your pet.

3 Things to Think About When Looking to Frame Your Pet

1.  Find Something Interesting or Colorful

A springtime landscape will often afford you the ability to find flowering bushes, trees or gardens of early spring blooms (like daffodils or tulips).  Framing your pet amid the blooms is a great way to make a ho-hum photo more exciting!

I placed Billie on a large garden bench so she would sit up into the higher branches of our Magnolia bush.  I also opened up my lens to add a dreamy/creamy look to the magnolias. 

​I think the pink suits her.  What do you think?

2.  Anchor the Subject Between Two Similar Objects

Talley was a little verklempt that I was asking Billie to pose, and not her.  Talley knows that treats are involved (see that tiny bit of drool in the corner of her mouth camera left?) so she is typically a very willing subject.  

These two tree groupings grow on an island in our yard.  The key is to find the right angle in the frame up, and to use a lens setting that will blur out a distracting background.  When you are working toward finding the right angle, be sure to pick the one that has the least amount of distracting objects.

Because the two tree groupings are "similar items," they do a nice job of framing Talley in between, keeping the look consistent.

I chose a different set of trees outside of our main yard for Billie.  She is a smaller dog and needed some trees that were closer together, as she might get lost in too big a space between objects.  Billie is at her scruffiest right now.  She is due at the groomer's next week, but I kind of like photographing her when she is very scruffy.

Some other common similar objects you can find in nature are:  large rocks, foot paths, clumps of high grasses, round hay bales, pond reeds...there are just a multitude of things you can find and use when you are out and about.

Look for openings that complement, rather than detract from, the size of your pet.

3.  When You Can't Avoid Background Distractions, Use a Common Theme

Our grandkids climbing equipment served as a way to immerse Billie in common colors and objects, plus place her between two like objects (the green handles).  While there are things going on behind her in the background, because of the common theme, your eye will go to Billie.

She loved it up on the play equipment, because it was a great vantage point to spot squirrels.

Armed with these three suggestions, I challenge you to go out and "frame" your pet.  The more you practice, the faster your eye will find great spots in the future.

Click Into the Circle

I am part of a weekly blogging group of professional pet photographers located all over the planet.   To see what others have blogged about in this week's topic, start here with Dallas - Fort Worth pet photographer Tracy Allard of Penny Whistle Photography, as she tells the story of your dog or cat with one-of-a-kind story prints that allow you to display multiple pictures from your pet's photo shoot. Then find the link at the end of each blog to click on to the next photographer. 

Happy Mother's Day to all the skin and fur-kid moms out there!  Have a fantastic weekend!