Leash Magic

It is often the case that when photographing a dog out and about in the big wide open, a leash and collar are going to be a part of the photo.  In the studio, no leashes are necessary, except for the occasional slip lead to perhaps hold a dog in place here and there.  Collars are optional.  I usually leave that up to the owner.  Most owners like to leave their dog's collar on, because for them, it is a truer picture of their pet.  I will usually take a few photos with a collar and a few photos without, unless there is a reason to not remove the collar (skittish dog, etc.).

With my own dog, Moe, as an example, and using a photo from a while back (but one I never before edited), here is the before and after.

I left Moe's collar and tags in place because that's Moe, and I feel pretty strongly about dogs wearing collars and tags when out in the big, wide world.  You can see I also removed the unsightly branch sticking out of the foot bridge railing behind Moe.

Shelter and rescue photos are also often candidates for leash removal.  Sometimes you only have a few minutes to catch a good photo of a shelter pet.  You are also not guaranteed of the setting.  In the photo below, I had to remove much more than the leash, and do some work on the background.  I also changed the look of the photo by cropping it in closer.  This pup has since been adopted.

Leash removal is a pretty basic task.  Some photographers like to use the healing brush tool, but I use the clone tool most of the time.  I do also use the healing brush tool here and there, but I am used to the clone tool and tend to shift to it more.  Some photographers do not remove leashes.  I think they are distracting and detract from the photo, so I remove leashes from all photos I take, unless it is a commercial shoot and the person I am photographing for wants the leash left in. 

Let's see what others have to say about leashes this week.  Check out the blog circle starting with Terri J Photography, serving pets and the people that love them, in the Toronto area and Southeast Florida.  And don't forget to have a fantastic, unleashed weekend!