Project 52 - Week 39: Texture

I think we may have walked this texture path before, but the topic is always a good one, and I thought I would approach it a little differently than I did the last time we crossed paths.

I am mostly concerned with the various textures that make up a dog or cat.  While texture places emphasis on detail and light in a composition, beauty is still in the eye of the beholder.  That means that the role of texture in the photograph will be a matter of taste.

Texture can be present in the coat of a dog, the environment around the dog, or can be a texture overlay on a digital photo.

I had a great time photographing dogs and their people at the annual DeCoverly Kennels English Setter picnic last weekend, so I thought I would use a few photos from the day to illustrate.  I am still working on the photo album to share with attendees.

In the photo above, the backdrop is an entire field of goldenrod.  In this case, I wanted to focus on the textures found in the main subject, this lovely Setter.  By opening up my aperture, I blurred the goldenrod, which would be texture overload, and pull the eye away from my subject.  Now you can better see the textures in the face, ear, chest and coat of the Setter. 

The backdrop looks almost like a texture overlay, but it isn't.  It was a very hot, sunny day, so the light leak you see is due to the trees we all tried to gravitate to in order to stay cool.  I love the expression on this dog's face, and the little spindle of drool, so common in Setters.

In the next photo you can really see that the textures in the face of this tri-colored Setter are well defined.  Once again, I have blurred the background by using a more open aperture to concentrate more on the facial expression and texture of the dog's coat.

And finally, I used a smaller aperture, and a better ambient light situation, to bring out the texture detail in the entire body of the Setter below.  Once again the background is somewhat blurred, but not as extensively as in the photos above.

Sometimes it's a difficult call, between the surrounding environment and the texture of a dog subject, to decide how much detail (and resulting texture) you will show.  This is where I think personal taste comes into play.  Some scenes lend themselves to full texture detail, but I have to admit, I rarely use that practice.  Normally, I tend to blur the background (whether a lot of blur, or only a little) to allow the viewer to focus in on the textures of a subject's coat and expression.

To see more interpretations of the texture theme, start here with Sam Adele Pet & Equine Photography covering the Lancaster, Morecambe and Heysham areas.  Then travel around the blog circle until you find yourself right back here where you started. 

We are heading into Fall.  I am looking forward to a cooler weekend and soon-to-be colorful leaves.  Have a great one!