4 Animal Photography Tips You Should Try With Your Pet

It’s said that you should never work with children or animals, and this certainly rings true when trying to conduct a photo session with one of your pets. You may know them and their behavior like the back of your hand, but when it’s time to look good in front of the lens, pets can be rather difficult to work with.

Here, we have compiled four animal photography tips that you should try with your pet. Let us know if they work!

1. Use treats

Although your dog or cat may have an idea as to what’s going on when you try to get them to do certain things, they definitely don’t understand the notion of “posing”, let alone animal photography. Because of this, the easiest way to get them to look in a certain direction is by luring them with treats or toys. They’ll be camera-ready in no time!

2. Play the waiting game

If you want to take a certain picture of your pet but they’re just not playing ball, consider simply waiting around nearby with a camera in your hands. You cannot communicate what you want your pet to do, and it may be a good idea to wait for them to “naturally” pose before taking that elusive picture.

If you’re taking part in a professional animal photography shoot, then the pet is likely to be excited or nervous at first, so be sure to remain patient and allow them to get the nerves out of their system.

The nicest animal photography shots are usually taken at the most unexpected moments.

3. Use natural light

If you’re new to animal photography or just photography in general, you’ll quickly learn that natural light is one of the easiest and best light sources to work with. It’s especially nice when the daylight is naturally soft and diffused on a cloudy day, making for a pleasing picture. Windows and windowsills are also great for this purpose, as the glass tends to soften the daylight even further, making for a flattering photo.

4. Take notes from sports photography

When photographers are taking pictures of sporting events, they tend to use fast shutter speeds, burst mode, and continuous autofocus. Despite the fact that we’re talking about animal photography here, the ethos is very much the same.

A fast shutter speed (preferably at least 1/250) allows you to capture still-looking pictures of a pet that won’t sit still, while activating the burst mode means that you’ll take a flurry of pictures, at least one of which will hopefully be perfect. The continuous autofocus mode is designed to prevent your images from lacking sharpness, making your animal photography as hassle-free as possible.

Animal photography is no walk in the park, but with these top tips, you should be able to get that perfect snap in no time! Besides, taking photos of your cute companion will never be a waste of time. They love you unconditionally, and it’s nice to always be reminded of your furry best friend. Don’t forget to display your pet photos on your Nixplay Digital Photo Frame! Take advantage of our back-to-school sale and buy the Nixplay Seed 8-Inch Wi-Fi Cloud Frame to get up to 30% off!

Beatrice Bisais

Bea is Nixplay’s Social Media Manager. She enjoys drinking coffee, reading about wars, and writing stories. Send her a message at beatrice.bisais@nixplay.com.