Lessons
Class Introduction
05:49 2Prepping for Puppy Photo Shoot
04:28 3Cavalier: Puppy Awake in Basket
07:27 4Cavalier: Puppy on Floor Laying on Muslin
06:24 5Cavalier: Puppy in Posing Bag
04:15 6Cavalier: Puppy in Wood Bowl
05:16 7Cavalier: Two Puppies on Posing Bag
08:50 8Cavalier: Puppy in Purple Fabric
05:16Lesson Info
Prepping for Puppy Photo Shoot
I like to be set up before every session with a couple of different things ready to go, so that way, when they're asleep, we can just pop them in and start shooting. Oh, that's a bit cute. (laughing) Oh, you're strong. (laughing) This might take a little longer at six weeks of age. So, we tend to photograph them around that four to six weeks because at four weeks, they're still nice and sleepy, and with the different breeds, they also got like different personalities but some puppies are a little bit more hyperactive at four weeks and some are a little more docile. So, it just depends on the breed and doing your research into those breeds is also really important, as well. You know, these little ones have got lots of energy. Mom's having a great time, there, with one of her babies and it's not gonna take long before they do start to wear out because they are having too much fun, here. Yeah, they usually start dropping, don't they? They just fall to the ground when they're ready and t...
hen, we scoop them up, and try and get them to sleep. (laughing) I don't think it's gonna happen just yet. (laughing) No. So, if they were... (laughing) If they were a little more sort of relaxed, we'd start straight away but this is all part of the process in having lots and lots of patience. Squeaky toys and things like that do work. Having rattles and things like that. So, while the other two are still running around and we've got two, here, we're just gonna see what they do if we start to kinda just hold them and pet them, calm them down a little bit. It's a lot of fun, in here. They've got an open space, new smells, and I can feel this little one's heart racing a hundred miles an hour. So, yeah. Just holding them and being nice and calm, and quiet, and just sort of starting to really calm them down works. It just depends on every puppy and their age. Like, at six weeks of age, this is the most playful time. I mean, they can be more playful, as well, obviously, as they get older but at four weeks, they're usually just starting to become quite playful, and now, at this age, they've got so much energy, and they're so quick on their feet. We have the temperature in the studio just really, you know, sort of normal, 24 degrees Celsius, which is about, I think it's low... Low 70s. Might be cool on hot days. So, that's not too hot, not too warm. So, if they are awake and still, and calm, we will definitely photograph them but it is very, very difficult to get them running around a hundred miles an hour. So, this one is starting to have some longer, harder bites (laughing) and really relaxing, here. This is probably the longest part of any shoot. We tend to kind of, you know, spend more time wearing them out and getting them nice and relaxed for the way that we want to photograph them, and then, the shoot part is usually quite quick. But yeah, when we do have, you know, the different breeds coming in, it's important that we're communicating with our clients before the shoot so that they fully understand, you know, what's involved. We... You know, tell them, obviously, to make sure that they're nice and full, and bring food with them, and Melanie is the perfect snack bar (laughing) for these little ones. We've got food on tap, which is lovely but we've had some litters in with 10 puppies and some with, you know, only three puppies. So, we sort of treat each one the same and we work on an individual setup for each puppy, and we try and get all of the puppies from the same litter, as well, in the one shoot. But you know what we might do, I've got a little tray, up here. When we start to have one that's a little sleepy, what I always try to do is have, Jade will be nice and close by, and you know, hands on, hands kind of protecting the puppy, and every time we go to take that shot, it's sort of then hands up. But we don't want these little guys to jump out of anything. I think we're starting to wear out a bit, here.
Ratings and Reviews
Paula Ayers
I am not a photographer. I do compositing using Photoshop and was interested in seeing how they set up and pose such lively subjects. Such care was taken with the puppies and I learned a lot about getting just the right poses using different setups like muslin, bowls, etc. For compositing, it's important to know what you are looking for in order to bring images together correctly. This course, besides being fun to watch, has helped me, even if my images don't wiggle as much as these puppies.
user-2f5d81
I loved everything about this class!! It was so obvious by the handling and the way you interacted with the puppies how much care and thought goes into the artwork you created. I'm so excited to put all of your ideas into my own creativity. Thank you for providing me with the inspiration to move forward with pet photography!