
	Take Greyt Photos!

Take Greyt Photos of Your Greyhound

By Joanne Johnson (Joanne Johnson Photography)

How to get that terrific portrait of your greyhound!
One of the biggest mistakes people make when taking photos of humans and animals is to stand the subject in bright direct sunlight. This causes dark areas of shadows and looks very harsh. It is much better to do your photographs on a cloudy day or put your subject in the shade. The shadows will be softer and your subject won’t be squinting.
Bright sun too many shadows.	The shade gives a softer look.
When photographing dogs squat down and get onto their level. Even our greyhounds will look short and squat if you take a photo from above looking down at them. Sometimes you can get a very cute face portrait with the dog looking up at you but for full body shots always get down on their level.
Taken from above – unflattering.	Taken from the dog’s level - much better- but the bright sun is still too harsh.
Before you snap a photo check your background. Are their trees that will look like they are growing out of the back of your dog? Are their toys or garden tools in the background? A bad background will ruin a perfect photo. Things that don’t look strange in real life will look awful in a photo. That ball in the background may look like it is a growth on your dog in a picture. If there is something ugly in the background, you can move your subject but sometimes you can just change your angle slightly to change the background without moving your subject at all. If you have a couple of people to help you, get them to hold up a sheet, bedspread or Oriental rug as a background for a “studio” type shot.
This would be nice if there wasn’t a tree growing out of his back and a log in his chest.
If you have your subject in the shade be aware of where the most light is coming from. Is there a big open area of sky or a lake reflecting light? Make sure the strongest light source is behind you or to one side of you if you are taking the photo. If it is behind your subject the dog will be too dark with too much brightness behind it. This can be a nice effect if you are doing a sunset photo but in most cases it should be avoided. You can also take nice photos in the house if you have a large window behind you or to one side of you (never behind your subject). Be sure that your shadow isn’t visible on your subject as you take the picture. Don’t try to fix a dark shadowed photo by using a flash because the dog’s eyes will glow green.
Too much light behind the dog.
If your dog is standing be sure the legs are squarely under the dog or even better pulled out a little in more of a dog show stance. If your dog has his front and back legs too close together he will look hunched up in the photo. Make sure his head it up high too. If his head is low in the photo it will make him look shy and scared. With the ones that are nervous sometimes your assistant will actually have to hold the dog’s head up by holding the leash above the dogs head and pulling it straight up. Just try to keep hands out of the photo and don’t choke the dog. Have something with you that the dog likes such as a squeaky toy or food. Pull it out just before you take the photo and hold it above the camera so the dog looks that direction. Or better yet have an assistant hold it at behind the camera and about the same height when you are ready to snap the photo. You can also try making odd noises like whining, squeaking and barking to get your dog to look at you.
Dog is hunched up and looks miserable.	Legs are in a better position now.

Good lighting, good background, nice pose! This is the shot we're after!

Now, let's get that terrific close-up!
For nice face only shots you can even have your assistant straddle the dog’s back end and hold it in place. Greyhounds are so long a person can hold them that way if they are positioned sideways to the camera and you can get a nice face shot without the assistant being visible. Greyhounds face shots look best if the greyhound is placed sideways to the camera and is looking directly at the camera, slightly to either side of the camera or looking back toward its tail (my favorite).
Nice close up with dog looking back.	Nice close up with dog looking to the side.
If you are taking the photos with a digital camera make sure you take them at the largest size possible. That will give you the best quality photo for printing even if you have to crop out some of the background. If you want smaller photos for emailing be sure to COPY the original image before you re-size it. Photos that email easily won’t print out well so make sure you keep your original at the larger size.




Article and Photos are the property of Joanne Johnson. Please ask permission if you wish to use them for anything other than the enjoyment of your family and greyhounds.

Page Manager: Kim Owens, Greyhound Crossroads Director