So many people say to me that I must live in the most magical place, to be able to take so many amazing photos. But it’s just not true! I live in the north-east of england, where barren, windswept hills are the norm. I’ve found a few pockets of woods and use them to my advantage, because the trick isn’t in having some magical location, it’s in knowing how to use what you’ve got!
Our November challenge is therefore all about location. Knowing what to look for, how to use it, and how to stretch your creativity. Ready to get started?
This challenge closely reflects how I choose locations for any of my shoots, and will hopefully help you to develop your “eye” for places that will be suitable for pet portraits! I want you to go to some nearby natural area: park, woods, bush, whatever. Choose a small area, about 10m in diameter. This is your working area.
Things to consider when choosing a location (not just for the challenge!):
- Enough light falling on the dog’s face from an open area overhead
- Good light in general (not harsh midday sun, or backlight with only shadows in front of the dog)
- Some “visual interest”. This may be moss, ferns, rocks, logs, grasses, flowers, branches, leaves, interesting colours, shapes or textures in nature. Basically anything beside plain mown grass.
- A few options for variety.
Once you have your small location, get shooting! Take photos with as much variety as possible. How many completely different photos can you take in this one small 10m area? And I don’t mean just changing the pose, or whether it’s a full body or headshot. How can you use this location in as many creative ways as possible? As you’ll see in my examples, each photo was taken at a different “spot”, even though they all have a similar theme and feeling to them.
When you have your collection of photos from your limited location, head home, edit them however you like and upload them (however many you like. One is fine, ten is fine, it’s up to you! 😂) to your Instagram feed and/or story. Make sure to use the hashtag #inspawrationchallenge and tag me (@breathofwildair) in the actual image so I can find it. At the beginning of December, I’ll compile all the entrants and provide feedback, and choose my favourites!
Here are some other things to keep in mind when choosing a location for pet photography:
- Give depth to your photos by having a foreground, midground and background. The foreground and background will ideally be soft and blurry from your lens.
- Consider adding context by including some foliage in close-up headshots (as above).
- Look for “tunnels” between trees or bushes, or small narrow paths.
- Always consider the light!!
- Do some cleaning up and gardening in your location to remove annoying sticks, twigs and distractions before shooting.
- Think about framing your dog: either using tree-trunks, overhead branches, trees either side of the frame, and so on.
- Look for interesting shapes in trees or bushes where you can position your dog so your eye is drawn to the subject.
- Try not to have anything covering their face (usually. Rules are made to be broken!)
- Some photographers don’t like things covering the dog’s feet. I don’t mind it, as I think it gives additional context and really anchors the dog in the scene.
If you want more resources on finding locations, make sure you check out our photo walk, where I explain why I chose each location and what I was looking for.
Pingback: November Challenge Feedback & The Cutest December Challenge Ever (Hint: Puppies!) – Emily Abrahams Photography