Life’s Sweet Ordinary — through my lens

Taking pictures of your dog, cat, or other pets are often similar to taking photos of your children. As promised here are a few simple, yet basic, aspects to keep in mind when taking pictures of your family dog(s). If there is interest, in future I can provide information to address more advanced approaches. These six tips will form a good base to get you started taking better snapshots of your family pet.

1. Have an assistant, whenever possible. If you have a friend or family member you can put them to work in playing with the dog or pup or by acting as a distraction with a toy, for instance. Squeaky toys are good for getting dogs to perk their ears at attention and for directing which direction the dog faces.
2. Turn off the flash and turn the beep feature off on your camera. Take your photos in a brightly lit room or outdoors so the flash is not necessary. Many animals become leary of cameras when the beep goes off every time the shutter is released. You don’t want your pet worried about the camera — you want him/her relaxed.
3. Forget about posing! Attempting to pose a dog, especially with the dog looking straight at the camera, most times is so lifeless and lacks personality. The best photos are those where you capture your dog (or your kids) at play, concentrating or showing curiosity over something, or even relaxing after a long run or playtime. As mentioned, if you have some toys or treats with you, you can toss it out to get the dog moving or playing. When you forget about posing and simply allow your pet to be itself, not only will you capture personality but you’ll also find you enjoy these the  most because the real essence of your dog/pet is captured.
4. Turn your camera’s setting to continuous mode. Whether you have a point-and-shoot, a DSLR or a 35mm film camera, you will have that capability. This allows the camera to take a continuous stream of photos while keeping the shutter pressed, hopefully so you don’t miss some unexpected shots especially if your pet is moving.
5. Take lots and lots of pictures! Don’t worry so much about perfection. Be more concerned about capturing special moments. If you have a digital camera, you have the luxury of taking all kinds of shots without having to pay for developing/processing. Simply delete the rejects after downloading them to your computer and hang on to the good ones (be sure to get them printed).
6. Get down! This one is key. When you get down to the pet’s level (again, this is important for photos of children too) and preferably the closer the better, your images will immediately improve. If you have a DSLR, you can get even better results by attaching your zoom lens. This will allow you to be further away (out of their face), less intimidating, and to still capture those close up shots. Ideally, you want to nearly (or fully) fill the frame with your subject. You don’t want your subject to be a blob or dot in the frame.

The dog's face fills the frame, concentrating on his eyes. He's not looking directly at the camera (distracted) and the camera is not in his face because a zoom lens was used.

it doesn't matter that this dog is not facing the camera -- the image tells a story: she is hanging back while the other two are off hunting (typical of this dog). Taken down at the dog's level and she nearly fills the frame.

Here the dog is captured playing in the snow (with snow flying). It doesn't matter that the other dog's head snuck in -- it shows curiosity. Again, the dog mostly fills the frame.

Here's a shot taken after the dog had sufficient time to play and wear off energy. He's keeping still yet his attention is elsewhere (a distraction) and has that 'posed' look.

{These photos are untouched, uncropped, straight out of the camera (SOOC), and are intended to demonstrate what is possible when applying some of the basic points suggested above.} 

PhoDOGraphy: How to Get Great Pictures of Your Dog

How to Take Great Pet Pictures: Recipes for Outstanding Results with Any Camera

Copyright © 2009 Diane Schuller. All Rights Reserved. It is illegal to copy any part of this post or the photos without the written permission of the author. You may link to this page from your blog or website.

Many people tell me that I’m a sharing kind of person. I don’t think that should be such an unusual virtue. Since I’m an only child, people have told me that it’s more common for an only child to be adverse to sharing. I’ve always been that way. I have never understood why a person wouldn’t share what they know. So on that note, today I plan to share with you a trio of useful items (and I hope you will share them with others as well).

“We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” ~Winston Churchill

1. I absolutely love using Lightroom 2, as you can tell by some of the sepia or black & white images I post here and at my daily photos. Using Lightroom is the digital darkroom for photography, not to mention a dynamite tool for organizing photos (far, far better & easier than doing so in Photoshop). I never would have known half of what Lightroom is capable of had I not invested in the excellent how-to book by Scott Kelby, Lightroom 2 for Digital Photographers. I’m one of those who learns best with visual cues and not by books but this is one exception. Kelby has written this book in such a logical and easy-to-follow manner, that he makes learning from a book a snap. That is no mild statement coming from this technically-unsavvy person!  If you have Lightroom, you need the book to get the most out of it — believe me.
2. Speaking of learning, here’s a freebie for you. If you are just beginning to get serious about photography, or even if you simply want to know how to take decent vacation or family photos, I came across a photographer who is offering online lessons at no charge. Besides being free, and full of excellent information, you can take the lessons at your leisure. In his own words, the lessons are targeted to those who, “If you want to improve your shots and get more enjoyment out of your pictures.” Please visit Brett Trafford photography to begin today.
3. As many of you know I have been ‘green’ since before it was cool to be green. I write a weekly environment column for a local newspaper so I can’t share the column here but I do have a tip I want to share. I could write pages about how harmful those so-called “air fresheners” are but you can do an online search to find lots of credible information about how terribly harmful they are to you and the environment. Those commercial products do nothing to ‘freshen’ the air but they do mask smells temporarily. The best way I know of freshening air is to open a window for a while and to clean our home with good old white vinegar and water. But if it’s masking odors temporarily you’re after, here’s a few safer and much more pleasant ways: a) Burn a soy or beeswax candle (never paraffin candles); b) simmer a pot of water with cloves, a stick of cinnamon, and/or orange peels; or c) make your own safe spray of pure essential oil of lemon diluted in water, add to a refillable atomizer, and voila!

“Thousands of candles can be lit by a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.” ~Buddha quote.

As Scott Ginsberg would say, “let me ask you this” … what do you love to share?

"books" Copyright © Diane Schuller

As many of you know, once you put your images online, you risk having them stolen by people who seem to think they are free. Some of these people help themselves to our photos for their blogs or websites and others are making money from them. We need to know how to protect our images.

Thanks to Roberta of Uncommon Depth, she has shared information for those posting at Flickr who are concerned about people who help themselves to our photos. It’s such important and helpful information, I too am passing along this helpful article on protecting your images.

That article by Greg Cope spells out specific ways to protect your images and I encourage you to read it and take steps for protecting your images from theft. You’ll notice that I have begun adding a watermark and, in some photos, I include both a watermark and a copyright notice. Sure someone can still steal the image. With the small copyright notice on the bottom corner that many people use, it’s so easy for anyone to clip that off and use the photo. The watermark is a bit more difficult to remove but people can do it — if they want the photo badly enough. My hope is that most who steal photos will be discouraged when they encounter my photos with a big watermark (or two of them) appearing on the photo.

I’ve also begun to make the photos smaller in [resolution] size but have not figured out how to add the right-click feature so it can’t be downloaded to start with.

This past week I deleted a bunch of my photos over at Flickr because they are real easy to steal plus Flickr is a hotbed for photo theft. No doubt you too have heard many stories of those who have experienced photo theft. I’ve actually had people tell me to my face that if they need a photo for their blog, website, (and a teacher who uses them for teaching tools) or other purpose the first place they go is Flickr! And you can bet your bottom dollar they don’t ask the artist for permission either. That is theft, pure and simple. So, I have decided that in the next month I will be removing a bunch more of my images from Flickr and the ones I plan to leave there will be replacing them with a duplicate that has my watermark plastered prominently in the image.

It has always astounded me that a person might see a neighbour’s tools in the backyard but they’d ask permission to borrow them yet the same person won’t think twice about helping themselves to a photographer’s photos (or a writer’s writings) and then slip away in the night.

If you’re on the other end however, as a person who is interested in using images found on the web, there IS a proper and legal way of doing so:

• If you see an image you are interested in using for your own blog or website, check the person’s website/blog or photo sharing site (such as Flickr) for information on their copyright or copyright policy. You’ll usually find this information on a page or sidebar such as the “about”, “copyright”, “permissions”, “profile”, or similar page/area.
• If the copyright notice indicates “All Rights Reserved” — they are definitely not yours for the taking.
• Now you need to contact that person (and that information is usually always available as well) to request permission to use their image. Don’t be afraid to do this; some people are flattered and will grant you permission. Some will ask for compensation. Don’t take it personally if they choose not to provide permission. After all, it does belong to them.
• If you don’t get permission and are really in need of a particular type of photo for your blog or website, use your search engine using keywords, “creative commons + [keyword for type of image you need]“. There are some people who have images available under licence as creative commons. Those are images where permissions will be granted for your use, yet you likely will be required to provide attribution (give credit to the specific owner). Flickr has a listing of their members who provide creative commons images as well as a simple explanation in the sidebar on what the particular type of creative commons entails.
• Not so difficult, right? And this way it’s legal.

Jenn and Karina over at Tiny Choices blog are a great example of the correct way to use other’s photos and how to give proper attribution. (Note that they use photos from Flickr that fall under “creative commons” and that they correctly provide attribution & a link directly to the individual; it is not correct to give attribution to Flickr because Flickr does not own the photos.)

I hope this is helpful in providing information on how to protect your images online. On the opposite hand, if you know of someone who may benefit from learning about the legal way of using online images, please share the link to this particular post. You are also welcome to link to this post from your own blog or website to share with others.

“If we know better, we do better.” ~ Maya Angelou

PS: After receiving some comments, I want to re-emphasize reading that article noted & linked to at the beginning of this post (the one by Greg Cope). My post is an effort to begin the conversation and to offer some tips and suggestions. Mr. Cope’s article is much more indepth and provides very specific how-to information in this regard.

Many of you know that I write a weekly environment column for a lifestyle newspaper here in Alberta. Each week I write about simple everyday things we can do to reduce our environmental footprint. About a year ago I mentioned that thanks to Junie Moon I learned another cool tip regarding envelopes. I’m going to share that one here.

I do save envelopes and use them a second time to write down my grocery lists or for taking notes beside the phone, but I learned a couple of great tips about re-using commercial envelopes. You know those security envelopes we receive with coloured (often blue, sometimes green) abstract patterns on the inside? I learned that by turning them inside-out they can be re-used! And, if you look at the mosaic above you’ll see how unique the finished product looks.

HOW-TO:  Gently open up the seams of the envelope. Some envelopes will loosen easily with a letter opener or knife but others may need some coaxing with a bit of steam first to soften the glue. Turn the envelope inside out and re-glue the seams. To use it for mailing, simply affix a self-adhesive address label to write out the address. You can do the same with all the business reply envelopes you receive in the mail.

See, it’s easy and fun being green! Perhaps you may be inspired to write someone a letter or send them a couple photos. Do you have any tips for re-using envelopes or re-purposing envelopes?

Please visit my photo-a-day; something new everyday!

Are you one of those who keeps wondering about Raw or what Raw is in terms of your camera and taking photographs? Does the thought of using Raw intimidate you? You’re not alone.

These days even the point-and-shoot digital cameras have the ability to shoot in RAW format. RAW is not just for the professionals; it’s just as relevant for the serious amateur photographer since it provides added control & editing adjustability producing richer, more vibrant photos. Raw mode does not compress the images (the way jpeg or tiff does, for instance) leaving them completely unprocessed.

Here’s what helped me fully understand the RAW format and how to take advantage of its capabilities.

For those wondering about camera Raw, this is a great source for learning about shooting raw:
Getting Started with Camera Raw: How to make better pictures using Photoshop and Photoshop Elements

In this book, Ben Long speaks to the photographer in simple terms, explaining logically all the way through. Nothing to be intimidated about. He covers the real basics progressing all the way to advanced editing in camera raw. You’ll learn what Raw is, how to choose a converter, image editing basics, workflow, and a great deal more. I’ll list the chapter titles for you so you can get an idea of the subject areas he covers:

1. Getting Started
2. What is Raw?
3. Image Editing Basics
4. Getting Started with Camera Raw
5. Workflow
6. Advanced Editing in Camera Raw
7. Shooting Raw

The book is geared towards both beginners and intermediate levels and covers camera raw whether you use a PC or a great Mac! You’ll wonder why you haven’t been shooting in Raw all along! Go ahead, click the book title text above to find out more about this helpful book.

{This is the first of a series of tips on photography that I’ll share here. To be sure to not miss any of them, please add this blog to your RSS feed (see right sidebar) or to subscribe click on the “Blog info” button up at the top right of the screen then click “Subscribe to blog”.}