The Experience
Pre-Session Phone Consultation
To make this photoshoot the most fun and relaxed experience for you and your dog, I’ll want to hear all about your dog’s personality. Their likes and dislikes, the things that spook them, and their quirks and temperament. If your dog tends toward shyness or nervousness, I can accommodate that with input from you since you know your dog best. Because I’m a visual person, I’ll ask you to email me some photos of your dog. Or point me to their social media accounts. We’ll discuss ideas you have and what you envision your dog’s portrait to look like. It’s all about collaboration and making sure we create the photos you’ve envisioned.
Once you book a photo session, I require a $200 retainer to hold the date.
During the Photo Session
Most dogs come to my studio and want to explore. So before we jump into the shoot, I let your dog sniff around to their hearts content and get the lay of the land. Once we start shooting, most dogs are happy to cooperate with the promise of treats, squeaky toys and attention for about 60 - 90 mins. (Longer than that, we’ll get the canine boycott which can include lots of whining, barking or just plain ignoring us!) This will be ample time to get a variety of shots. I may enlist your help to get certain poses and expressions. Bottom line, we’ll all have fun!
Preparing for the Photo Session
We’ll want your dog looking their best. A full professional groom is not necessary unless you want your dog looking newly coiffed for the photos. Bathing and brushing the day before for short hair breeds is enough. For doodles and long haired breeds, in addition to a bath and a brush, you’ll want to also make sure the hair around their eyes is trimmed. As a photographer, having a dog’s eyes visible is a must because it’s through their eyes that I can capture your dog’s personality and various expressions.
Most dogs are food motivated so I use treats for rewards and to get their attention during the shoot. It’s best to feed your dog a meal 3 hours or more before our photo shoot. If your dog isn’t food motivated you may want to bring their favorite toy. Either way I always have a variety of balls and squeaky toys available to use.
The ideal canine subject is one that is sufficiently tired! If they’ve had a chance to get their zoomies out before the session, they tend to be more agreeable and compliant during the photo shoot. I recommend that the morning of the photo shoot your dog gets a long walk or exercise/play session.
After the Photo Shoot
The big reveal! Within a week of the session, I will share my curated selection of photo proofs via an online gallery. Choose the images that you want to order and I will retouch them and add them to the gallery. At this time you’ll be able to place orders, share and download digital files. If you’d like some guidance when deciding on favorite images or products I’m happy to jump on a call and help you out!