Why I Don't Need Your Dog Looking at the Camera in Every Photograph
Does Your Dog Need to Look at the
Camera for Photos?
There's something we naturally expect when someone takes a photograph.
Look at the camera.
We do it with kids. We do it with family photographs. And when we're photographing our dogs, we usually try some version of:
"Look!"
"Over here!"
"Treat!"
"WHAT'S THAT?!"
Sometimes followed by increasingly strange noises that make everyone nearby question what's happening.
And yes, during your dog's photography session, I absolutely want to create some portraits where your dog is looking directly at the camera.
But I don't need every photograph to look like that.
Actually, I don't want every photograph to look like that.
1. Eye Contact Creates One Kind of Portrait
There's a reason photographs where a dog is looking directly into the camera can be so powerful.
That eye contact immediately pulls you into the photograph.
Sometimes I'll use treats, toys, noises or whatever else gets your dog's attention for the fraction of a second I need.
Click.
We've got it.
But that's only one expression and one type of photograph.
Your dog spends very little of their normal life staring directly into a camera.
If the goal is to create photographs that actually feel like your dog, sometimes I want their attention somewhere else.
Direct eye contact can create a powerful portrait, but it isn't the only way to photograph your dog's personality.
2. Looking Away Can Completely Change the Photograph
Where your dog is looking affects how a photograph feels.
A dog staring directly into the camera creates a connection with the viewer.
Turn their attention toward something in the distance and suddenly the photograph can feel quieter.
Give them something interesting to watch and their ears may come forward, their posture may change and we may get an expression that's completely different from the traditional portrait we created thirty seconds earlier.
Neither photograph is better.
They're just different.
And I want both.
3. Sometimes I Want Your Dog Looking at You
This is especially true when you're in the photographs.
If I'm photographing you with your dog, I don't necessarily want both of you staring at me in every image.
Sometimes I want your dog looking at you.
Or you looking at them.
Those photographs stop being about everyone cooperating with the photographer and start becoming about the relationship between you.
Maybe your dog leans into you.
Maybe they look up at you because they know you have the treats.
Maybe you start laughing because they're doing something ridiculous.
Whatever happens, for a moment the camera becomes considerably less important.
That's often when the photograph becomes more interesting.
Where your dog is looking can completely change the feeling and story of a photograph.
4. Sometimes I Don't Want Your Dog Paying Attention to Me at All
Some photographs don't need your dog's attention anywhere near the camera.
If your dog is running after a ball, exploring a trail, playing with their favorite toy or doing something else they genuinely enjoy, I'd rather photograph what's happening than interrupt it.
Those moments can tell us just as much about your dog as a perfectly posed portrait.
Maybe more.
This is also why I don't need your dog to behave perfectly during a photography session.
We're going to create the more traditional portraits.
But we're also going to let your dog move, explore, play and occasionally do whatever ridiculous thing they've decided is more important than listening to us.
Because that's part of who they are too.
5. I Only Need the Right Moments
Your dog doesn't need to spend an entire photography session staring at me.
I only need their attention when we want it.
Sometimes that's a second.
Sometimes it's even less.
That's one of the reasons I tell people not to worry if their dog gets distracted easily.
They can look at the squirrel.
They can watch the person walking in the distance.
They can look at you.
They can investigate whatever apparently fascinating smell exists six inches to their left.
When I need them looking at me, we'll work on getting that moment.
The rest of the time, I'm perfectly happy photographing everything else.
The Goal Isn't to Photograph a Dog Looking at a Camera
Of course I want some photographs where your dog is looking right at me.
Those can be beautiful portraits.
But I don't need every photograph to look like that.
I want the alert expression when they hear something in the distance.
I want the way they look at you.
I want the excitement when their favorite toy comes out.
I want the quiet moments and the ridiculous ones.
Because ultimately, the goal isn't to create fifty photographs proving your dog knows where the camera is.
It's to create photographs that feel like your dog.
And sometimes the photograph that feels most like them is the one where they've completely forgotten I'm there.
Sometimes the photograph that feels most like your dog happens when they've completely forgotten about the camera.
Worried Your Dog Won't Cooperate for a Photography Session?
They don't need to be perfect.
We'll plan the session around your dog's personality, what they enjoy and what helps them feel comfortable, then create the photographs from there.
List of Services
-
My Dog Won't Sit Still and Can't Be Off Leash. Can You Still Photograph Them?List Item 1
High energy, distractions and a leash don't prevent us from creating great photographs of your dog.
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Should You Bring Your Dog's Favorite Toy to a Photography Session?List Item 2
Favorite toys can help with attention, play, breaks and capturing a little more of your dog's personality.
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Should You Be in the Photos With Your Dog?List Item 3
Why stepping into a few photographs with your dog may matter more than you expect.
