Sian Crichton

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Portrait Photo Tips

  •  Focus on the eye. If your DSLR has “single focus” mode use and point focus box on your pets eye.

  • Try to always get a catchlight in the eyes. For me the most important part of capturing any portrait is the eyes, the window to the soul.

  • A backyard is a good spot as you can have pets off leash and wait until they are content to relax    for a bit.

  • Use natural light. Overcast/cloudy days are perfect as they produce a soft, continuous light which gives great definition of fur, eyes etc. If the weather is bright and sunny find a large shady spot to use. Sunlight erases details in highlights or shadows.

  • Do not worry about the background. I will likely only be painting head and shoulders, so they can be lying, sitting, standing.

  • Photograph your pet where they are comfortable and relaxed.

  • Get down on their eye level or lower to capture their expressions and to prevent perspective distortion. If you are uncomfortable crouching etc pop your pet on a chair/ bench, so you can still photograph your pet at their eye level.

  • Your pet does not need to be looking directly at you. It is great to add depth to my painting with a 3/4 head turn, but ensure you can see both eyes in the image if possible.

  • 3ft or so away is a good shooting distance to prevent perspective distortion due to wide angle lens i.e huge nose, tiny head!

  • Take a few shots and then check the images before continuing to ensure you have focus and good light in the eyes, and haven’t accidentally cropped ears.

  • I take up to 200 images on my DSLR once the subject is relaxed. Their expression is constantly changing due to a sound their ears go up, a smell in the air gets their noses twitching, something catches their attention and their head turns, a breeze fluffs their fur etc. This takes me around 45 mins to an hour. Afterwards I narrow the images down to 5 favorites and we select from there which is best for a painting:)

  • Reward with treats, squeaky toys. You can also have an assistant stand beside you, above you etc with the treat/toy if you want to direct your pets attention away from the lens to get a more candid shot.

  • A DSLR camera is preferable if you have one or can borrow one. If you are unsure of camera maybe have a friend familiar with this type of camera take the image for you to get sharp detailed images for me to work from. I can crop into the image, so do not worry about perfect framing.

    • If using a DSLR you can choose:

    • *Auto- camera will do everything for you which can be good and bad. Just check images to make sure your subject is sharp and not blurry due to camera selecting high speed iso choice, slow shutter etc if low light.

    • *Shutter speed priority- You will need a shutter speed of (or ideally above) 125th of sec if hand holding the camera to prevent image being soft due to camera shake or subject moving. Also check that the depth of field (F number) is f4 minimum or your image maybe soft due to being out of focal range.

    • *Aperture priority- f4 or above, but check shutter speed is 100th sec or above if prioritizing aperture.

  • Text/email me if having difficulty so I can help you!

  • Have fun with it!