Often people are too quick when taking photos of their pets, and don’t think too much about the composition of the photo before taking the shot. Most photos of pets that I’ve seen online tend to be taken too far away, and you can’t really see the character of the animal in the shot.

If you follow these simple guidelines, you’ll be able to get a good photo of your favourite dog without much hassle.

Basically, the guidelines are very similar to taking photos of kids. If you think about it, there are quite a few similarities between dogs and children when it comes to photography…

1. Dogs move very quickly… so do kids.  To prevent that from being a problem, make sure your shutter speed is fast. If you have a simple point and shoot type camera, then set it to Sports mode, that setting makes the shutter speed very fast.

2. Dogs tend to come to you if you try and get them to pose… just like kids.  It’s very handy in that case, to get someone to help you. They can entertain the pet, while you’re taking the photos.  That way you’ll also be able to capture the character of the dog.

3. Dogs are not tall… and don’t like looking up for long… just like kids.  The best photos are taken at the height of the pet in question. If I’m taking photos of my mom’s Jack Russel, I generally sit or lie down on the ground to get to her height before I take the shot.

4. Take photos of families with their dogs. Pets are so much a part of most families that it’s just so special to see them in the photos.  Try and capture a special moment between the owner and their pet, it won’t happen immediately though, take your time and the magic will happen.

5. And finally, don’t be scared of taking loads of photos. Most people use digital cameras nowadays, and really, the only limitation is disk space.  It doesn’t really matter if it takes 20 shots to get one good quality photo.

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Jeanette is a South African working mother of 2 very busy boys. She’s just started a photographic business (in addition to working full-time), and you can see her work on her blog… Photography by Jeanette.