Taking The Perfect Reference Photo
Generally, the better the reference photo, the better the quality of the final outcome. Pets can be notoriously hard to take photos of, especially when they know you want them to strike a pose! We recommend using something that they love to grab their attention, e.g. a treat or a favourite toy. Their excitement will convey in their portrait!
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1.
Get Down On Your Pet's Level
Photos taken from above, looking down at your furry friend, can be unflattering and out of proportion. Get down on your pet's level and take a photo. Holding a treat or their favourite toy off to the side slightly, can lead to most spectacular photos!
2.
Natural Lighting
Choosing the correct lighting can mean the difference between good clarity and bad quality, and can change the whole ambience of a portrait. Natural, soft lighting is always the best, as it effectively shows off your pet's features and illuminates their eyes.
A good, natural light source, where it is illuminating Fern's face from one side.
Artificial light causes too many shadows. Can't see details clearly.
Good quality photos where you can see great details, especially fur direction.
3.
Good vs Bad Quality
An unsuccessful photo can be blurry and underlit
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It doesn't matter what device is used to take a photo, sometimes a phone's camera can be just as good as some professional cameras if given the proper conditions, such as using natural daylight and getting closer to your pet. If you can see the detail in your pet's eyes and the direction of their fur, then the photo is of good enough quality to draw from.
4.
Capturing A Natural Expression
Taking photos of our pets can already be challenging, even more so when trying to capture their natural expression! However, this will bring out the best in your portrait. Being patient and vigilant over a few days with your phone or camera can really pay off!
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For instance, Padley (left) loves lying on his favourite sofa with a blanket with his soulful eyes, try capturing this, as it will convey their personality through onto the portrait.
5.
Multiple Pets In A Group Portrait
If you are interested in having a group portrait of your pets, we ask that you send us plenty of separate photos of each pet. With these, we then arrange them together in Photoshop as a 'mock-up', with several compositions for you to choose which you think is the best!
6.
Pet's That Have Passed Away
If you are looking to commission a portrait of a pet that has unfortunately passed away, please do not worry, we can still help you! All we ask is that you send us plenty of photos you have of them to our email address, whether they be recent or ones taken over the years. We will do our best to work with the photos that you have. Quantity is key, and if one photo doesn't have the detail another has, we can sometimes mix and match photos to create an image ourselves.