Thelma & Louise The DSH Cats (Click to enlarge)
Without looking at the chart in the article Is Coat Colour Linked To Temperament, I knew that these two fellas were laid back, placid, even tempered and friendly. Yep, you heard me right. Fellas. Their mom has a sense of humor, for sure. She adopted them as adults and didn’t know their gender until she had them and loved them in her home for a while. So Thelma and Louise it is.
Today I’d like to talk about composition. In past posts about photographing cats, I’ve talked about using apple crates or boxes as a means to comfort your subjects. They usually settle quite nicely when you give them something to relax against. For more about methods of shooting cats, in the right side bar click on “Cat Photos”. Pay particular attention to “…Fence Me In“.
Look at these handsome buddies. They just sprawled against the boxes and kind of held hands. If I had books as a prop (I should have. Dang!) I’d have placed the books above them between bookends. The problem with the shot is in the standard photographic print sizes. Most photographers sell standard sizes. They will print custom sizes, but then the customer has to have them professionally framed. The shot would look better and be composed properly, but would have cost more. The aspect of the photo at right is 6×2½ (or about 7×16½), which is not standard, but this loooong look at two adult cats should be cropped like this.
What to do? You could accept it in one of the standard sizes. You could make these kitties act right and get themselves posed better. Or you can give my framing buddies a little bit of biz and have it done right. Remember, cats are challenging. When they settle, one up and one down, both on top, or both on the table, you take advantage of what they give you. Forcing cats to do something they are not comfortable with will not give you a better shot. Unhappy animals do not make nice portraits.
I try to create affordable art for my customers’ wall, desk or mantle, but when you are photographing pets you may have to consider other options in order to get that perfect wall piece. As always, please comment on this post or photo or post a photo of your own.
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