Beautiful Beasties

Jamie Pflughoeft became addicted to photographing pets while studying animal behavior in college and working as a dog-walker and pet-sitter. She started Cowbelly Pet Photography in 2003, and today she serves commercial, editorial, and private clients as well as teaching photographers around the world about the exciting field of pet photography. Jamie also runs the Beautiful Beasties Network, an online community for pet photographers.

Introduction x Chapter One: The History of Pet Photography 2 The Backstory on Pet Photography 4 The True Value of Pet Photos 8 The Pet Photography Industry 14 Classes, Schools, and Workshops 17 Forums 17 Chapter Two: Equipment 20 Cameras, Lenses, Bags, and Accessories 22 Computers, Software, and Computer Accessories 46 Chapter Three: Working with Pets as Models 54 Animal Behavior, Body Language, and Communication 56 Working with Dogs 56 Working with Cats 67 Working with Other Animals 71 Learning About the Individual 77 Photographing Your Pets 78 Chapter Four: Pre-Session Checklists 84 Checking Your Gear and Accessories 86 Shot Lists 89 Defining Session Goals 92 Twenty-Five Tips to Keep in Mind, Before and During a Shoot 94 Chapter Five: Photography Basics 96 Exposure: ISO, Aperture, Shutter Speed 98 Exposure Modes 108 Focusing 121 White Balance 124 RAW vs JPEG 126 Quick-and-Dirty Pet Photography Settings 129 Chapter Six: Lighting 134 Natural vs Auxiliary Lighting 136 Lighting Tools 140 Studio Lighting 144 Lighting Safety 150 Lighting Pet Peeves 154 Chapter Seven: Composition 156 The Rule of Thirds 158 Negative Space 159 Pet-Level Photography 160 PLP in Motion 164 Capturing Expressions 167 General Ideas173 Using Lenses for Variety in Composition 181 Photographing Pets with Their Owners 183 Photographing Multiple Pets 185 Location Ideas 189 Ten Ideas for Getting Variety in Every Session 192 Capturing the Stages in a Pet s Life 193 Pet Photography Don ts 194 Chapter Eight: Pet Photography Challenge 196 Common Challenges 198 Behavior Challenges 203 Lighting Challenges 208 Weather Issues 212 Location Challenges 215 Elderly or Sick Pets 216 Stage-Mom Owners 218 Working in a Studio 221 Legal Considerations 223 Chapter Nine: Post-Production 226 Establishing Your Workflow 228 Archiving and Naming Conventions 232 Editing Basics 238 Culling and Processing in Lightroom 239 Editing in Photoshop 253 Alternative Editing Software 264 Common Novice Photography and Editing Errors 265 Chapter Ten: Developing Personal Style 276 Defining Your Photodogstyle 278 Processing Techniques to Help You Attain Different Styles 281 Expressing Your Artistic Voice 286 Finding Inspiration 288 Chapter Eleven: Going Pro 292 Self-Evaluation Questionnaire: Should I Turn Professional? 294 The Start-Up Process: Getting Started, from A to Z 297 Portfolio Building 300 Expenses 303 Working with Clients 306 Post-Shoot Client Process 308 Chapter Twelve: Business Essentials 310 Pricing 312 Products 317 Branding 322 Marketing 324 Strategies to Increase Revenue 330 Competition and Colleagues 332 The Top-Five Biggest Keys to Success 334 Index 336