Westietography 101 Martin Saunders

Transcription

1 Westietography 101 by Martin Saunders Follow these few simple guidelines and produce memorable Westie pictures from almost any camera. No matter what camera you have, using a few simple tips and techniques will help you improve the quality of your Westie pictures. High end cameras, in themselves, do not produce wonderful pictures - you do. Good quality cameras with their range of zooms, shutter speeds, lens apertures etc give you more flexibility and can make getting that special picture a little easier. However, the most important piece of the "kit" is you - your creativity, your preparation and, in no small measure, your patience and enthusiasm. So get your camera out and try some of the following Tips and Techniques with your Westie!

2 DIGITALCAMERA TYPES Ultra Compact Digital Cameras This is the most popular camera on the market today and is an affordable and compact style (see Images 1 &2), available from almost any manufacturer. These cameras will range in price from approx. $50 to $390 and are constantly being upgraded with new, helpful features that assist with metering and focus. Face Recognition will also pick up on your Westie s face, centering the focal point(s) for a better shot every time. When shopping for a new camera of this style, do not be fooled by the advertised MEGAPIXELS. It is true that if your camera does not have enough megapixels, you may find printing a quality 8 x10 difficult, as the dots per square inch will be insufficient, producing a Grainy or Blurred effect. Generally five megapixels is sufficient, but just because one camera has a certain amount of megapixels doesn't mean that it will take better pictures than one with a lower amount. There are many factors which affect this, including build quality, type of camera, etc. So, don't just jump and buy a lower priced 10mp over a higher priced 8mp because it has more megapixels. Research the camera first, find reviews, and see which camera is really worth it. Camera price can denote the quality of the camera, but not always. Compact Digital Cameras The slightly Bulkier style of Point and Shoot camera (see images 3 & 4) contain many more of the SLR features that serious photographers love, without the added flexibility of being able to change lenses. Because of the build, image stabilization and lens quality, this style will produce amazing photographs and still retain ease of use. Advanced digital cameras Lastly, the more expensive option (see images 5 & 6) would be the Digital Single Lens Reflex (DSLR), delivering the highest quality images with the most flexibility, regarding user settings. This option also requires the purchase of a good lens or multiple lenses, the prices shown include a quality lens. Although it is recommended that the DSLR user be educated on how to use this style of camera, there are always the automatic shooting options to choose from that are not too confusing. Image 4 Image 5 Image 6 Nikon Coolpix L20 $89.99 Sony Cyber shot DSC WX1 $ Fujifilm FinePix S1800 $ Canon PowerShot SX20 IS $ Nikon D90 Digital SLR Camera with Nikon AF S DX mm lens $ Canon EOS Rebel T1i Digital SLR Camera with Canon EF S 18 55mm IS lens $769.99

3 DIGITAL MEDIA TYPES Introduction When we refer to Digital Media we are talking about the memory cards that fit into our cameras. There are many different kinds, some more commonly found than others, varying greatly in performance and storage capacity. Unless you are a professional photographer, performance is not such an issue, however storage capacity or size is important to all of us, as it limits the number of images of our wonderful Westies that we can store on our cameras. As each year passes, digital media becomes less and less expensive, allowing all of us to purchase more storage capacity and faster speeds than ever before, and at a reasonable price. There is nothing more frustrating than a FULL memory card, forcing us to permanently delete images to make room for more. Also, it is not recommended to shoot all photos in the lowest quality setting just to save storage room. If you come upon that perfect Westie photo, but lack the ability to enlarge it, what s the point? The way to avoid this is to carry spare memory cards or larger memory cards. I recommend purchasing your storage media on ebay (don t forget to go through the igive link first to raise monies for our rescue!) See the reference on the back page for Reputable Sellers, avoid generic cards believe me, I found out the hard way (hence missing Westie Snow Ball 2009 shots)! Below are the most common types of memory cards, I do not recommend using any card smaller than 2GB (Gigabytes), preferably 4 8GB. SD Cards (Images 7 9) SD STANDARD = 512MB, 1GB, 2GB SD SDHC = 4GB, 8GB, 16GB, 32GB (If Device Supported) XD Cards (0) XD Picture Card = 512MB, 1GB, 2GB Compact Flash Cards (1) CF Ultra II = 1GB, 2GB, 4GB, 8GB, 16GB, 32GB Memory Stick (2) (THIS FORMAT CARD DESIGNED FOR SONY CAMERAS) Memory Stick = 4MB 128MB Memory Stick PRO = 256MB 4GB Memory Stick Pro Duo = 4GB 32GB Image 7 Image 8 Image SanDisk Standard 2GB $8 (Delivered) SanDisk SDHC 4GB $11 (Delivered) SanDisk SDHC 8GB $19 (Delivered) Olympus XD 2GB $15 (Delivered) SanDisk CF 2GB $13 (Delivered) Olympus XD 2GB $9 (Delivered)

4 TAKING PHOTOGRAPHS LIGHT Try and take your Westie pictures in daylight. Use flash as a last resort. At best, flash tends to distract the dog, at worst it alarms it. Also if you shoot your Westie head on, you will probably end up with "Glowing or Red eyes. At a distance, flash will often produce a grainy image, as most built in flash units are not strong enough and are only effective for a few feet! If you are taking pictures indoors get your Westie over by a window or door and use the natural light entering the room. Don't shoot head on with the light coming directly from behind the dog as this will produce a dark, shadowy picture. This kind of shadowing is hard to correct, even when editing in Photoshop, as the entire picture will be effected. Shoot at an angle to the window or door or get right under the window or door so the light hits the dog head on. Bottom line, the outdoors is best always try and use natural light. comfortable with the area they will be more playful and display their unique Westie personalities. Try and make the picture taking part of the routine, part of the fun. Whatever the location you choose make sure you are able to achieve a decent contrast for your picture (see image 3). A Westie will not stand out against a white washed wall, but will look great with high contrast colors in the background. Green grass, orange pumpkins etc. make great back drops when photographing Westies. Unless you are completely filling the frame with the dog, make sure the background is in keeping with the picture you want and that there are no distracting features to draw your attention away from the main focus your Westie. Take a look at the two images on the right. was taken at Kim & Asa Gage s house during the 2006 Summer Picnic meeting. Their Westies were hanging out on the stairs up to the main floor of their log cabin with lots of natural light streaming down into an otherwise shady area. The effect, especially due to their white fur, is impressionable. was sent in as a possible calendar shot by Joan Thurston. Rosie & Gus are just enjoying some afternoon sun, by the looks of it. This is a great image of a lazy day and the ability that Westies have to find the most comfortable, warmest spot in the house, allowing them to also keep up on neighborhood comings and goings. You could start to criticize this photo regarding exposure, but just take a look at the picture; it is wonderful, it tells a story. The light is cascading through the panes, highlighting their soft fur and emphasizing the natural beauty of the West Highland White Terrier. LOCATION Our little fur buddies are always getting themselves into perfect photographic situations, so the answer as to Where to take that memorable Westie picture is...anywhere! So be prepared, keep your camera nearby with fresh batteries installed. In practice, however, you can increase your chances of getting fantastic pictures by doing your homework. Dogs are often more relaxed in places familiar to them. If they are

5 COMPOSITION The golden rule for a good dog picture is... Get Down to Your Westie's Level (see Images 1 & 2). Composition is by far the most important rule for all picture taking, and the photographer must always look at the Entire Frame before clicking the shutter. The beauty of taking digital images is that you are not limited to just one or two shots of each pose, you can literally take as many as you like and discard the bad ones later. If you find that you Fill Up your memory card in your camera, get a new one! They are amazingly inexpensive these days and can be purchased almost anywhere (Wal Mart and e Bay are highly recommended a 2 GB memory card can be delivered to your home for under $10 and will hold thousands of high resolution images). SEE DIGITAL MEDIA PAGE FOR MORE DETAILS! Rescue Lou shot kneeling from down at grass level, using fill in flash at twilight for a dazzling effect. If you can't get down to your Westie s level, get your dog up! Put it on a chair, a bench, stairs, a mound, the side of a hill, be creative. This will produce a more interesting picture and show your dog's true beauty. Rescue Jackson shot from crouching position, again using fill in flash at twilight. Fill the viewfinder with your dog to create real impact. If you have a zoom use it so you don't have to get in your dog's face. If you don't have a zoom get close and intimate! Do not worry about Cropping your Westie s photo, as partial face shots are quite artistic (see ). If the focus is sharp and you have set your camera to a high resolution, you can blow a partial face shot up to poster size, which can be quite stunning. Rescue McCartney shot in Macro mode for close up focus. Partial Cropped images can be Artsy. If you want to show the size of your dog or want to show a bit of perspective or you want to include some wonderful background scenery, step back a little. Instead of putting your dog in the centre of the picture try offsetting it a bit to give your shot a more "artistic" look (see Image 4). Head on shots eye to eye contact create very engaging shots. But try different angles to bring out the personality the aloofness, the shyness, the devilment etc. Some of my favorite shots of Westies have been with zoom, taken without the dog s awareness, and always at their level (see Image 5). Bottom line, get down and dirty and be creative to get that special Westie picture. Image 4 Rescue Daisy. This image does not centralize the Westie, but has a neat perspective, bringing many of the foreground and background attributes of the setting into the picture. Image 5 I spotted this Westie at the dog park about to take on this Dobie. Nobody has alerted him about the size difference! (OK, it s McCartney again).

6 WHAT TYPE OF WESTIE PICTURE? Try to capture all types of pictures of your Westie. Fill your frame with a portrait shot (see ); try to get those great action shots (see ) that we always wish we had been quick enough to capture. Get some shots of your dog at rest (see ) sleeping Westies make the best models! Take shots that show off your Westie's natural instincts stalking, ready to pounce, testing the Sunday joint! Keep in mind that we will be looking for THEME images of your Westies for the Fundraising calendars. If you take your Westies to the beach or dress them up to keep them warm etc. take a few shots. Pictures of Westies enjoying car rides (see Image 4), golf cart rides, getting muddy in the rain etc are priceless and will look great on next year s calendar! Color photographs are the most common, but if your camera has the ability to shoot in Black & White, West Highland Terriers are possibly the most striking animals to photograph in this way. I have some Black & White photos of McCartney that are my favorite images of him (see Image 5), but be sure to take these photos with Portrait composition in mind (fill the frame with your Westie), as colorful background will no longer contrast well. Notice the frame is filled. OK, so this is not a Westie! I couldn t find a shot of my guys in action :>) Sleeping Westies make great models. BREAK THE RULES! Having said all of this, feel free to do the exact opposite! Maybe that shot with light coming from behind your Westie will have a stunning Shadow effect! Maybe a shot looking down from a chair will show a wonderfully artistic edge! By breaking the rules you can often produce that "off the wall", "artistic" shot! Bottom line take lots of shots and generally follow these rules but occasionally experiment by breaking the rules but not all at the same time! Most importantly make sure it's always fun for both you and your Westie. Image 4 Snickers & Casper enjoying a ride in their convertible! Image 5 McCartney shot in B & W.

7 LINKS i Give Use this link to JOIN igive FOR FREE and begin supporting Westie Club of the South, Inc.: Don't feel like registering? Take isearchigive.com out for a spin and raise a penny (or more!) per search. Just visit and type "Westie Club of the South, Inc." in the "Select Your Cause" area. e Bay Sellers(Digital Media) allflashmemory chinatang612 firstwell Please remember to go through i Give link to get to ebay This helps support our rescue!! HAVE FUN!! IMPORTANT Always have an Up-to-Date shot of your Westie in his/her everyday environment, just in case he/she gets lost. This dog picture could prove vital!