• First of all you may need to adjust your expectations. If you go into the photo shoot with a particular idea of a pose in mind then you are likely to come out of it with nothing but a disgruntled animal. Keep an open mind and go with whatever you are given. In other words, make the most of your pet's natural posing ability rather than trying to force your own ideas upon him or her. This will make for a more realistic pet portrait in the end.
• Keep the session short. Perhaps plan several short sessions over a day rather than one long, 'must get it done', session.
• Reward your pet when he or she gets it right. It is very easy to get carried away mentally patting yourself on the back for the perfect shot and forget to praise your sitter. If your pet holds a pose long enough for you to get a shot, even if the shot is no good, praise him because otherwise what's in it for him? This is particularly important for dogs but even horses will appreciate a handful of hay every so often just to let them realise it is worth standing there for you.
• Never show any agitation. This will simply upset your pet and make the job even harder.
• Don't expect young animals to pose like adults. Puppies, for instance, can find it difficult to sit up straight and certainly aren't going to sit still for long. Live with it, either accept a crooked sit or have them lying down.
• If your dog has never been taught to 'stay' or 'wait' you could have problems. You are probably going to need help with someone keeping their attention with food or a toy just out of shot. If all else fails you might get away with having them in a laying down pose.
• Cats need to be relaxed. They need to be in their own environment (unless they are professional models). You will probably have to spend a long time petting a cat in order to relax her sufficiently to have her stay still long enough to run off a couple of shots before she walks off.
• With a horse, it is easier to photograph them with their head collars on. That way you can have someone holding the lead rope out of frame to stop your horse going walk-about. Don't have the horse standing on grass or all you will end up with is a photo with his head on the ground. If you particularly want the head collar off in your pet portrait then you will need a fence to stand the horse in front of with someone holding some food the other side. The horse will be prevented from moving forward by the fence and his attention will certainly be on the food. This only works for head only shots. If, however, the horse is too intent on the food it can still be very difficult to get the shot as he will probably have his head stretched out or his lips puckered up trying to grab the food. A horse with a mouthful of food seldom keeps his head still so having a hay net too handy can be a disadvantage. Ideally you need the horse relaxed enough that he will just stand there, perhaps staring at something in the distance. Not so rare, horses are actually good at this as they are natural horizon gazers. Assuming there is a distant horizon to gaze at.

To sum up

• Be relaxed and don't get frustrated
• Be prepared to take what's offered
• Keep photo shoots short
• Praise your pet.

Remember, if the experience is a positive one for your pet but the shoot fails you can always try again another time. If, however, your pet found the experience to be traumatic the chances of you being able to get your pet to pose again for a pet portrait will be greatly reduced.

 

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