Top Five Tips for Photographing Your Cat
This month, Skeezix was one of the winners of Martha Stewart Pets’ Patriotic Pets Photo Contest, and I got a barrage of questions like, “Isn’t it all just Photoshop?” and “How do you get him to pose like that?”
No, it isn’t all Photoshop. We get him to pose by picking a time to photograph him when he is still a bit sleepy from his afternoon nap, and hubby does the wrangling while I shoot. Plenty of treats and toys make it a fun activity for him.
It takes about six minutes to get a usable shot, which is about the length of Skeezy’s attention span. When he mews, “I’m outta here,” we pack up and call it a day.
Lest you think, “I could never get my cat to do that,” or “I don’t have the professional equipment to take good photos,” I’m going to share my top five tips for photographing your cat, all of which are within reach of the average camera-toting cat lover.
Before you start to shoot, engage the services of a cat wrangler to position the cat while you man the camera. (I use my hubby, who happily complies because I let him move five he-man explosion movies to the top of the Netflix queue every time he renders his services. Your bribes may vary.) Employing a cat wrangler will decrease the complexity of the shoot by about a million percent.
Once you have engaged a cat wrangler, you’re ready to shoot. Here five tips to ensure success in photographing your cat:
1) Shoot in natural light; don’t use flash.
Shooting indoors using a flash does not usually produce good photos. You’ll have to deal with red-eye and color correction, and the flash will cast unwanted shadows. In addition, once cats learn that the box you’re holding is going to flash a bright light in their face, they squint whenever you point the camera in their direction. The solution is to shoot in natural light (daylight) without a flash.
If you have large windows with indirect light, you might be able to shoot indoors. Otherwise consider shooting outside (with a “cat wrangler” to keep hold of the cat at all times) in an enclosed area from which the cat cannot escape if she gets loose.
We set up on a table on our back deck, in an area that is out of direct sunlight. Early morning, late afternoon and early evening are the optimal times to get the best light.
If you absolutely have to use flash, consider using a diffuser to soften the light. For cameras with built-in flash, just tape a bit of tissue or a white coffee filter over the flash bulb. Stand at least six feet away from your subject to avoid an overexposed nuclear glow and harsh shadows (preview each shot to determine the optimal distance). Shooting from an oblique angle will decrease the red eye problem.
2) Use a fast shutter speed.
There’s nothing worse than capturing the purrfect pose, only to discover that it’s blurry.
Even most point-and-shoot cameras now give you the option of shooting at a fast shutter speed. If you have “modes” on your camera, this is usually the “sports” mode. It will eliminate the inevitable blur from your cat’s movements to ensure a nice crisp shot.
If you have a drive mode on your camera which allows you to fire off 5 or more shots at a time, use that as well. It will allow you to shoot several photos in rapid succession increasing the odds of getting one good shot.
3) Shoot against an uncluttered background.
A pile of dirty laundry on the floor behind the cat will take attention away from the subject. For best results, use a backdrop.
Although I have a professional backdrop, I never use it for the cat photos. My favorite setup is very inexpensive, portable, and only requires a trip to a good office supply store.
Take two 24″X36″ pieces of foam core. One forms the base (on which the cats sits), the other forms the backdrop. Then staple a piece of posterboard that has a sky pattern on it to the piece of foam core that forms the backdrop. And you’re done!
Position your cat a foot or so away from the backdrop so as not to cast any shadows.
4) Hit the floor.
Get down to the cat’s level. My knees are shot, so it’s easier for me to set the subject on a table. Otherwise, get down on the floor at cat-eye-level to take your shot. It can be the difference between a good photo and a phenomenal photo.
Gordy won the World’s Coolest Cat Contest with the photo on the right. It’s a brilliant concept, purrfectly executed. Can you imagine how much less impact it would have had if it had been shot from a standing position instead of at Gordy’s level? So get down, people!
5) Be generous with treats ‘n’ toys.
Skeezix’s favorite tinsel wand toy is indispensible in getting him to look directly into the camera. We reward him with treats to ensure that he views each photo session as a pawsitive, fun experience… for all of us.
His brother, Mao, loves having his photo taken so much that the minute I start setting up he jumps up, assumes a position in the center of the scene, and puts out a paw for some treats.
Here’s How it All Comes Together
Here is an example of the setup with the “backdrop,” set up on a table on our back deck. As you can see, it’s low tech, nothing fancy. And you’ve got plenty of time to practice before you take your Christmas card or World’s Coolest Cat photos!
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Catzowey! Me and myself getza in furont of da PaPURRazzi’s giganticat camera lens every week and loves to wiggle my EyeTailYun whiskers atza da camera. My pal Skeezix izza da PURRfeshunal meowvalous model.
Fantastic article, Karen! Thanks a bunch!
xo anders and tailer
Good advice! I even got down (and sometimes didn’t think I would get back up) to take photos of shelter dogs. It makes a difference.
Good advice! I’ll add Take Lots of Pictures. You better your chances of a good shot with any subject by being generous with the number you take.
Mittens likes to pose for shots, i’ve got some really good ones on my camera phone of him.
One other thing…be patient. You might not get the best pic in one photo shoot.
And Momma agrees, hit the floor. The best shot she’s ever taken of me was taken while I was lying under the coffee table. Momma has gotten many compliments about it. It’s the main pic on my page.
The best pic of Punkin was taken at a slightly higher angle, but Momma was still not standing above her, just sitting a little higher than Punkin.
Dat was fun to lern bout how yoo take pikshurs Skeezy. I don’t fink I’ll show it to Mommy tho. I don’t want her gettin no idears.
Excellent tips, thanks Skeezix. I’m impressed how you will sit for your humans. Hee hee maybe I should send Sam over to you. The human is hopeless at getting her to sit still.
I have also put a link to your tips and the cats meow, in the links on the front page of the Stunning photos group.
I think they are great.
Skeezix, those are some great tips from your hooman. She is lucky that your dad Jeff is such a good cat wrangler. My mommy cracked up at the thought of my daddy ever being a cat wrangler for my photo shoots…That wouldn’t happen in a million years, MOL!
Good tips! But we like the blurry ones too because they look like us….flying around.
Skeez, we hope you got a mountain of treats for giving such superb cooperation in your photo shoot!
Great tips, Karen! And as big fans of Skeez and Mao, we know they must work good.
Thank you for great suggestions! Especially the “sports” mode. I am very happy about the advice to my staff to STOP FLASHING THAT STUPID LIGHT IN MY FACE.
Romeo
We love the video! WOW Skeez! You are sooo patient! Me? I am wayyy too wiggly sometimes! Mom takes 100 piktures of me – and saves 1???
Plus being so furry brown I am hard to get – even in the sunlight.
You are still the coolest & best dressed kity on the Planet!
You will always be my hero!
Is that how you manage to look so cool all the time, Skeez?
THOSE photos are posed photos! I much prefer the “on the spur of the moment” ones. THEY are much cuter!
http://pic20.picturetrail.com/VOL22/547732/9119090/294305372.jpg
Great ideas~! CREATIVE pictures! As a professional photographer (humans, mostly!) I’d like to add that cats are VISUAL and can easily be encouraged to look up with fishing line feathers, flying toys, etc. Dogs are AUDITORY and respond better to noises.
Skeezy i thot u wz amayzin!! nowz I knoh u iz!
Daisy May
who mite try sumpin like dat…
I think I love my cat!
sdsdasd
[...] you get it out of your system before I go on) — contained a link to an article detailing the Top Five Tips for Photographing Your Cat. Though I rolled my eyes a bit, somewhat like when I see the magazine Cat Fancy and wonder how [...]
Concats, Skeezix, on your latest honor! You’re such an adorable little dickens, it’s no surprise, though. And thanks, Karen, for the valuable reminders – no matter how long, or how many different kitties one photographs, it’s sometimes easy to forget technique in the chaos of the moment. AND – it’s always good to be reminded that one can never have too many pix of one’s little darlings (life is too short…).
WHO DRESSES UP ANIMALS LIKE THAT???!!! ITS HORRIBLE’ AND LIKE TORCHURE!!!
I’ll race you anytime
Thanks for the great tips. I love your photos and have shared Skeezix’s story with others.
[...] has posted 5 Tips for Photographing Your Cat, something I have a lot of experience with. One think is for sure, the Internet need more cat [...]
Thanks for the awesome tips. We will give these ideas a whirl. Loved the video – !!! Novinka Daisley, and mom , Liz
My Miss Shirley
[...] Squeezix qui impose à son chat des séances photos un peu proche de la torture pour obtenir des clichés du [...]
Great tips! They will really help me out next time I try to get pics of my pets! Here is a pic that I took of my oldest cat Taffy. http://files.dogster.com/pix/cats/92/987792/987792_1251602838.jpg
I love your tips for posing a cat. May I use on my blog — with credit and link back to your site? I did an article about posing cats for a photo book. Your information just expands on tips to my readers.
Thanks. Looking forward to hearing from you.