How to Get Your Dog to Pose in a Picture
Start Simple
Make sure your dog know these basic commands:
- Sit
- Stay
- Lie Down
If they don't they are easy to teach. So lets go over them quickly.
SIT- Simply hold a treat right above your dogs nose, and say sit. Some get it right off the start, some take a few times. Do not give the your dog a treat until their bottom is all the way on the ground. Try not to repeat "sit" too much. If they get bored, try saying it high pitched. Once they sit, praise them and give them the treat. Make them stand up and do it again. Actually, I would practice this for 15 minutes daily untl you know they have it down pat.
STAY- Once your dog gets the idea of sit, try to hold your hand out and say "stay" then slowly back away from him. If they get up to follow you make a sound that they know means bad, and walk them back to the spot and make them sit. Do this a couple of times. Soon you should be able to say stay and walk out of the room and come back without them moving.
LIE DOWN- Have your dog sit, and take a treat and hold it to the ground and say your command, some say "down" or "lie down" or "lie". Pick which ever one fits you and say it. Make sure you use the same word, once you teach it the word, you can't change your mind. Like the "sit" command try not to repeat the command too much. Maybe once every 10 seconds until your dog finally lays down. Praise them and give them the treat. Some dogs get it fast if you hold the treat the ground in-between their shoulders then drag the treat towards you while giving the command. Most of the time they try to follow the treat, and without knowing it, they lie down.
Since that is cleared up, lets start the fun stuff!
Just One at a Time..
First you will need a camera of your choice, and of course a dog! For those of you that have many dogs, just start with one. (don't feel bad, I have my own little family of dogs!) I know its hard to pick, but just one for now. Until you get the hang of it.
Go to an area where there is no distractions for you or the dog, and get some small props, so the dog can get use to the idea of photography. Once you find that area, start working with your dog before you get the camera out. Make them sit and back up and think how the picture would look. Then get the camera and make sure you give them the command to stay, and take some pictures. Some dogs want to look away. Hold you hand up and move it till you get there attention the bring you hand slowly down to the camera and snap it. With dogs you have to be quick and sure, because they will not hold and wait for you. They don't understand what you want, or what they need to do, which is okay. That's why the training before hand is needed.
My Models: Yager, Gunner, McKenzie, Jazz, and Nitro.
The First Pictures
Your first pictures will probably not look like they just came out of a magazine, if they do, you and your dog are naturals. It takes practice. To the bottom of this paragraph is some of my picture I first took, getting into the photography idea, when I was a teen. You can go through and pick out certain things that either don't belong there, don't look right or mess up the picture. Later on, I will show you some of my other pictures that I have learned and practiced for.
On the right, you can see Baby Yager, which is my Rottie and Lab mix. I got him when he was a puppy, and this is the first picture I have of him. Now he is one of the most photogenic dogs I have.
Then I have Jazz, which is a Yorkie mixed with a Chihuahua. This is her when she was a puppy, and she was never good at taking pictures. Sadly she was put to sleep. She had a Brain Tumor, and it was causing her pain. She was sweet and this is some of the last pictures I have of her.
Next is Nitro, my beautiful Husky. He sadly is gone too, but he was one of the best dogs I have ever had, and he was the best poser. He would do something different every photo. He got bit by a rattlesnake, and couldn't pull through. I miss him a lot, and love him a lot.
Then we have goofy Kenzie. She wasn't the best at pictures, but she was so goofy, no matter how hard you would try to get a good picture of her, she made you laugh. She also is not with us, she passed away during surgery. I miss her a lot too.
And the newest addition to the group, is Baby Gunner. He is now huge and looks alot different. He is an Imported German Shepherd. He was good at posing from day one. You'll see a lot more of him and Yager, because sadly, they are the only ones I have left.
Together!
Lets Put Them Together!
Now, that we've got our dogs to take a picture congrads! If you have more then one dog, you have some more work to do!
Next bring in both dogs, if you have more then 2, only bring in one more for now. Have them both sit in the spots you want them to. Maybe one laying down, maybe one sitting. Then give the stay command and snap away! Simple right?
You may not always get the best pictures, but keep snapping you may get a winner!
Look below, and you'll see when I started adding my dogs together.
Some of the Best Pictures.
The End.
Im not sure, if these, helped, but I enjoyed sharing it. Leave Comments! :)
