Testing the waters....
 

So,

Photography is one of my hobbies, and it is natural that I wanted to introduce Mike and Molly to my camera and lens to see if they would like to do a little possing for me or not.

I wanted to wait until they were a little older so we had our first test drive session, and I think they will be ok with me pointing the camera towards them, they seem to like it. :-)....

A few shots from the test session :-P.

Just a few more....

Tks.

Wow! Cute!

very cute!

Your little models are beautiful! Great pics!

Love your pictures and looks like you have some models!

love the photos, great job. They do seem to love the camera, it is normally very hard to get puppies to sit still for a photo so to get so many of them posed is quite an accomplishment. You probably have good equipment that takes multiple shots very quickly. That is my problem I don't have a good camera so my shutter speed ( I think that is what it is called) is so slow so I miss lots of good shots.

Love them, awesome job and your babies are so stinking adorable. . I could sure learn a few tricks from you about how to capture the subject of the photo. What photo editing program do you use?

Wow! You should start a pet photo business. They are super cute!

I love your photos! It's great that they are getting used to the camera so early. It took me a long time to get a digital camera, and photography has been a passion of mine since I was young. I'm really glad that I got it because I got so many more photos of one of my Rainbow Bridge babies the last couple of years of her life. I'd love a new full frame camera, since so many of my lenses would be optimized on that format, but I already don't use my camera enough, and I still love it (Nikon D300). I prefer natural light, but when I use flash, bouncing it off the ceiling really helps with Katie's green eye. I look forward to seeing more photos of your babies as they grow up.

What beautiful photos! Love it :) You did a great job! All my pictures of my two as puppies are of them running away... lol

You are very talented and have 2 of the most adorable models. I think they're naturals.

Thank you guys, I do ha e a good camera (Nikon D600), since I do photography mainly as a hobby but I do get a few paid sessions now and then, although this is the first time I photograph puppies, but I have done quiet a few toddlers and this was pretty similar :-P .

Here is my personal portfolio in case you want to take a look....
https://www.flickr.com/photos/miguellara/

it was a little tricky to get them to pose since they are very active and like to run all over the place none stop, but I am used to photograph kids so I was prepared :-P .
A few treats now and then a finding sounds that would capture their attention was the way to go.

I will try to do some action shots of them playing outside next...lol

Gorgeous shots! Your pups are naturals.

I was going to ask what kind of camera you have. Glad you already indicated the Nikon. I'm hoping to buy my first fancy digital this year. My last "real" camera was a Minolta 35 mm. :D

I want the crystal clear focus of the pups with the bokeh effect.

Gulp gulp ............ just looked that camera up, it's around $1,500.00. It sure takes beautiful pictures though. if anyone knows of something for a lot less with a quick shutter speed let me know. Love Mike and Molly.

Great shots.. . . I end you to come to me and take a few of Galen. He is like ricochet rabbit lol

Welcome
 

Beautiful photo's of your puppies, They sure are adorable. By the way welcome to Y T. You have come to the right site to get replies, and any question's you may have..
Annie/ Luci

Thank you guys, really appreciate the feedback.

For those interested in a more economic photography kit that will still give you great images as the one I have, I can recommend the following:

Nikon d5100 camera body....... around $400
Nikon 85mm 1.8g ...... around $400
Nikon sb-400 external flash head....... around $100

They are fully capable equipment only missing certain features that you probably wont use or need photographing usual stuff.

Just remember that it is easier to take really bad pictures with a $1000 camera than with a $80 camera if you dont know what you are doing... so I would recomend a photography course or at least a good book, otherwise you might be really disappointed of what you get from your several hundred or thousand dollars camera.

Many peoe think that when you buy an dslr expensive camera they will start taking great pictures, but it is all the contrary, with a dslr you have control over every aspect of the camera, and if you dont know what you are doing, the images out of it will look even wrost than a $80 point and shoot camera.

I am not a photography master but I will be happy to help if you have any question.

Also, if there is anyone in Los Angeles area that would like a session of pbotos for your little guys, I would be happy to do one for you...... No charge dont worry, like I said, I do this more for a hobby than a bussiness :-) ... I just enjoy it.

Great advice to take a class. Last one I took was way back when I was developing my own film.

I still have to consult the manual for my point and shoot Canon. The DSLR will blow my mind.

Nikon has something called a digitutor that helps you learn. I'd recommend Bryan Peterson's books, particularly Understanding Exposure as a first book to read, but it's also great for people at any level of experience. The photos are beautiful, and you learn a lot in a very short amount of time. He also has online courses which I hear are great. Someday I would like to take their classes on people and pet photography.

Understanding Exposure, 3rd Edition: How to Shoot...
Pet Photography
Understanding Exposure and Your DSLR
Portraits Unplugged by Bobbi Lane

How do you like your 85mm 1.8g? I've considered that lens. I would love the 1.4, but it's more than I want to spend right now. I'm not sure of that focal length on a crop camera. I know one day I will get a D610 or D800, but right now I'm so busy that I'm not using my D300 enough. I have the following lenses, so I'm not sure if it will add something, but I love that it's 1.8.

Nikon 105mm 2.8 micro
Nikon 35-70 2.8
Nikon 50mm 1.4
Nikon 18-200

I have others, but I don't use them much. Thanks for your input.

Thank you Lisa for sharing the links.

I really like the idea of online classes too.

I love watching the video pics of mike and molly. It looks like Mike has lightened up a bit in color!! I love their little pink tongues!!

The 85mm 1.8g is great, I used to have the 1.4 but I sold it since there is almost no difference besides the extra aperture and a little chromatic aberration below f2.0 ...... But 90% of the time I never shoot at 1.4 and chromatic aberration is fully fixable in Post, so I could justify keeping it. For the price, you cant beat the 1.8g.
85mm is a little tooo g on crop camera, but I was thinking she could use it for some actio shots outside as well and the extra leght would give her a little more control on the DOF.
But if she only want portraits inside the house, then yes a 50mm 1.8g would suit her just fine and it is also cheaper ... around $150 .....

I used to have a plethora of lenses, about $5,000 worth of lenses for my camera, until I learnt that it is better to invest in education rather than equipment.... right now I just have a 28mm 1.8g, 50mm 1.8g and a 85mm 1.8g with a diopter adapter for macros and that covers pretty much all my needs for the kind of photography I do.

Sorry I went too deep lol...

So yes a 50mm 1.8g will also do great with the d5100 for some awesome shots....and at least an sb-400 external flash so you can bounce your light......

BTW.. the 105mm 2.8 is one of the best lens from Nikon, the only thing is that for portraits it gets heavy really quick, I would check the 85mm out, light as a feather, you have more options in your dof with the bigger aperture and the focal lenght is pretty similar, that is why I sold it.... unless you do a lot of macro photography, I would check the 85mm and see if you like it.... it is also much cheaper. But again, if you are into macros, then I would keep the 105mm , one of the finest.

Great pics. Marcie never holds still.

Thanks for your advice. I'm happy to hear good things about the 85 1.8. The only newer lenses I have gotten since I went digital were the 18-200 and the 50 1.4g. The other lenses I've had from the time when I used Nikon film SLRs. They are in perfect condition, and I know once I get a "full frame" Nikon, they will be a more optimal focal length.

Wow you guys are really knowledgeable. I have the D200 and hubby the D300, but what I feel for inside shots, and even outside shots, for the novices like myself, get a tripod!!

Heavy lenses are not a problem and you can set on either camera, an automatic 1 sec shot to happen. There is a picture I have of Magic leaping for his toy during dock diving which is wonderful.



Also Kristin look for re-sale of the good cameras, you can get quite a good deal.

That's awesome that they posed so nicely. I wish I could utilize my DSLR (I have the canon rebel t3i) to its fullest, but instead it sits in its box and I use a Kodak on the built-in settings. LOL I have no idea how to use a camera, clearly.

How do you do it so that in the foreground, you see that the hairs on the dogs are crisp and clear, yet the background has a soft blur to it?

adorable babies, awesome photos, what kind of sounds do you use to get their attention. You have 2 very beautiful lil pups. I love seeing all the pics & videos. GREAT JOB,