Taking Your Own Pictures for a Drawing

Taking Your Own Pictures for a Drawing

Take pictures on a sunny day and don't use a flash. Shadows in the right places are great for creating a realistic drawing; they give the subject depth.

Position yourself with the sun on your back (morning or afternoon is the best time of day for picture-taking). Your subject may be positioned perpendicular to you with head turned toward you or facing you directly.

Background is important only for the effect is has on your light meter, not content; it doesn't have to be pretty unless you want it included in the artwork. A medium to dark background is best for most animals, allowing the camera to record the most definition from your subject. A light background will make a dark animal appear darker and will make it harder to define details. Avoid concrete patios!

Be aware of how much is in shadow under the chin or behind the jaw because it will always turn out darker in the pictures. See the photo 2 to get an idea of what I mean.

Have two people help, one to hold the animal and one to get next to you (at camera level) to attract the animal's attention, meow like a cat or show treats or toys to interest dogs. If you are by yourself, tie the animal in the correct light and try attracting it's attention with sounds.

Take lots of pictures in different positions and allow for blinks and movement.

Use the best camera you can with a zoom lens fully extended (this will compress the space from the nose to the ears and beyond so they won't be distorted). Then move in close enough to fill the frame with the portion of the animal you want drawn. Picture what you want in the finished drawing. The larger the image you provide me, the more accurate the drawing will be.

Be sure to position your camera at eye level with your subject.

The aim is to come up with a picture that captures the personality you know and love in your animal.

I know this is a lot of information to digest, but if all else fails you can have me come to you or bring your pet to me.
:-)

GOOD LUCK!

Note that the shadow is off to one side under the chin and defines the ears really nicely.

There is too much shadow under his chin. If we had positioned him facing the light, we wouldn't have had that problem.

We tied this horse from the noseband and got his attention, he was an exceptional poser. You could also have a rider keep the horse in position (with loose reins). The light is perfect.

Have someone hold the horse on the opposite side, like this, for a naked picture. It doesn't matter if the handler is in the picture.

When we moved this horse's front end to the left we eliminated the dark shadow on his neck. Watch for this, as horses tend to move a lot while being photographed.

These are nice shadows, not too much. If you want two or more animals together, you can take the photos separately (like this), but be sure to get them in the same position from the light to assure that the light comes from the same direction.