Context

These images are a selection of images showcasing an insight into a day in the life of my dog, Lily. Lily is a Jack Russell Terrier and she is 10-years-old. She has been a loving part of my family for the majority of her years, as we acquired her from a family friend when she was only a few months old. I decided to photograph Lily for this final brief, because I believe she is one of the best definitions for my home that I can think of. Even though most people think of ‘home’ as being where their family is, I see it that no matter where you are, with modern technology, it has never been easier to keep in contact with them; I could easily interactive with my family, whether it be talking on the phone, texting, or video messaging. They could also come see me at any time they like. However, it is a lot harder to interact with a family pet, for example. Yes, they could bring her to wherever I may be, but it is a lot harder process transporting a dog (especially, if like Lily, they get car sick) in comparison to a human. Plus, dogs are not welcome everywhere.

Although my family could send me pictures of my dog, or show me her when on a video call, it is obviously not the same interaction it would be if I was there in person – my dog could not respond to me the way she would if I was actually there; she may not even realise I am there, even if she could hear my voice. This is why I decided to represent ‘home’ by using my dog as a model; not only because it is harder to interact with her when I am not at home, but I believe she is a gorgeous dog, that is very photogenic.

Influences

My first idea, in response to hearing the brief for the first time, was to photograph various landscapes in and around the house where I grew up, such as various rooms within it, as well as what could be seen in the surrounding area. So, I began my research by looking at various landscape photographers and the work they had done. One photographer that caught my eye is called Michael Kenna.

Michael Kenna is best known for his black and white landscape photographs. Despite his landscapes images being beautifully shot and framed, they are also very unusual. The main reason they are so unusual, is down to the way he takes his photos. All of his photos are very delicately lit, producing fabulous highlights and shadows in the most perfect of places.

For example, in the photo above, the city scape is entirely black, while the sky and water and gradually go from white to a darker grey, to black where it vignettes at the corners. I personally believe this is a fantastic way to photograph, and looks very aesthetically pleasing. To achieve this specific light, referred to as ‘ethereal’ light, he shoots his photographs at night, with exposures of up to 10 hours.

As can be seen in the two of his photos that are my favourites, the majority of his photos are formatted as squares, which I also believe gives it another successful aspect to his photography, and is perhaps highlighted by Instagram, as it is a very popular photo sharing application that also formats pictures as squares.

Since about 1986, Kenna has been using Hasselblad and Holga cameras, which account for the square formatting of his photographs. In this time working as a photographer, he has won six awards, and it is not hard to see why.

However, after looking into Michael Kenna’s work, as well as taking the photos I had in mind for my original idea (see ‘First Attempt’), I decided that I could not replicate as something as beautiful as Michael Kenna’s work – mainly because I did not have the required equipment, and the locations surrounding my home are not as interesting as the landscapes that Kenna photographs. So instead, I came up with my second and final idea, to photograph my dog, Lily.

In order to influence my final images, I headed to The Guardian’s website, where they have various articles on pet photography. The first article I looked at showcases the work of a pet photographer called Alex Cearns – she has recently released a new book, entitled ‘Zen Dogs’, which pictures various breeds of dogs, looking relaxed with their eyes closed.

The images themselves feature the dogs upon black backdrops, so the viewer of the photo can really focus on the dog’s expression. To achieve a black backdrop that looks as professional as Alex Cearns has produced, I would have to bring my dog into the photo studio, which I don’t think would be very possible, especially as I envisaged photographing my dog in various different situations, and capturing her expressions in response to the various situations. Nonetheless, Alex Cearns work was very useful in helping me with my final images, mainly because she has done extremely well in capturing the dog’s expression at the exact right moment, so that the expression is replicated onto the image. This is something I must try and achieve if I am wanting my final images to be a successful sequence.

Another article I looked at on The Guardian’s website featured the ‘Kennel Club dog photographer of the year, 2016’ competition. The various images shown within the article placed either first, second or third in their chosen category.

This article was also useful to me in helping with my final sequence of images, as these images were exactly what I had in mind when it came to photographing my dog. Most of the pictures, such as the one above, display the dogs in their everyday life, and capture the expression of the animal perfectly. For example, the puppy above has a guilty look, after having been caught chewing a hat.

One of the categories in which photographs were entered was the ‘dogs at play’ category. Baxter the westie, can be seen pictured above, emerging from the water. What I like about this photo is not only how cute Baxter is, but the stunning landscape that can be seen behind Baxter, and helps give the viewer slight context into Baxter’s current situation.

First Attempt

As previously mentioned, my initial idea was to photograph various landscapes in and around the house where I grew up. However, my first attempt at the brief, which can be seen in the six photos above, was not entirely successful. Although the photos look respectable, I personally did not find them interesting at all to look at. The first three images on the contact sheet were taken from inside the house, while the last three showcase the view from my bedroom window and my two gardens, respectively. I had decided to photograph my sequence of six photos first thing in the morning, before anyone else was awake (except my dog, who was captured in the second photograph). The first photo is the view from my bed and is the view I have woken up to for many mornings of my life – the second image is of my living room, while the third is my kitchen. These three images are my least favourite of the six I had taken. Because these three were taken prior to the sun being out (as it is in the final images), the rooms were very dark, and so had to be lit by the room lights, giving the photos an ‘artificial’, yellow colour, which I personally think looks awful and is one of main reasons I decided to change my idea entirely. Not only that, I also felt that the images were ‘boring’, and either had too much going on, such as in my kitchen and living room, or not enough to look at other, such as door in the first one.

On the other hand, I am quite fond of the last three images, mainly because they are lit with natural, early morning light. They also provide brighter colours in comparison to the dull browns and beiges that can be seen in the interior photos. But still, the photos themselves are not very carefully shot and are just pictures of greenery and buildings. Even though I could easily retake the final three images and reframe them to vastly improve them, I disliked the first three images too much and decided to change my idea.

Second Attempt

After having changed my idea, I decided to practice by taking a few quick photos of my dog, prior to beginning the day I chose to showcase, to see how easy it was to photograph her. Although these photos were only taken quickly, I felt that they look quite good, and a select few could have even been used in my final sequence of photos.

My favourite photo from the practice shoot is the first image in the contact sheet, as I felt it captures her expression perfectly – the depth of field also looks aesthetically pleasing, as she is fully in focus, while the background is out of focus. Sadly, the photo is ruined by the cushion that can be seen next to her.

Another photo I am proud of is the second one, as none of the background can be seen and the frame is purely dominated by Lily and her expression. Sadly, the photo is very dark, and despite playing around with it in Lightroom, I decided it didn’t quite look right in comparison to the other, unedited photos. Also, I felt it looked too much like a portrait, rather than a photo to represent ‘home’.

Even though this was only a quick photoshoot, I felt it helped me a lot for the final photoshoot. I soon realised that despite being a dog and not doing exactly what I told her, in the end she was quite easy to work with and I could aggravate her successfully, just as can be seen in the first photo, to produce some great expressions and looks. Because the process was possible, and was in fact quite successful, I decided to pursue and complete my idea.

Reflection

Overall, I quite enjoyed this brief, mostly because the brief requirements were open to interpretation, so we could approach this in our own way. I am personally pleased with my sequence of nine, final images. I feel though that they show a clear day in the life of my dog, from waking up in the morning (the first image) to going back to bed at night in the final photo. All of the photos are taken from a single day – I simply dedicated that day to photographing her, so in the end I had around 100 photographs that I could have chosen from, which gave me an array of image choices. So, I have created a contact sheet (below) with a few more of my favourite photographs from the shoot, but that I did not choose to submit as the final images.

However, although some of the pictures I have submitted are quite strong pictures, such as the photo below (which is probably my favourite), I feel like some of the pictures are quite weak in comparison, such as the first one and last two within the sequence. I felt like I only chose to put those images in to try and make the sequence clear, rather than choosing stronger photos that I had taken, as can be seen in the contact sheet above. Nonetheless, I do not believe that the images are totally weak, and still capture Lily’s expression, especially her reaction in the first one to having a camera thrusted into her face first thing in the morning. I am sure that the middle photos within the sequence are strong enough to allow for the slight weakness of one or two.

As previously mentioned, this is my favourite photo out of the nine I decided to submit. I believe it captures my dog’s expression perfectly as she looks out of the window, staring at people walking past my house. I was also lucky to capture her paw resting on the windowsill, which adds another aspect to the photo. Using Lightroom, I was able to alter the shadows slightly, so to make the natural light from the window appear brighter and make Lily appear to be hiding in the shadows.