Tips for Photographing Dogs, According to the World’s Most Famous Dog Photographer

Photography Tips

Dogs are like kids; everyone thinks theirs is the cutest in the world. But a lot of the doggie snapshots you find on social media are very generic—the mutt’s maybe got a funny expression, but the photo itself isn’t anything special. So what’s the best way to capture a dog on camera?

For answers, dog-lovers must turn to The Dogist. Based in New York, he’s garnered more than 1.4 million followers on Instagram—a following so strong he’s recently released his first book.

His recommendations? There are three in particular:

1. Kneel down and shoot at the dog’s level.
2. Make dog sounds (as realistically as possible) to get their attention. They’ve got to focus on you—you should be in control, not them.
3. Once you’ve got their attention, keep it interesting—play with them, use squeaky toys to point their heads in a certain direction.

As for those who may think shooting dogs for an Instagram following the size of metropolitan Phoenix is all a bit silly, here’s the story behind The Dogist:

“My mission as The Dogist is to tell the story of dogs. I was in LA, and came across a mixed-breed, a pointer mix, and photographed it and posted it to my blog. And I get an email a few days later saying the dog had died unexpectedly. And that the photo I posted, it had provided them a lot of solace and comfort in a hard time…. It’s a reminder for me that one photograph, one moment, can be very impactful for someone.”