Pet portraits
WhiteShip Design

Pet portraits

November 2019

Crowd
winner

This shot couldn't convey this dog's personality any more effectively! Great timing is combined with considered exposure and use of lighting for an amusing studio portrait which brilliantly captures character. Depth-of-field is also well controlled - the slight fall off helps focus attention on the eyes.

3,067 Images entered

2,152 Photographers

Entry 5029500
7th
51
Expert
winner
Entry 5033619
729th
122

Pet portraits is a challenging brief, mainly because it is difficult to capture something truly unique and eye-catching. The lighting in this image is expertly shaped to reveal only part of the subject in a dramatic cinematic style. The dark edges of the frame and strong colour of the eye draws attention to the centre of the shot. An unconventional and beautifully lit study. Well done!

Meet the expert judge

Entry 5044279
6th
311
Entry 5046128
26th
134

Many of the images we received made use of very tight framing, with all of the focus on the subject's face. It was the sense of context which stood out in this shot, with environmental detail visible yet unobtrusive. The soft golden light is absolutely stunning and creates a painterly feel befitting of the subject's character. The composition also creates very pleasant frame proportions.

185,724 Ratings

Brief

See more contest details

Portraits are one of photography’s most accessible endeavours, and making pets the subject of your imagery is incredibly fun. We want to see your best pet portraits, showing personality, character and technical expertise, too.

In order to set our images apart from the thousands of photographs uploaded to social media sites each day we have to be different. When it comes to pet portraits one of the biggest aspects to let an image down is perspective - this shot has been taken from a standing position, looking down. This gives the audience a view we see every day and so fails to inspire the imagination. This subject would have looked much better from a low perspective - a cat's eye view!

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