Can I bring my dog to our photo-shoot? (My advice on bringing furry friends!)

An appreciation post for just a few of the many furry friends of past photo shoots 🐾 (read: I would please love it if your pets can be present for part of our session 😄)

Bringing your animal companions into your photos can be a gorgeous way to show a bit of your personal life, and communicate some of your values.

Pets can bring so much fun, lots of opportunities for natural moments on the shoot and can be a lovely presence to have around. Let’s not forget too that photos with pets can get a LOT of attention!! Here are a few things I’ve learned over my 12 years of photo shoots in case you’re considering bringing yours to our shoot. We’ll of course talk this through when planning our session.

tips on bringing along your energetic dogs or cats:

🐾 Have someone take your doggos for a decent walk/run-around before our session, so that they are happy, settled, and have sniffed away to their hearts content before we get started.

🐾 With the personality of your dog / cat in mind, consider whether they’re good to be present for the whole shoot, or whether it might be best for everyone to have a friend/partner/pet sitter come to look after them while we are shooting, or bring them over for just part of our session. Some are very chilled and fine to hang out for the whole shoot. And as much as we love em, some DO LOVE TO STEAL THE SHOW.

🐾 Build in plenty of time on the shoot for photos with your pets, as… it can be unpredictable. 🙈

🐾 Depending on the logistics of our shoot, it may be good to save photos with your animal friend(s) till the end, in case they jump up and mark your clothing/eat your props/lick the makeup off your face, etc, etc, etc.

🐾 I keep a lint roller in my camera bag at all times, but you may want to bring your own in case of unwanted hair on clothing, as well as a soft cloth for removing surprise paw prints.

🐾 Similarly, a dustpan and brush (or portable vacuum cleaner) could be a great shout for keeping the floor tidy if your pet malts a lot of fur.

Got any other tips I should definitely be aware of from your own experience of pets on shoots? Comment below!

P.S. Wanna do a shoot and bring your pets along? I’d love to work with you! Book in a call here.

P.P.S. This is my #decemberreflections2023 post for the prompt ‘paws’. Check out the original post here.