Local pet photographer and founder of the Puptrait Studio, J.B. Shepard, named “Best Artist” in Baltimore Magazine’s Best of Baltimore readers’ choice awards.
Local pet photographer and founder of the Puptrait Studio, J.B. Shepard, named “Baltimore’s Best Photographer” by the Baltimore Sun Readers’ Choice Awards.
To be clear, we’re not saying that a professional pet photographer can’t capture group portraits of older, larger or more active dogs. In fact, many dog portrait artists will even go so far as to even guarantee that they can. But as quoted by Chris Farley in his titular role of the 90’s comedic classic Tommy Boy, “…if you want me to take a dump in a box and mark it guaranteed, I will. I got spare time.”
Written by J.B. Shepard, a professional pet photographer and founder of the Puptrait Studio. Handling a dog during a photoshoot presents some fairly unique requirements. It differs from most approaches to training and behavioral modification in that a photographer is less concerned with compliance and more focused on engagement. More often than not, professional pet photographers seek to trigger facial expressions and moods, rather than encourage any specific behavior, trick or action. Consent is the key to great dog portraiture […]
Written by J.B. Shepard, a Washington D.C. based professional pet photographer and founder of the Puptrait Studio in Baltimore, Maryland. Washington D.C. dog owners area have a wealth of options when it comes to on location pet portraits. Some of the most iconic backdrops in our country are located just a short drive from Baltimore and Northern Virginia. Between all of the national monuments, the iconic buildings and the National Cherry Blossom festival, it’s no wonder why the National Mall […]
Written by J.B. Shepard, a professional pet photographer and founder of the Puptrait Studio. Photographing a running dog isn’t a simple task. In fact, taking great pictures of running dogs consistently can be down right difficult — as it requires a photographer to understand dog behaviors, how to use artificial light sources / light modifiers, how their camera functions in extreme conditions, and how to frame less than optimal scenes. But with proper understanding of the hurdles specific to these […]
Written by J.B. Shepard, a professional pet photographer and founder of the Puptrait Studio. Photographing black dogs can be tricky. But it’s not as difficult as many aspiring dog photographers have been led to believe. In fact, with a better understanding of light and reflections it is possible to take great photos of black and dark furred dogs consistently. Black Dog Photography Tips & Tricks We’ve put together a collection of tips and tricks to help pet photographers create better […]
Are you planning a dog friendly event held in Maryland, Washington D.C., or Virginia? We would love to hear all about it! If your dog friendly event sounds like it would be fun and safe to attend, we would be happy to promote it in the events section of our dog blog. Dog Friendly Event Submission Cost There is no cost to promote dog friendly events on Puptrait.com that are either hosted by nonprofits or are free to the general […]
Whimsical photoshoots, especially surreal composites and digital paintings, are some of our favorite styles of dog portraits to create. Which is why we were so excited to have an opportunity to work on this private Chihuahua portrait commission recently. As these projects tend to be rather open ended and a little less straight forward to commission in comparison to our standard photo shoots, we thought it might be fun to walk through each step. Surreal pet portraits move beyond possible […]
Best places for dog photoshoots in Maryland Photographing dog portraits on location and in front of landmarks in Baltimore can be difficult. It’s one of the main reasons why we maintain a dog friendly photo studio. Half the battle is just finding the right location and angle to set up for your pup’s photoshoot. Baltimore (like most large cities) is filled with sights, sounds and smells that can be extremely distracting for even well trained dogs – including other furry […]
Dog photographers will give all sorts of reasons why they volunteer so much of their time to rescues and nonprofit foster groups. But this recent puppy photoshoot with Bella’s Bully Buddies proves without a doubt any of us signed up to take dog portraits in the first place. It’s all about the puppies! Photographing puppies and younger dogs can be a little more difficult than working with adult or even senior dogs. They’re generally less well trained (they are babies […]
Yappy Hours are often promoted as a great advertising tool for up-and-coming pet photographers. Community liaisons and community members clearly seem to be fans – they are everywhere after all. But are they a good deal for pet photographers, dog owners and event hosts? In all honesty, most Yappy Hours are a massive failure. But they don’t have to be. Keep reading if you’d like to learn why these dog friendly events are usually a huge failure, common pitfalls to […]