Spent the afternoon with Lola, the number five French Bulldog on the U.S. show circuit. This was the first time we brought a dog into the studio and it was a great experience. We used four lights to try and make Lola look her best. There was a fill light provided by a ProFoto head and a small Creative Light Softbox. A main light from the dog's right was a 580 EX II and Westcott softbox. The two rim lights set approximately 45 degrees off Lola's tail end were also ProFoto/Creative Light combos. We used a black backdrop and had Lola on a black velvet covered table.
I used the Canon 5D Mk II with the EF 70-200mm f/4L and a Pocket Wizard. I had the rig tethered so we could see the results of the shot on a 17" laptop screen. Shooting tethered provides some great benefits as you can immediately use either ACR or Lightroom's Develop Module to verify and fine tune your exposure and lights. Working a tethered system is surpisingly easy. For Canon shooters the software comes with your camera and all you need to connect is a USB cord (get a long one.) For Nikon shooters you do need to purchase additional software but the setup is just as easy.
We look forward to working with Lola again and any other showdogs and pets out there. OBTW, we also shot in the studio this morning, radically different subject matter though. An example is shown below.
This is, of course, not Lola but another tremendous local model.
Have a great Labor Day Weekend. We here at Light will be in class with a full digital darkroom learning Total Workflow with Adobe Photoshop Lightroom.
Fiat Lux!
