The dates are final, Robin at Good Dog Fetch is lining up some awesome models, the hotel is a go — all we need is you! We’ll have a full day of business and marketing, a full day of outdoor and natural light shooting and a full day of studio shooting with two instructors. The agenda is posted on this site, as well as information about the hotel. Email us via the contact page of this site and we’ll send you a registration packet. We are limited to 15 participants, so don’t delay!
That’s right! We’re planning Unleashed for January 2014 in Dallas. If you’re on the east coast and you can wait until June, we’ll still be teaching in Virginia. But for those of you that don’t mind escaping the snow for a few days in Big D, how about late January? Average temps are in the 40s and 50s with plenty of sunshine and beautiful opportunities for some crisp outdoor photography. Three full days with two instructors –business, marketing and shooting (both indoors and out), with live models. We’ll have more information as soon as the hotel and schedules are confirmed.
Our August Studio Shooters Workshop is almost sold out! Since this is a hands-on-in-the-studio workshop, we’re purposely keeping the group small. Lots of different dog (and people) models and lots of individual shooting time that way. This is going to be a great portfolio-building workshop — and (selfishly) a chance for me to really put the new studio through it’s paces! We’ve got strobes, monolights, continuous lights, video light, and a ton of different light modifiers and at least 10 different umbrellas to play with, so variety is the name of the game. Come play with us?
Combining people and pets is an art. It’s not always easy, but with a little extra planning, your portraits go from good to AWESOME. Here are FIVE TIPS for PHOTOGRAPHING PEOPLE WITH THEIR PETS.
1. Location RULES! Don’t pick the location for any other reason than the light – and the comfort of your subjects. If the dog’s not comfortable on a slatted bench, then don’t frustrate yourself by trying to make him sit there. For a basic warm and casual portrait, It’s always a good idea to get the people and the dogs faces on the same plane. Preferably close together.
2. Fresh people + Tired Dogs = Great portraits. Somehow, you want the dogs to burn off their excess energy before you sit them in front of the camera. Conversely, you want your two-legged subjects fresh and ready to go.
3. Minimize distractions. This is true for kids but doubly important for dogs. You’ll have a very difficult time creating the perfect dog portrait if Max is tracking squirrels and ducks with his eyes. Choose the time of day and the location to minimize these kinds of challenges. Noisy playgrounds, for example, are problematic for both types of subjects.
4. Casual beats Formal. The days of formal posed pet portraits are over! It’s far more important to get them laughing and playing together than to exhaust yourself (and them) for the perfect pose. Let them interact and prompt them occasionally to look at the camera while they are roughly in position. Shoot wider than necessary to allow them room to move. They will both love you for it.
5. What to wear? Since Max can’t really change his outfit, you better make sure your two-legged subjects pay attention to theirs. You want them to contrast with their pet but not compete. But watch out – too much contrast can make all that loose dog hair a photoshop nightmare for you later. A good medium range color that doesn’t distract the eye will usually save the day.
It's an important combination — important for your clients and important for your business. And even though many pet photographers try to steer away from photographing people it pays (literally) to build those skills! We'll have both people and pet models at our upcoming Studio Shooters Workshop in Dallas next month for just that reason, so if this is an area you've been avoiding — take a deep breath and join us! For more details on the agenda, the cost and the accommodations for the Studio Shooting workshop, just click on the tabs at the top of this page.
We’ve got a couple of fresh new workshops “in the works”! The first is an ALL STUDIO workshop taught by Teresa Berg –to be held August 24 & 25th in her Dallas studio. Over the years we’ve had lots of comments like “I didn’t know studio shooting could be so fun! I wish I could do just two whole days of nothing but studio lighting” and “I’ve always been afraid of studio photography — it looks so complicated. But you make it easy!” and also “PLEASE let me know when you’re going to offer something for Unleashed graduates that want to go a little DEEPER.” So here it is. We’re pulling all the tricks out of the bag and going crazy with light.
We’ll shoot with monolights, continuous lights, video lights, speedlights, reflected light — and even a flashlight… for dramatic effects and the beautiful clear crisp details that are so easy to get in the studio. Imagine what it’s like to have all the light you need right at your fingertips. We’ll even help you figure out what equipment you might need to set up your own studio –even if it’s just a One Light Portrait set up in the back bedroom! We’ll have only shooting at this workshop — no business and marketing. Everything is hands on and in a small group setting.
We bring in a catered lunch and a variety of live models (two-legged and four-legged) so we can constantly change it up for you and you can get the maximum amount of shooting time. Additionally, we got a super rate ($59 per night) at the Courtyard Marriott down the street –which includes breakfast! So there you have it — beat the heat and let’s stay indoors and go crazy with light!
All we can say is WOW! Lots of great photographers, great models, great light and great friendships formed. It was a super workshop all the way around! We had fabulous homes to shoot in, gorgeous studio space and last but not least, beautiful historic Leesburg, Virginia as the perfect backdrop. Stay tuned for more Unleashed fun…. 
See more samples of what was shot on our facebook page: HERE
The dates aren’t quite final — but if you’ve been waiting for the Unleashed Workshops to pop up on the east coast again, you’re in luck!
It looks like we’ll be teaching June 8-10, 2013 in the Northern Virginia/Washington DC area. Please check this blog for all the details on cost/hotels/etc. and send us an email via the contact page if you’d like the registration packet emailed to you.
Stay tuned for more information in the next few weeks!
We finished another magical three days of fun, creativity and intense learning this week and the variety of things we shoot never ceases to amaze me! Many thanks to a great group of students for not giving up in the rain and for hanging in there through the long days of shooting, taking turns and technical breakthroughs. You all have some fantastic new images to show for it! Here is a sample shot by Allison Schmidt. Special thanks goes to Robin Terrell of Good Dog Fetch for recruiting and handling some wonderful dogs for us. 
Unleashed pet photography workshop
for the most amazing pet photography workshop in the country! As much as we hate to brag, we really think we’ve got a great mix of business, marketing and shooting. And Sept 29th will be here before you know it!
We’re putting the final touches on our list of dog models and it looks like we’re going to be super busy setting up lots of cool shots in a wide variety of locations.
Will you be the one to snag the last seat???
We’re down to the wire and have three spaces left for our pet photography workshop scheduled for September 29 – October 1, 2012. If you’ve requested the registration link (via the contact page of this website) we cannot guarantee that we will have a space for you UNLESS you have sent your payment. The next three payments we receive will be guaranteed a space, after that, we will put you on the waiting list in case there are cancellations.
So don’t delay! Airfare discounts are the best when you book 4 weeks out –and the hotel will be holding our deeply discounted rooms only until September 1st. Contact us today!
Unleashed | fine art pet photography workshops 