6 things to do to prepare your dog for the photo session

So we’ve had your pre-session consultation, selected your outfits and picked a location and date for your pet photography session. What about your dog? How should you prepare your pup? Here are 6 tips to help make your session a day you’ll always remember.

1. If you have a dog that gets groomed regularly, schedule a haircut about 2 weeks before the photo session. This gives some time for their fur to grow out just a little so it’s not super short. Check the fur around your pup’s eyes and trim it back if it needs it. We all know the eyes are the window to the soul, so I want to make sure I can capture those soulful expressions you adore so much. Don’t forget to trim their nails and the fur around their paws too. They may be super cute if they are hairy, but we don’t want it to be a distraction in the photos.

2. Bathe and brush your dog. I don’t recommend doing this the day of the photoshoot, but a day or so to a week before. You want their fur to be all clean and shiny for the photos, not matted and dirty. If your dog is active and tends to get dirty easily, try to keep activities to a minimum until the photo session is over.

3. Don’t feed your dog a meal before the session, or if they must eat something, give them a small portion. Dogs will “work” for treats and bribing is one of my favorite tricks! During the pre-session consultation, we’ll discuss which treats are your dog’s favorite. I recommend bringing something your dog loves but doesn’t get very often. Being a dog model is hard work and we want to make sure we reward your pup for their effort!

4. If you have a young and energetic dog, take him or her for a short walk about an hour or so before we meet. This will help burn some excess pent-up energy leaving your dog calm and relaxed for the session. Don’t overexert them – you don’t want to tire your pooch out before all the fun starts! On the other hand, if you have an older and more laidback pup, having some quiet time to rest and relax before the session is better. Save their energy for playtime during their shoot.

5. Brush up on your pup’s commands and tricks. If they know how to sit, stay, come and high five, and so on, practice this daily a few minutes every day so they’ll rock their modeling skills during the session.

6. Pack water, water bowls, poop bags, a brush, a hand towel if your dog is prone to drooling, a favorite toy and clean collars and leashes. While I will often edit out leashes from the session, it does help to choose colors that blend in with your pup’s markings. This is something we’ll cover in more detail during the pre-session consultation.

If you missed my post on the 3 reasons why I schedule pre-session consultations, click here. If you want to learn more about custom pet photography for your pet, let’s chat!