Texture - it's all about the light on your subject, in this case Tracker - a black dog with golden eyes. The lighting in this photograph was provided by two AD200 lights in 24" softboxes at approximately 45 degree angles in front of Tracker.  Since black dogs can often come across as 'dark blobs' it is important to have some type of lighting (the sun works too) on them to light up the fur and show the texture.  "For most subjects side lighting works well to bring out texture. If using natural light, this would mean shooting shortly after sunrise or before sunset. If you are using artificial lighting, it just means placing your lighting off to one side from the subject." (https://www.discoverdigitalphotography.com/2012/the-importance-of-texture-in-photography/?fbclid=IwAR1Mk32oPTUQ-21M7ka9vF68cMFRRVitTf8IuEf1ajZGl1Ibkn0pjnNtLGE)
 

Another example of texture can be seen in the background of this dog - Charity is a beautiful brindle young dog (less than 1 year).  The teal colored blanket shows texture based on the nap of the blanket and how the light is bouncing off it.

I often use this off white blanket just because of the wonderful texture - it photographs very nicely and the dogs seem to love snuggling with it.  Please note this cutie has already been adopted and is no longer available!

And sometimes it just the senior dogs that bring out all that wonderful texture.  He is black with a lot of white mixed in showing so much character in his face.

That's our look at some different options in lighting - For more pet photographers sharing their take on this theme, head over to visit Elaine Tweedy of I Got the Shot Photography, capturing special times in the lives of pets and their people in Northeastern PA and surrounding areas and then head around the rest of the blog circle.

If you would like to book a custom pet portrait session, send an email to [email protected] or give us a call/text Linda at 813-610-2671 in the Tampa Bay area (Florida).