Dog Days of Summer

Dogs, dogs, dogs. You meet many interesting people during photo walks and dogs are some of the most interesting “people” that you photograph!

Dogs wear their personalities writ large, and they make expressive, even effusive subjects. Even the most surreptitious street photographer can’t sneak a photo past a dog. They have sharp hearing and unlike their distracted owners, they notice everything, and react with enthusiasm to a lady with a lens. They will photobomb every shot they can, with wonderful and often unexpected results.

Elliott Erwitt once said, “Dogs don’t mind being photographed in compromising situations.” And that’s all the better for your street photography. So my first rule is “collude with the dog”! Dogs love making themselves and their owners the center of your attention, so help them out!

Get low! Meet the dog eye to eye, or eye to schnoz, in their case. It’s a great POV, and you’ll definitely get their attention. I can’t promise that they won’t rush the camera; all the better to get a perfect snout-centric shot! Talk about a hairy situation! Medium format lets you get all the texture and contrast that you could wish for. That is an especially good way to capture all the details of a dog.

Sometimes you go for the contrast between dog and owner, such as a goofy dog, walking his glum owner. Sometimes you have two peas in a pod. Dog and owner look like relatives. You know who I’m talking about, Mr. Burley Guy in suspenders walking his English Bulldog! A skittish Chihuahua and her jittery high-strung owner!

But one thing to consider is you don’t have to include the owner at all! Sometimes it’s more interesting to only leave part of the human in the image. An arm holding the leash, legs and feet in the same space as the dog occupies, or a face leaning over to interact with your furry subject.

Look for an attitude, a pose, an unusual situation, interactions, much like human subjects. City dogs are often “walked” in strollers (seriously!). Get that shot!

Dog shots can show pathos too. Homeless people sometimes have dogs as companions, and they often take better care of their dogs than themselves. Those dog shots can emphasize kindness and humanity and the faith and deference that a dog shows to the least fortunate. Dogs don’t judge. Dog street photography is one of the best ways that lives can be dignified by capturing them on camera. So go find those furry, friendly, funny photogenic pooches and take your shot on Medium Street.