I think lots of film is the key to this in the end. Face expression and
body language mean a lot. If the dog's alone (say, with a favorite ball and
playful) that's a good thing because then one doesn't have to coordinate
two dogs with re to face expressions and body languages. Add a human being
and you're juggling balls, though, so keep that film constantly rolling.
I'd be sure my film was fast enough to shoot with a small enough aperture
to ensure a DOF worth talking about while not dropping your shutter speed
too low, and then just bust through a roll or two or three of film. You
might then slow down and get somewhat more artsy with a larger aperture and
all that--kind of chancy, that, and you might well find yourself required
to load a slower emulsion in that case. A 28mm sounds like a good choice of
lens, or a 35-70 (or something like it) zoom might be better still _if_ you
feel comfortable working the controls.
This job will be made much easier with a Winder 2 or MD while the dog's
still frisky, with you started to click away beforehand in anticipation of
the puppy doing something cute. It will tire out eventually, though,
puppies always do, and that's a splendid opportunity for the old
slumbering-away-close-up shot. (Well, all right, I always liked them,
though. <g>)
Fujipress 400 and 800 (depending on light) offer a very workable compromise
between speed and grain, with the added benefit of having worries about
color balance eliminated pretty much. Or buy Superia X-TRA at comparable
speeds--it's fundamentally the same film I'm told. You could also use
either Fuji NPH or NPZ (I think the Fujipress is better than the NPH but
what do I know; haven't tried NPZ yet).
With respect to light, early morning or late afternoon outside (or through
a window) is always wise, but even then one can't count on that "good"
light to do what's wanted, so again, so Fuji's 4th-layer films sound
appropriate for this job as you might end up under something terrible like
a florescent in the kitchen!
As for flash: you'll get better results without it as a rule, so stay away
from that if you can. Flash is for when all else fails, or a "trick" or
"effect" shot of some kind. If you approach this right I'm sure available
light is the ticket.
I like the Fuji films, by the way, a lot, and have used NPS successfully.
However, in this case I'd recommend Portra (probably VC for a little extra
pop) for its very wide latitude (the Fuji emulsions are said to have wide
latitude as well but Portra beats them in this regard). Also, a 160 film
might well be (almost certainly will be, especially with teles at work) too
slow for the requirements of this work, speaking to DOF again, mostly--but
really, you've no guarantee it will be anything but partly cloudy outside,
unless you're shooting in some African desert during a drought, in which
case your shutter speed will be alarmingly slow even wide open for action
scenes, which is what this shoot promises to offer.
You can try the longer teles for this and maybe even get a useable image or
two, but I believe you'll interact with this puppy much more intimately
(and the more playfully animated the puppy is the better, yes?) by getting
right down on the floor/ground with it and shooting pretty much in its face
at head level--or as near as possible. If the dog licks your front element
all the better. That means it's happy! Clean your lens or filter (I'd have
one) and keep shooting. And again, for this sort of close-in stuff the 28mm
(or 24mm for that matter) would offer you intrinsically more DOF to work
with than would a 90mm, for example. Think wide.
By the way, if you haven't tried it take that NPS (or better still in my
opinion some NPC) and shoot a few evening skies (or architecture with some
clear sky showing) with it. Fuji sees deep blues in a special way, and more
so over time.
Good luck!
Tris
> > Though inside with the faster lenses might happen. I am not sure if I want
> > to try flash with a dog I don't know
> >
> >
>
>Can you get the dog near a window or glass door looking out? I would
>probably use the 135mm or 200mm (actually I'd probably try a Tamron 180mm
>f2.5, but
>that wasn't one of the choices). The professional's advice for taking
>pictures
>of people would probably work well with the pooch. Get closer, fill the
>frame, shoot a bunch of film and turn your flash off. I'd start off in the
>house
>where you have a bit more control, try to get it near some natural light.
>Does
>he have a porch? They can have nice soft light. If you have to go outside I
>might go for a picture of the dog and the friend together. That is likely
>where to dogs attention is going to be anyway. I'd also do it early in the
>morning or late in the evening when the sun is low. My 2 cents
>worth. Bill Barber
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