Shoot Five Work Record

Plans for the Shoot

I will take my images using my Nikon D5300 DSLR Camera and will adjust the setting for each specific situation to suit the shot I am taking. The shoot will take place at Mutts in Distress in Little Hallingbury in Hertfordshire, and I plan to focus on taking images in the paddocks and on the route the dogs go walking to and from their kennel block.

The volunteers spend all day during Thursday exercising the dogs in the paddock, with all dogs getting the same set amount of time there. This is my second shoot in the paddock and I intend to continue to capture images of the volunteers as they interact with the dogs. Such as by playing with them, giving them attention and cuddles. Additionally some of the staff sometimes spend their lunch hour playing with the dogs too, so I will capture this if I get the opportunity.

What I Hope to Achieve

My aims for this shoot are the same as they were for Shoot 4 as this is a continuation of the activities but with different dogs and with some different volunteers. I want to capture the fun and enjoyment the volunteers get out of interacting and playing with the dogs. It is also a chance for the dogs to get out of their relatively small kennels and runs and get some exercise, so I want to illustrate this in my images to the viewer. This I will do using freeze frame of high energy activities such as running and by using objects frozen in mid-air as they have been thrown by the volunteers. By capturing this I will also capture the moment of anticipation and excitement the dogs feel too. The main images I hope to capture are listed below.

·         throwing balls for the dogs to run after

·         playing football

·         playing tug with dog toy ropes

·         giving the dogs belly rubs, cuddles and treats as well as clapping them

·         training them to sit/lie down etc

·         training them to get used to walking on a lead

I hope to capture these type of activities as well as the fun and enjoyment the volunteers experience by interacting with the dogs. I want to illustrate the affection in the relationship between the volunteers/staff and the dogs and have researched ways in which to capture this from the photographers Grace Chon, Elena Shumilova and Jesse Freidin.

What I Achieved

I felt that this shoot went well and I captured some good images which illustrate the interaction between the workers and the dogs they care for. This was because one of the dogs that was out was Hades who is a very active and intelligent dog who loves to play games as well as being cuddled. So there was plenty of good photo opportunities, however he is super-fast so I had to be quick taking my images.

 

I think this image showing a member of staff Yaz playing football with Hades illustrates the fun that she has playing with him. The image has captured in freeze frame Yaz dribbling the ball with her feet trying to move the ball from the left to the right of the frame. She is smiling or laughing. While Hades is facing Yaz blocking her way and crouched in the ‘play with me’ position with his mouth open and ears up and is trying to pounce on the ball and capture it in his mouth so that he can run away with it himself. Both Yaz and Hades are looking at the red ball so are focused and engrossed in their game.  This eye position directs the viewers eye toward the ball and so the activity and also gives the image a natural and un-posed feel as if someone was having fun playing and interacting with their dog and their image was captured without them knowing. This makes the image seem genuine and lets the viewer connect with the subjects and share the fun of the experience with the subjects. The freeze frame also captures the motion within the shot making the activity come alive more and giving it energy. The colour of the red ball and Yaz’s red jacket and T shirt also adds to the perception of physical activity and of excitement and energy in the image. To improve this image I think the position of the subjects need to be altered as Yaz’s head is quite close to the top of the image and this imbalances the image. To add to the perception of movement it may help the image to place the subjects either to the right or to the left of the frame. In this way there will be room for one of the subjects to run into as if they had captured the ball from the other player. This would add to the perception of movement.

These are two other images which I thought were particularly good showing the workers playing with the dogs and capturing the motion of the activity. Both photographs show Hades playing with his red ball. This is his favourite toy to play with. With both these images it is the poses that illustrate the excitement in the game. In the first photo, the position of the freeze frame captures Hades with both front feet off the ground and about to launch himself off the ground to catch the ball as it flies through the air. The ball has got there as it was thrown by Paula as her arm is also positioned in the air having just thrown it. While in the second photograph, it is the alert position of Hades with his tongue hanging out excitedly in anticipation as he waits for Carol to throw the ball for him.

This image show a volunteer, Carol, bending forward looking directly into Hades eyes and is possibly going to give him a kiss. Hades has put his head back and stretched his neck up to reach Carol’s face and is about to lick her. Carol’s arm is placed affectionately around Hades neck as she cuddles and strokes the back of his neck. The affection they have for each other is clearly portrayed in both their poses. The dog is obviously pleased to see her and wants to affectionately say hello by touching and licking her face. Though we cannot see the expression on Carol’s face the fact that she wants to get closer to the dog and cuddles him demonstrates the affection she has for him. The viewer will automatically fill in the facial expression that they think personally best fits with the image. The position of the subjects in the frame helps direct the viewer’s eye. Carol is standing vertically along a line of thirds to the left, while Hades body follows a line of thirds horizontally across the frame. This makes them the focus of attention, while Yaz  is standing to the far right of the frame so not a main focus of attention. She does however help direct the viewers’ attention as she is looking towards Carol and Hades and her pose, pushing some hair off of her face add authenticity to the image, making it feel more genuine and un-posed.  I think this image could be improved upon by showing the expression on Carol’s face, perhaps using a different angle to do this, and this would help convey the strength of the bond between them. I also think the image could be taken more in close up to fill the frame and make it more personal.


I made some changes in Photoshop to try to improve the image , First I cropped Yaz out as she was a distraction to the focus on the emotions being show. This made the subjects a central larger part of the frame. I then used selective colour to adjust the grass to make it less prominent. This made the subjects stand out more in the image and so the viewers eye will be directed to them.

These two images show the difficulty the workers have in controlling an excited strong dog like Hades as he can’t stay still long enough to get his leads attached to his collar. As can be seen it takes two people to do this task. The volunteers are trying to attach a lead to his collar so that he can be taken to the paddock to let him play and run around and burn off some energy.

What I am going to do Next

I want to capture some images that illustrate the long hours that have to be worked when caring for animals. This I intend to show by taking images at dawn with the workers arriving for work and also when the sun is setting showing the staff still at work caring for the animals. Both these images will be taken outside in natural light and I will hopefully be able to capture the long shadows from the sun which will be low in the sky.

I would also like to try to capture more images of the work involving the other rescued animals such as the sheep, donkeys, ducks or  hens as I have been focusing mostly on the dogs and cats so far.