Her Majesty stars Cookie, an Afghan Hound with a beauty that stopped me in my tracks. I first met her and her owner by chance. I had just finished a hike and was loading my dogs into the car when I saw Cookie heading up the trail.
I sat in my car for a minute, debating whether I should approach her owner because I *had* to photograph another dog. I finally worked up the nerve, and luckily, her owner was open to the idea. We scheduled a session, and Cookie was absolutely stunning to work with. Here’s a link to some other images from that session: Cookie’s Blog Post.
The challenge I was shooting for required incorporating negative space into the composition. Toward the end of our session, just as the sun was setting, I found the perfect spot. With Cookie’s front paws elevated on the edge of a curved concrete bench giving her more presence and highlighting her beautifully athletic and elegant frame. The breeze blowing her beautiful coat and the perfect sky and clouds pointing to her, were just luck.
Her Majesty also made the Imaging Excellence Collection, as well as receiving an 85 in the Animal Image Makers Competition, and the top 100 of The International Pet Photographers of the Year competition.
- Technical details:
- Camera: Nikon Z6ii
- Lens: 50 f1/2
- Settings: ISO 320, f/1.2, 1/800 sec
This was one of the first images I ever entered into competition, and the experience was both stressful and rewarding. Competitions are an amazing way to learn—judges’ feedback has shown me things I never noticed before. One important lesson I’ve learned is that competitions are subjective: an image that does great in one contest might not fare well in another, and vice versa. But that’s what makes it fun—the variety of perspectives keeps me growing as a photographer.
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