Pet Portraits

Think about taking the photos with as much natural light as possible. It's perfectly fine to take photos inside, but try to make sure there is lots of natural light coming in from outside. Using natural light will create a much softer feel and lessen the chances of ending up with that awful 'red eye'. The clearer the eyes of your pet in the photo, the better the artist can capture those soulful eyes. Don't have the light coming from behind your pet, because you'll end up with more of a silhouette without the facial features and/or distinguishing markings, unless, of course, it's a silhouette you're after. Silhouettes can be great paintings, too!

Get eye-level with your pet. This will ensure the correct proportions of your pet's physical structure and features. Try to 'fill' the photo with your pet, and try to avoid busy backgrounds. Especially if your pet is 'Brindle', 'Harlequin', or other multicolor. Having said that, if you've got a great photo that speaks loudly about your pet's character, but there's a distracting background, that doesn't make it impossible to end up with a great portrait. With a little extra time and work, the background can be simplified or 'blurred', bringing the focus back to your precious pet.

My last 'tip' would be to take lots of photos. Play around with lighting, positioning, and backgrounds...just have some fun snapping away at your precious 4-legged (or 2 if it's a parrot, finned if it's a Goldfish!) critter.