Rodgers. - Dog Photography For Dummies

Dog Photography For Dummies

by Kim Rodgers and Sarah Sypniewski

Co-founders of Bark Pet Photography

Dog Photography For Dummies

Published by
John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
111 River St.
Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774

www.wiley.com

Copyright 2012 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana

Published simultaneously in Canada

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Library of Congress Control Number: 2011936930

ISBN 978-1-118-07775-7 (pbk); ISBN 978-1-118-17075-5 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-17076-2 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-17077-9 (ebk)

Manufactured in the United States of America

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About the Authors

Kim Rodgers and Sarah Sypniewski co-founded Bark Pet Photography (www.barkpetphotography.com), a Los Angeles-based pet photography business, with a mission of giving back to local animal rescue organizations. In two short years, Bark Pet Photography emerged as an industry leader and was named Los Angeless best pet photography business of 2011 by the CityVoter Los Angeles HotList .

Kim, the photographer behind Bark, graduated from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California, with a bachelor of arts degree in studio arts. Kims images are described as modern, bold, and graphic a style influenced by her years of working as a graphic designer. Her work has been seen in places like the Wall Street Journal, PeoplePets.com, LAist.com, TMZ, People StyleWatch Magazine, and Popular Dogs Series magazines. When shes not photographing her clients dogs, shes pursuing her first true love: helping to save animals in need with her pro-bone-o work. Whether taking professional photos of shelter dogs, flying with them across the country to their forever home, or adopting them herself, Kim tries to help animals in need however she can.

Sarah, the marketing force behind Bark, left her ten-year career in the nonprofit world to pursue writing, consulting, and Bark on a full-time basis. When shes not waxing poetic in the Bark newsletter or churning out website copy for her various consulting clients, shes rescuing animals on a volunteer basis and using the specialized strategy she developed for NinjaDog Concepts (www.ninjadogconcepts.com) to recover lost pets. She writes about all her adventures on her blog, Sarah Leaps (www.sarahsypniewski.wordpress.com). Her poem, Paws Amidst Pain about the therapy dogs she worked with after the 9/11 tragedy has become a tribute used by service animal organizations everywhere. Sarah holds a bachelor of arts degree in psychology from DePaul University, which she calls upon frequently when performing such tasks as writing heartstring-pulling adoption bios for her homeless animal friends, calming dogs and humans alike during photo shoots, and using I statements.

Dedication

From Kim: For my parents, who taught me what it means to love and care for a dog as part of the family.

For MeMe, who took in a feral cat despite being a dog person her whole life and who taught her grandkids that dogs and cats can coexist.

For my current four-legged friends (Kali, Piko, Sammy, and Delilah), who have reminded me throughout this process to pause and take a break every now and then.

And for all the animals I grew up with but never had the chance to photograph as I would today Teddy, Boz, Norman, Bubba, Kitty, and Duncan.

From Sarah: The hours I spent on this book are dedicated with my deepest adoration and gratitude to all the dogs in my life especially Sophie, Kali, Piko, Sammy, and Delilah. It is to them that I co-wrote this 320-page love letter.

From both: A huge wet kiss and tail wag go to all the animal rescuers out there who devote their lives to making a difference, one animal at a time. You spend countless hours and sleepless nights being the voice for the voiceless, and you inspire us to keep going. This book really is for you. May it help you find many homes for many deserving dogs.

Authors Acknowledgments

We feel extremely lucky to have been able to write this together theres no way we couldve done it alone. Thank you to our Wiley team of cheerleaders and smarties, who let us do this as a duo and made this whole experience a great one: our acquisitions editor, Tracy Boggier, for finding and believing in us all the way through; our project editor, Vicki Adang, for moving the pieces around to maximize clarity, for allowing our creativity to run wild, and for laughing at our jokes; our copy editor, Todd Lothery, for refining our words and catching our errors; and our tech editor, Jenny Denton of Red Hydrant Pet Photography, for making sure our techniques and recommended settings were spot on.