Anyone who has a camera and a dog, likely has a small collection of dog photographs. Dogs are our companions – sharing the good times and the bad – and it should come as no surprise that they are often the subject of our photographs.


Dogs have a habit of situating themselves so we have no choice but to take their picture. Like when they line up patiently waiting for a picnic lunch to be served.

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Sometimes dogs simply put themselves in pictures when we least expect it. I was photographing a couple relaxing on the warm granite when I was photo-bombed by a speeding canine. When dealing with a high energy speedster like Simpkin, fast shutter speeds are required to freeze the action. Obviously  1/160th of a second was not fast enough.

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What better companion when outdoors than a dog. The sheer joy they exhibit when running around in the woods is a lesson to us all to enjoy the simple things in life. I think 1/800th of a second shutter speed did a better job of freezing the action.

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Dog tired. It’s hard to anticipate how an animal will move. Just when they are perfectly positioned, and we are about to press the shutter, they move. This is why shooting a sleeping dog is so tempting.

Photographers and their dogs welcome at the Superior Woods and Waters Photography Workshop early June.

James Smedley Outdoors Phtography Workshop 2018