Lessons

Lesson Info

Shoot: Adult Cat Hammock

Working with adult tickets is very, very different from working with clones. Normally, I would go to the adult kits environment to photograph it, either go to the home or you often it shelters when you're photographing them, a lot of you due to shelter work. So you've got to deal with adult kits and in those environments today, it's different we, uh, because we're here in the studio, we've had to try find some kit, so we thought might settle industrial environment normally, if I do have to work with an animal in the studio, you team to have to allow hours because you don't know how long it's going to take for a kid to settle within a different environment, and it would need to be if you did do that, you need to work with the kit, which is used to being traveled, goes to different places. You can't just bring a cat which has lived in one house for its entire life, into a studio and expect to get a photograph. It's not gonna happen. Yeah, so we have a gorgeous, gorgeous thirteen year old...

what's, his breed a as american bobtail he's? Absolutely still. Dunning he's really but he's a very very big boy he's dying to get down on the ground at the moment so far you might let him wonder randall but just so you can start getting a little bit used to the environment we've made it pretty secure closing the doors and things to make sure he's not going to escape anywhere but the more time has got to it to get used to this environment the bitter really then we might actually get some shots we've also got a little cat called al qaeda who is a he's a slew point chinese hemingway polly doctor oh my goodness can I bring you in and I feel it come on and you can tell them that that's a mouthful yeah did you want me to bring him home? Yeah, well we'll get a minimum as the house is settling as you doing he's doing great. Yeah, it is very calm and now remind me your name again deal in cars bob dylan thank you so much for your gorgeous captain dillon is actually the person behind kitty harbor who we talked about at the beginning so yesterday so she has many gorgeous kits what you have up for adoption of things but these these two actually your kits at the moment one of them is kind of an iffy because he just came to kitty harbor kind of late and I'm he's got his neuter appointment next week. Okay, this is al qaeda. That's okay, which we're going to we're going to start without because he was younger. He is only five months. Forty five. Forty. Okay, so he's younger than I thought so. Four to five months old. So it is technically is a suit a kitten, but he is he is more than your baby baby kitten. So we'll just see how he goes as well. Any way you want to bring the kids and let them run around. What I just go through the through the keynote a little bit so don't kits out very, very fickle. They will do what they want you can't force them to do anything I have is just meeting before it's much better to work within your their own environment. You are more likely to get the results, but we are going to see what we can get today. Oh, you make it, isn't he gorgeous? So this is al qaeda, a beautiful little boy, gorgeous color, and then you sit down and have a little one. We're just keeping a really close eye on him and make sure it doesn't disappear behind anything, but just let him wander around that's good, then just exactly what I'm doing now, let the kit get interested, let it wander around, just just check things out. He just does not freaked out or anything it's just going to have a little sniff and wander around see what's happening and then its best before we started to make just try and read the kit and just make sure he seems like he's really to get started. You don't don't bring them in and immediately start working with them because you just going to freak them out and they're just going to get upset and just being really anxious and not wanna work. I've developed a technique which I called called hansel and gretel technique, even when I'm working on location with kits and their own environment, they don't offer often. This is trapper, isn't he absolutely magnificent. Great. These two kids know each other really well. So it's great to hear. I told them here for company as well. But you're going back to the hansel and gretel technique. This is great even on location with your kits. If they are food orientated, get little pieces of cheese and things like that and they can get you just put it in a line. Just like how the hands of hints on griddle story the the lollies and things lead the kids to the gingerbread house so against the handsome greedo name so you can pick up a kit and a dark it and put it on the spot it's just going to immediately jump off and go back to where it came from so if you want them to go somebody either use the fear the teaser to encourage him to go somewhere or use a little food trail which they might follow to actually get to the spot don't cats also have very, very short attention spans, so be really sort of heaven not idea of what you want to get and to make sure that you've got your camera settings right you're and exposed every everything's release and you know the focus pretty much so you could be right really capture that shot because you're not gonna have a lot of time to work with them. Yeah, and also my last more point here if props were involved, be realistic adult kits and not the easiest to put props with so often like what we're going to try here we're gonna try and see if we get al qaeda in a hammock, which is very similar to what I did with the gray burmese, which you've seen on seat when we're being during the keynotes and it's a really, really basic set up all of those is a chiffon fabric so I love using fabrics which you can actually see the kid through a little bit. But it's a very, very strong fabric, even with the kid putting its claws through is not going to actually broke this fabric. They're easily it's on dh it's not goingto not gonna pull there's no stretch in it. If you had a stretchy fabric, then you're going to have the kid going down, going down down too far and then it's just not gonna work. You're gonna disappear, the kid's gonna disappear in the and the favorite. You need to be able to put the little hands out over the inch so that you can actually see them. Um, what I've done here is I just gather the fabric together that one in and I've got twine in this case, and I just tie it round really, really tight and so that there is not going to come out. And then I tie the top twine around a very studious stand say this's hilarious. This was watching those, but that I tied the the twine around the c stand. I've got two sandbags here, so that when the cat goes in the stains and not going to happen and fall down on top of the catch, so it's very, really well weighted he's not he doesn't weigh much anyway al qaeda so he's a he's a great weight to be about doing this with you as I say or you know what I've done is I've got for the background is the same fabric so we've got the same color time yet so it's all your great there's another cute little you don't get it shut for you anyway so when I seduce we do is to see what these were guys I'm going to do a test a while you just if you just happy to play with al qaeda and trapper you connect trapper just wander around and just get used to the environment sophie seems pretty cruzi yeah like he's figured out where the door is oh yeah hey okay wants to go home and take a nap I think what you doing little guy you want to play you and play mode are you but see he's he's just a really young very prove you've got a great personality but well you don't run around a little bit while I do some test shots which is great for him to just get usedto the environment and I'm sorry I was just find that so hilarious when they do that you guys could be entertained by al qaeda while I do my job can I get it you just what I'm going to also do just tow just in case when we get out in the hammock if he decides to jump out it's always nice to have like me, even when I was photographing george bailey on the right or something at the bottom just so that it's not a really hard surface for him to jump down onto if he does help rachel wall here while you're doing that, could you just talk a little bit more about kitty harbor? And we talked about it yesterday, but for folks who weren't with us earlier profit animal rescue that were twenty, volunteers were all dedicated to the rehab, rescue and thoughtful placement of cats and kittens, and we've been I've been acting my whole life, doing rescue but really intense for last twenty years, and we have placed over eighteen thousand cats and kittens, okay, you got it and she's like I'm one of you guys tow kindness, yes, kitty harbor, seattle dot org's run facebook have her website it's, just really a fun group of people, and I I saved five dollars from every single adoption I did over a ten year period. I put it into an investment fund back in the nineties when things were going to invest in, and I raised enough money over one hundred sixty thousand for a down payment on this kitty harbor building, and then I subsidized it with a piece of property. And bought it outright for the cats and it's really been a fabulous thing it's located kitty harbor at three four two two harbor avenue southwest in west seattle the gateway to al qaida beach al qaeda and yeah it's just really been a lot of fun and quite a success and we don't do public surrender necessarily we do hardship rescue work like you know cats on utility poles left in dumpsters people that have passed on and they've left a you know cattle to an apartment things like that more like hardship but we do take kittens from people that just like a whoops forgot to span neuter which is really important to dio to help keep you know the over population of pets down is to get him fixed and keep him safe but yeah that's kind of in a nutshell that is an incredible incredible story that you save five dollars from every adoption to put together for this amazing you're a woman on a mission accomplished it thank you so much and I have the pleasure of being able to drive by kitty harbor on my way home how come you have to stop and visit wear open seasonal now used to be you know twenty four seven, twelve months a year and now we're seasonal from june through january to give ourselves a break in the wintertime and this june seventh will be back up full of kitty's toe looking for great homes awesome. Thank you thank you you too we'll just wait just beat the whole statement just watching out run around I know yeah, that way we mention that he's a politics yeah hemingway's really doctor that he's got extra little toes which is absolutely adorable. Yeah and a lot of little extra toes the only maintenance is that you need to trim them because they cannot you know, we're down the nails on the sides but it was made named after a man him anyway and he had like four to five hundred cats in his estate in which they had like ten servants taken care of them and he's locating california he has passed on and dedicated you know, a lot of funds to keep it going until thes kitties you know, go through nutrition and he still has a staff for him. Well, I was down to about one hundred or something now yeah, so what? We're gonna do it I'm not going to bring the fevers and just yet because working with the kit in a hammock situation you want to keep it try and keep it calm so we might just stop but he's he's pretty cruzi said what I'm gonna say say we'll see if he's in a good frame of mind he's looking he's looking for his like ways it god way go so we tried to put him into him yeah, we're just gonna see what you can get it if we just back off. So I'm yet again I'm I'm gonna try and shoot a natural light because it's just made what I love and then we've got so it's game we're on a slower you were on I s o four hundred at an eightieth at two point eight, so well, so we're just going to do is problem in here and we just keep keep hold of them just see whether he's, what he's gonna do? Hey, yeah, and I think he's quite worked up from the laser light at the moment, so it might be hey, buddy, hey, this is this destruction begin about them, but see how I've got the fabric on the ground if he does jump out can't define jumping down this sort of height it's not going to hurt him, but it just softens his landing if here's got something that listen, I think we might need to bring you out just get you to calm down a little bit more kind of feeling for him. Yeah, yeah, but you can't start, we can't actually love to be in hanging things is that it is not too bad, but he's he's still definitely focussing on where's that thing, so it doesn't it's just let him wander around a little bit letem I want to see come back out by I don't put the laser in here yeah, I think unfortunately he'll be a little bit too two minutes and they're think house and because I'm attractive money would do something like this on an older cat he might be even more chilled if he's really relaxed and he doesn't even know because it's just gonna be here so it's a lot of time trying to find the find the cat come on, this might work. Yeah, so what? What? I would if you'd just pass him to me what? I'm just going to show you what I would have I would normally get the kid. Thank you, roy. Much bigger and he was when I trapped on herstein island he was, uh a feral in the woods and I tamed him and, uh he's won a lot of ribbons for, um from especially perfect pals being the most gentle, gorgeous tame boy which is pretty amazing where he came here mr like somebody is good cause out with me a little bit anxious. Okay. There's the overtopping sorry, he's overtopping my microphone. Sorry, but if this is about trying to hold a microphone and kit this's definitely going to be fun hey, I'm just gonna let him settle for a little bit first, so I just still a little bit anxious you know I might be able to do things yeah, but what I'm just saying I could feel that he's still a little bit anxious he's got claws out and things so he's not in a relaxed state so it's just I'll just leave them anybody this is all a little bit strange always that good dough well, I can hear appearing in my ears which is a good thing but it's money a lot of people actually think when it can't is pure ing that it's always that they're happy but it's not because cats can actually pull when they're anxious as well. So and can I share with you that usually when caps pass on when you're diane they always per for comfort all really yeah yeah, it reminds them of when they're with their mother was with her mother you know that the parade and the kneading and and that's that's that is her comfort ok, yeah, a swell as affection yeah it's a good thing to know yeah he's he is relaxing and molting I got here going everywhere you're very shearing boy, you yes, I'm just gonna we're just going I'm just going to see what his reaction is toe going into someone, others many point hope don't make it good boy so I'm just gonna pet him in there to see if you'll settle people this is amazing that I can work with an adult kate like this and in this sort of environment because it's very very rear to be able to get a kit to actually be children after yeah usually takes a few hours a few days yeah so I'm just rubbing him on his neck and just keeping him calm and giving him plenty of love so the niceties have we got the light on because I'm just wondering if possibly wanting to work put the slave back on this because he is because he's such a big kit he's making its way so much and you need movement is going to make it move so if I'm going to try and do a natural light a slow shutter speed it is not gonna work so what I'm going to do now also has just popped the light so that we make sure that he's not going to get affected by that okay yeah but he didn't mind that so that's good boy so ideally in a hammock situation like the image which I've kept shit I've done plenty of kittens and other kids and things in here mix because but I in the same same scenario I've got longer to work with them so you choose the right time to actually work to put them in and then if they're in a sleepy and mode then they do justine to just to relax and just children it's that a wonderful white photographic. I can't it's a really, really effective way. What is your buddy he's back? Okay, if you just keep picking it, I'm pitting them. I'm just gonna see her. Yeah, but what? Ideally, before we can treat this, I really need him to just relax on there and to see, but at the moment, he's sort of trying to find a little escape route at the moment, which is quite normal with kit, so I did. What I want to do is get him to this body to sort of two in this way that way, but it will to see if he'll bring his little he might just lie down and just chill. His hearing is a little face on police. Um, I love the way with fabric, so if you can see through, you can see through is what, like, even you can say hi, maybe my baby at the moment is good as well. Feed up, boy, I'm just gonna bring you up hay is very, very gorgeous crazy little guy. No, so if you just keep petting him that's great. I'm just gonna move back to the camera. What you see there until we're really because that you do risk the fact that if you have a feather or something, they quite potentially might just leavitt did I get the slave put on this? I'll try I'll try with that thing on I'll try with mitchell at first to seal with him lying still just keep petting him for a second do it still like me to come down just move your hand back a little bit just I just got your back I'm just dropped there no right yeah he's an escape mode would just put you back into a position where so in that situation restraint escape I'm just going back and just going rolling back onto its side so that he is in a position where it's not as easy for him just to get out. You're a big boy, aziz yeah, so typical I'm just gonna move you around a little bit good boy well too much arm out boy I can feel the heat and he's really he's discussed such a thick coat that is that she really, really good boy that's it so if you could just hold him there for a minute when I'm seeing on camera on gwen I've got his attention if you could just pull your arms back a little bit okay we'll just wait for him to be ok he's there he's there okay sis he's starting to need a cz well, actually, which is a good, good to comfort thing, which is which is good belly rub does he which is very unusual for kit don't I don't recommend it don't just make sure you know that I think it's fine to have his tummy rub before you do it oh, look at him okay come is purring away he's gorgeous. So what would he say such a big cat? This is quite actually is quite awkward because he's got you see his friends back feel like pushing out and against the and when you just bring your bum around and all that but he lets it there we go if you just keep rubbing and I'm just gonna try and get his attention with them e wait I just watched that camera coming down yet he's watching al qaeda moment there is a body she had that so easily distracted with whatever was around you're gonna be so aware of your surroundings when you're working with kit this is I'm actually incredibly amazed that we're getting this what he's not he's ok he's not a hundred percent happy about this but it's a he still looks adorable in there but in a perfect world had I done this in his house he would have probably had the most magical expression on his face is well, he would have been really calm, I'm really relaxed he is an amazing care really, really amazing he's got incredible eyes no he's very written for me to be able to do this in natural light as well as it is fantastic that's gorgeous I love it I'm just gonna come it doesn't beautiful people just gonna he's almost looks like he's gonna go to sleep now if he wants to get out if you get to the stage now where he wants to get out I'm just gonna let him get out we've got it but if I can get myself to get up um a landscape the midget mrs well then I will if he's going to stay get enough always shutting his eyes is gonna go to sleep it looks pretty comfortable he does very well and al qaida's is cruising around ten you got a tail in the background? Yeah. Hey, so he's looking at me like that time with your mom come ploy oh oh he's just could so comfortable I know he is this is, like, really good with animals. I mean, this is amazing because it doesn't take him so long to get to that comfort level really all that's good to know everyone else has obviously got a really nice aura about them as well because I think if there's anyone in here which he didn't like, he wouldn't see it that is just gorgeous I think he's ready to take a captain as he is good boy well I might bring him out because I don't want to have him in there for too long where is gets under girl she's gonna be oh yea very quiet little cat's fur fur trapper he was amazing what's let's see if we can do the same thing with al qaeda which I would I actually would have thought that alcohol would have been an easy kid me too but trappers just amazing we've got this kent here floating everywhere here nurse so you can't do things like this with the kitten because he's more fun he doesn't cure is this going to take it on display thinks it's a great play but as you could see working with theodore kate you've got to be so much more calm more gentle but look he's just going for a nap right now he's quite happy here yeah, he is gorgeous on their background yeah, right if we don't al qaeda and the hand like you have a funny feeling I'm gonna need the flesh but yeah rachel we have a couple questions yeah if that works well were you settled? So you just mentioned that if there was one person in the room that who's like energy was off that she would have known uh so scott is wondering if you're having an off day would you cancel a shoot or what happens? I never had a way with animals you know differently no no I don't think either can't sort of shoot oh, no, yeah, thankfully, I don't get sick either. So it's just touch here, touch wood, it's just so fascinating that that energy is there between which is from the that's. All right, but I think yeah, I think it animals really do, since if somebody doesn't like them or if they have not and I don't feel comfortable or anything, it just does doesn't help, so but you guys wouldn't be here if you didn't love animals. So, um, it's in your right, they do know that don't know you do know good from bad in people and they pick up on that. Yeah, definitely. The size difference is unbelievable. He's so tiny and I'm just gonna I'm just gonna make you get him to calm, you know? Yeah, let's work with him a little bit if you just put the slave on because I think five freaking I might get teo is he's he's in airplane mode? Yeah, make sure did have a question in our studio audience. Yeah. Oh, yeah. Sorry. It was more of a statement that I think a lot of people would have been happy with multiple shots that you got right there, but get you wait until the cat is so relaxed, and it and I think that's probably why all of us here connect with your art so much like it just dawned on me you know, this is why people connect because you wait until he's actually mean that's cute but you were waiting until he was actually calm and relaxed and happy and that's what a lot of us would have just been like oh that's great that's really cute but that's, what makes your work like we all can I release I bought your book and I didn't even know it was you and you before and I was like, I'm so drawn to your work and now it's kind of clicking like you really wait until they're totally calm and relaxed them here as pet lovers we all know oh if that year was a little bit back, maybe they just weren't that happy but I just I have to say that I love that you that's what you're looking for is you keep taking these amazing shots and I'm like, why isn't that one good enough? But then now I understand we're waiting ondas also because I'm waiting for that connection right as well but there was a shot I'm not sure it's that last one that there was one shot with him is he down? But he just looked up and he gave me that connection through the camera and I really felt it and that's when I know I don't know if I probably actually had a reaction to the image I don't know if I see anything, but I look at the footage but I possibly possibly just myself reacted to that image because I knew that I had it yeah, it was funny like I used to shoot a lot on the full by five you doing a fantastic job way trying to get him out of the play mode yeah, attacking till I know, but even when I used to work on the full by five and I you can't it's not digital so you can't see the images as you go, so you just basically is part likely hope you've got the image but it's so funny the amount of times I came away from a shoot having taken only one image and I knew I had it I just knew because I had connected with the animal and when I push the trigger I'd caught that shot and I I walked away with one one photograph taken, but I knew there's probably about five images and the hundred once elevations, which were a one shot wonder what I call them a one shot wonder, but I knew I had it even though I didn't see because it wasn't a digital women, so I didn't see the image but I just knew that I had the shop and I was happy to walk away from that shoot not pushing the animal any further but I had a moment he's disappeared in the front of his door friends going you know how like when the mother picks up the kitties from the back of the neck where they have like six major glands they have their friendly glands illegal around a rub on everything and that's what you used to introduce cats to other cats and then they have their glands that where the mother picks him up in the kind of go limp and if you're ever having kind of a rough time trimming her nails or anything like that you can rub those glands in it let's out kind of like a relaxing has a relaxing effect that's what I'm trying to do to him now he's a little hyped up but I think it's starting to take but you always with kitty's be very careful about picking them up with their neck without supporting their bodies when they get over you know six weeks of age but now he's still he's still pretty pretty wine yeah but let's say let's have a look and no I'll do it with flesh and we'll see what um he's getting there it has seen the feathers now sorry I just totally ruined that I'll see if I can mesmerize them with these can I try to get out of the way just go just for thinking whoa hang on that's my fault I completely forgot to change the world that is kind of a cool looking picture though it's it's like white on white with yeah I can't remember what sittings were for the flesh I'm on four hundred or so there's a there's my father I'm completely wasn't even focusing on what I have in life sorry that was completely my fault was that little white lie can kind of get him a little bit yeah, kind of oh no, this was not a good idea yes, but we'd better to do it from a distance I'm just gonna don't test make sure that we've got we've got completely no kit in there but we have yeah that's right way oh, boy that's what? We'll just take a little more time here that's a classic example make sure you taste your equipment before you do a shot and make sure that you're really yeah, yeah. What did I do wrong? You know that shot was so perfect. Yeah, yeah, it might be a little bit here over but we'll say his arm was yeah, I'll see I'll see if I could get it again I'll just get this one again okay, you just hang in here I'm just gonna see if I can she can I get someone else to help me because I'm going to get the focus here I'm going to move the camp but just keep your hand on because he is goingto so what I'm trying to do is just get his attention and bring it back really quickly hey is definitely in play mode physical way and we thought he was going to be the easy one waited I can ask a question you are capturing the kitty diver don said many of us take pictures of shelter animals to post for adoption do you have any suggestions on poses that improve an animal's chance for adoption? Who acuteness doesn't you curing this? Yeah I know que nous that's where it's really had I suppose that's where the expression and trying to capture the character of an animal is comes and really to the top of the list for importance and capturing within the image um it's it is kind of something in it that it is difficult to do that but I think you're probably just capturing the expression try and get that loving pleading look from them as well is always a good a good start yeah that please take me home look always works for adoption but I think if anything just always tried please sorry just one way need to do here because he's tipped himself back into the him if we need to bring him forward with a little bit more fair brick at the front he's right at the back of the moment I mean, you know, we were talking about trapper how he connected with you that's that really helps with adoptions yeah is when they make that connection if you just open it up a little bit we'll pop you in, come on, al qaeda and he is trapped if anything traffic trackers probably street shit because trapper was so trivia then what? Al qaeda is that he's actually burying himself down here? But I tied it, but it probably won't make that much difference because this will just go to titan he won't be able to pull it down then, but what I want him to do is to set himself up and over but that's when he jumps out yeah, yeah that's right case we'll just if you put him up on over and then we'll just see if I can get him let me try that you are nice now she was gonna I'm gonna watch I'm keeping it's still too much that he's going to jump in it. What what you gonna do in this regard is trying to strength. Um, you see, I'm working it against the other is that she really good he's moving now some hoping the focus is all right can you just see if you can stop it swinging a little bit, please very hard to focus and you wanted to play with it just you might need to come around on the side. You might block the light just a little bit it's going to bring it back to camera. Perfect. Hopefully that's not yes, just jump on the side because you've just made it a little bit darker with the school. This bag let's. Bring it back down again. What's he watching? Just not quite getting the connection through here just yet. He still got that? He's got a real play looking he's like he just wants to. I'm just gonna see because he's sitting there, I was going to see if I can change his position for a second. I have a feeling he's just gonna jump out wanna go he's got arms like this, we might be a bit more relaxed. I just fought back words or just so what I'm doing when I put them in the mix and putting them down either on the back or this side, which means it keeps them in more of a a relaxed, relaxed state, but he isn't quite a just gonna tickle is tell me in to see if I get him to chill should be right to bring the camera and over top of he wanted to show you what I'm doing on the but he's gonna stop playing with the fabric what's that you're taking