I'm often asked what's the difference between a lifestyle shoot, a studio shoot, and a location shoot. I shoot all three and although I have no studio of my own, I photograph indoors or outdoors with the option of having one style or another. 

The first image on this post is classic lifestyle. Leona, the beautifully groomed part Chow, is lying down on her people's bed. She is looking at the camera in this instance but she doesn't have to be for it to be lifestyle. Actually, the animal doesn't have to be looking at the camera in any of the styles; the final way your dog or cat looks depends mostly on your taste because there's no doubt we'll get both looking at and looking away. Leona is comfortable in her home. It's her turf, her terrain. It's where she lives and how she lives. That's lifestyle. If the animal is interacting more with her surroundings, that's even a little more lifestyle. But at that point, it's just your preference. I love lifestyle images on beds and sofas. In some instances, I bring my own blankets (I have TONS of beautiful blankets) and sometimes pillows to make up the scene a little differently. Still, with lifestyle pet photography, you may still need to move the furniture. Lifestyle is best in natural light and it's great to bathe your dog or cat in soft, gorgeous window light and if that requires some furniture to be moved around, well, that just might have to happen.

A studio can be created virtually anywhere, from a back yard to a living room or a dedicated studio space. Key qualities of studio is the lighting and background. In most cases, you are using some type of strobe lighting, a lighting modifier like a softbox, and a backdrop, usually on stands. One of the nice things about the studio style is that you can choose a backdrop very similar in colors to your own color scheme without actually using your house as a backdrop. It complements it rather than replicates it. Just like blankets, I have a ton of backdrops to choose from along with some other props. 

I lug around chairs, ottomans, crates, chests, wooden buckets to capture images. Whatever it takes. There's no crying in pet photography, you just buck up and fill the car. In this studio shoot, it's in the owners' home but I brought the chest and backdrop the four tiny dogs are on and the teals and brass make a cohesive look with each other and the animals' coats. The owners also had a lovely vintage leather chest and I brought along another chair to match a different backdrop so that we could get an assortment of images. 

The final type of pet photography I shoot is on location. And on location in Los Angeles means a lot of choices. From parks to beaches to mountains, there is a wide variety of looks we can get outside. I even offer an Iconic L.A. session, which is taken at one of Los Angeles' great landmarks to put the pet in with the city. I have a big list of places; it's cool. But I digress. Outside, we can get pictures of your dog playing. Running, jumping, flying through the air. But remember, outside our No. 1 priority is your pet's safety. We would rather spend the extra time taking out the dog's leash in Photoshop than risk your pet being injured off-leash. Location isn't for every dog (and location is only appropriate for cats in their own back yard); some dogs become nervous in public places. That's why you have to consider not only what type of portrait you want hanging on your walls but what kind of temperament your dog has. 

So that's it, those are the three styles of pet photography I shoot. I am Diana Lundin and I am a Los Angeles pet photographer. Give me a call at 818.481.5214 and let's set up a session!