Chip’s house has a large picture window, the kind they used to build in houses in the ’60s. (Why don’t people have picture windows today? I left really wanting to add one to our house!)

Whether you have a picture window or just traditional windows, you’ve got a great opportunity for indoor photos with your dog. Position your dog near the window, not so direct sunlight falls on him but just to light him with natural daylight. The window should be at your back or at your side, not directly in front of you (or the dog will become a silhouette.)

 If you use today’s 365 Project tip, please leave a comment below and attach your photo using the + link to share the fun!

Irie isn’t in love with the camera like Tiki is. Get out the camera, and Tiki is ready to strike a pose. Irie, on the other hand, would prefer not to look at that strange object pointed her way.

She looks the other way…

But even Irie cannot avoid the lure of the squeaker! I had a small squeaker in my pocket and used it to get Irie’s attention for a moment for the top photo. (I often use treats as well, although sometimes that gets a little too exciting!)

If you have a photo you’ve taken after using a squeaker, please share it in the comments section below by clicking the + link in the comments box below!

With the crazy busy day we’ve had around here working on Super Dog Sunday (so many cute photos!!), we wanted to make today a photo challenge day:

Take a photo of your dog and his Kong or other chew toy.

And, as always, if you have a photo that fits in today’s 365 project, please share it in the comments section below by clicking the + link!

Have you ever seen someone looking at something and just had to look? Photos can give you that same feeling.

This morning I shot these photos with my Blackberry on our walk. In the photo above, you’ll see that Tiki’s looking at something outside the frame of the photo. You can’t see what she’s looking at (I think it was Irie) but you get the sense that she’s looking across the frame, making your eye cross the frame and, in the process, you take in the landscape.

See the difference, though, when you shoot the exact same photo but you don’t give your dog some space for “looking”…

This photo makes you feel like you’re missing something! You don’t notice the landscape and you bump up against the edge of the frame. It’s jarring.

If your dog is looking into the photo, leave room in the frame for your dog’s gaze, as in the top photo. You’ll get a more restful photo that will make you appreciate not just your dog but the view he or she is enjoying.

Put the sun to your back.

The top photo was taken during Irie and Tiki’s morning romp. The sun is at my back.

As the dogs raced across the yard, I turned and suddenly I was facing into the sun and shot this photo:

Ugh, it’s like suddenly looking into the sun without your sunglasses…all glare!

If you have a photo that illustrates today’s tip, please share it in the comments below by clicking on the + field in the comments box!

Time for a new photo challenge: put yourself in the photo without using the self-portrait mode! Whether you hang out in the grass with your dog (like Irie and I did this afternoon) or you get a photo of a reflection of you and your dog, see if you can include part of yourself in the photo! Whether it’s your feet or a hand, see what you can include in your photo with your dog…and, when you get one, share the fun by clicking the + link in the comments field to share your photo!

She was six months old at the time…she’s come a long way from that very shy girl (with Demodectic mange) we brought home from the shelter…

Tonight Irie and Tiki have been celebrating Irie’s gotcha day with a round of bully sticks…and we’ve been celebrating by remembering just how much this girl has brought to our lives and taught us about the love a dog brings to your family!

Happy birthday, sweet Irie!

Depth of field makes a huge difference in your dog photos. Basically depth of field refers to how far into the photo objects are in focus. Whether you want a shallow depth of field or a deep depth of field really depends on just what the photo’s all about; you might want a shallow depth of field for a portrait of your dog but a greater depth of field showing all the fun he’s having with other dogs at the dog park. It’s your call.

You can manipulate your depth of field by changing your camera’s settings and by zooming; we’ll go into all that later in the year. But there’s one easy way you can change the depth of field with any camera: change your position.

By moving in close, you’ll create a shallower depth of field, as with this photo of Tiki that I took this afternoon on the front porch. You’ll see that Tiki’s fur beyond her ears falls into a soft focus and the chair behind her (which is Tiki’s other favorite perch on the porch) is really in soft focus as is the siding on the house. If all that were in sharp focus, the result would be distracting.

This afternoon, I also shot this photo on the front porch, just minutes after the photo of Tiki. You’ll see that I moved further back from the dog cot. Nothing else has changed…not the light, the camera, the lens, or any kind of setting.

Suddenly the depth of field has increased. Not only is the front of the dog cot in focus but the back of the cot is also in focus and the chair, although it’s still out of focus, is far sharper than it was in Tiki’s photo. It’s all too distracting!

If you’ve got a good example of depth of field in your dog’s photo, we’d love for you to share it in the comments field below! Just use the + link in the comments and share the fun!

While I didn’t have my camera, I did have my cell phone! (And, as they say, the best camera is the one you have with you!)

This afternoon’s impromtu photo session reminded me of an important tip: watch out for your own shadow…which made a guest appearance in the photo below…

The long shadows at sunset can cause your own shadow to sneak up on you!

If you have a photo that uses today’s 365 tip, please leave a comment below and share your photo with the + link!

When I shoot with either my point-and-shoot or my DSLR, I always remember to check the lens and make sure there are no smudges on the lens or dust to interfere with the photo.

But when I take photos with my cell phone camera, I forget to check the lens! It might be super tiny, but the camera lens on your cell phone gets just as dirty as the bigger camera lenses, if not more so. I know mine all too often has grease or makeup smeared on it, like when I shot this blurry photo of Irie on the couch with her favorite pillow, just this morning:

Take just a moment and check that lens!