Frequently
Asked Questions
How do I find my proofs on your website?
How do I order?
How
do I hire you to shoot candids of my dog at an upcoming show?
How does the digital retouching process work?
How does blurring the background work?
Can you retouch a problem spot on my dog?
How does the “recomposing” process work?
Can I order several recomposed photos to see how
they turn out?
Can you
retouch or recompose a dog from a photo taken by another
photographer?
Can
I buy a DogAds photo as a digital file instead of a print?
How do I find
my proofs on your website?
We don’t post proofs from every show for every owner to sort through on
our main website. Instead, we make individual webpages with proofs for
every owner. After every show we sort all our
images and
identify them by a dog’s registered name and owner’s name.
Then
we separate each owner’s dog’s pictures out and post them on a private
webpage for the owner. We’ll send the owner a proof notice by
email (if we have the email address) or by snail mail, using the
address in the catalog. If you don’t get a proof notice from
us
within a few weeks after a show, we didn’t get any shots of your dog at
that show.
The webpage with your dog’s
proofs will stay
up indefinitely. If we see your dog again at another show, an
additional link for those new images will be added to the webpage we’ve
already done for you, so that you’ll be able to review and order the
earlier images as well as consider the new ones.
How do I
order?
There is a link to a downloadable order form on the webpage on which
your proofs were posted. Some people choose to print it out and mail it
in with a check. If that doesn’t work for you, you
can
order by email or by regular mail without an order form. Just tell me
the ID number of the photo(s) you'd like to order; how many of each,
and what size prints. Pricewise, 8x10s are $24 each, but $22
each
if you buy more than one copy of a print. 5x7s are $18 each, but $16 if
you buy multiple copies rather than a single print. There is no
additional charge for cropping. Add $3 for postage/handling.
You can also pay with a credit card. We accept Master Card,
Visa,
American Express, and Discover. Some people simply email me
their
credit card number and expiration date. Others are more
cautious
about sending that information via email, so they prefer to call or fax
in the numbers. Or you can also use Pay Pal,
sending the
payment to my account which is listed as
chris@dogads.com Or,
if you prefer, you
can send a check.
If
you’d like to order a
retouched or recomposed photo, there is usually some conversation
involved to let us know exactly what kind of work you’d like
done. Please feel free to email or call to discuss the
options. We always email proofs of any custom digital work,
and
you don’t have to pay us until you approve the proof.
How do I hire
you to shoot candids of my dog at an upcoming show?
We post our year's show schedule on our main website at
www.dogads.com ---scroll to the bottom of the homepage and
hit
the Our Schedule button. If you see that your dog will be
entered
at a show where we're shooting, please email or call me in advance, and
I'll be happy to put you on my shooting list. As it gets
closer
to the show date, I’ll make out a shooting schedule in which I fit
requests for photos with ring times and locations.
Unlike
some other photographers, I don’t charge a fee in advance for this. I
(or my assistant) will make every effort to get to your dog’s ring and
get some good candids for you. However, since there can be ring
conflicts or un-photo-friendly judging procedures or conditions, I
don’t feel it’s right for me to take deposits in advance. However, we
will try to do a good job on photos for you, and when we’ve
successfully done so, you can pay us with your photo purchase.
We’ll also do posed portrait sessions on show grounds (if the show
committee has no policy against this).These sessions must be
pre-arranged, and the owner is expected to let the handler know in
advance that a session is planned at our mutual convenience.
Sessions usually last 15 to 30 minutes. Shooting fee for such
sessions is $50, payable at the time of the shoot.
How does the
digital retouching process work?
We use PhotoShop to digitally remove objects --- leashes, collars,
parts of a handler’s body, other dogs, tent ropes or poles, etc – by
using the nearby existing background in the photo to “clone over,” that
is, to cover up the things we don’t want to show. For
instance,
to remove a handler’s foot from a close up of the dog, we’d typically
clone over the foot using grass from the photo –and the result would be
a dog that’s standing alone on the grass. We email you a proof of the
retouched photo for your approval before making the print, and before
you need pay. Pricing on a retouched photo is $60 for the
computer work, which includes one retouched photo.
We
carefully say that this process works well only “when the background
lends itself to reconstruction.” That means there has to be enough
generalized background to use to cover up the offending elements. We
can often use trees or grass behind a ring to remove a distracting
spectator who is standing right behind the dog. Or when the
dog
and handler are standing in front of a tent, we can often darken the
area under the tent to eliminate the people and clutter in the
background.
BUT when
a background is mainly
spectators or clutter, and there is very little else in the photo to
use to cover them up, we have to say that background does not lend
itself to reconstruction. In that case we suggest replacing
the
entire background with our “recomposing” process (see that section), or
using a different approach to retouching that deemphasizes the
background by severely blurring it.
How does
blurring the background work?
We can retouch the existing ringside background by severely blurring it
so that the spectators and ring clutter are only vague shapes. We do
see this type of retouching used more and more in ads. The
advantage to this approach is that your dog will strongly stand out
from the background. The disadvantage is that anyone who understands
photography knows that kind of blur is unrealistic, since a camera's
depth of field settings do not produce this kind of result.
However, most people will not be thinking of photos in technical terms,
so this is not often noticed. If the technical quibbles
involved
in this technique don't bother you and you'd like us to use blurring
background retouching on your photo, the cost is $60 for the retouching
work, which includes one 8x10 retouched photo. Additional retouched
8x10s would be $25 each (not $60).
Can you
retouch a problem spot on my dog?
With digital retouching, we could alter a dog any way we want. We could
literally take the head off one dog and put it on another, and you
wouldn't know it. So, from the start of our business in 1995,
we
set some guidelines on what we will and won't do. We willingly retouch
backgrounds. We publish the statement that we will "not change the
physical appearance of your dog." To explain what we mean by that: we
WILL NOT change body parts such as ears, tails, toplines, etc. We will
fill in small tufts of windblown or squished hair that could be fixed
with a comb, but we won't fill in hair the dog hasn't grown yet. Nor
will we move or remove hair to correct the trim on a dog — that's the
handler's job. We routinely remove lines caused by collars when we
remove collars — those lines aren't part of the dog — and we also
remove crinkles caused by collar pulls --again, those lines aren't
normally a part of the dog. We will not take a dog, judges, signs, or
people from one win photo and insert them into another win photo.
By keeping to the above standards, DogAds has built a good reputation
and is known as a business that does NOT "doctor" photos.
Many
DogAds photos that we sell are completely unretouched. Many have
leashes, collars, handlers etc taken out. Some have new backgrounds
altogether. Our feeling is that as long as we don't violate the
integrity of the dog, it’s nobody's business whether or not the photo
has been digitally manipulated. Since we feel a retouched photo has
just as much validity and integrity as an unretouched photo, we resist
distinguishing between retouched vs. unretouched by writing
“unretouched” on any of our photos. This policy is the same for the
photo that will be used in advertising and for the photo that's simply
intended for the owner's personal collection.
How does the
“recomposing” process work?
“Recomposing” involves replacing the background of a dog photo with an
entirely new scene. Typically, this involves taking a dog from the show
ring where he was originally pictured, and then placing him in a
natural, scenic background.
I have hundreds
of backgrounds, too many for me to post on-line to have people look at
in advance, especially since I'm constantly adding to the collection.
And what is harder to explain to some people, is that even if a
background looks pretty and they'd like us to fit their dog into it, we
also have to be sure that the background photo has the proper
perspective, lighting, and gives enough contrast to set off the dog
nicely. Sometimes its hard to tell these things until we try it, so I
avoid headaches by not giving clients the chance to pick out
backgrounds that won't work.
So I usually
talk with you (even via email) about what kind of background you
prefer. How the photo will be used often points to some background
choices. If the photo will be used mainly for black/white
advertising, we suggest a very simple background -- uncluttered trees
and grass of a lawn or field, or perhaps a water scene. If
the
photo will be used for a color ad or for a portrait to frame for a
wall, a fairly detailed and colorful composition would be
eye-catching. We could try a colorful background
with
flowers or autumn leaves. Or you can request background
settings
that are typical of your breed’s purpose, for instance a field scene
for a sporting dog. Also, we’d like to know if you prefer a
vertical (portrait) or horizontal (landscape) crop.
When you give me some suggestions or preferences, we’ll pick a couple
of appropriate backgrounds to combine with your photo to give you a
choice of recomposed proofs, which will be emailed to you.
You
can then pick one of the choices, tell us what details you feel might
need more attention, and we’ll work with you until you approve the
proof. Once we have your approval, the work process is nearly done. We
will then make the print promptly and mail it without delay.
You don't have to pay us until you approve the proofs. Cost is $100 for
the computer work, which includes one 8x10. Additional prints
of
the recomposed photo are $30 each, not $100.
Timing on how fast this process goes depends largely on how many orders
we have to work on before yours and how much time we may be spending
out of the office for dog show travels. Each recomposed photo
represents several hours of detailed and skilled work on our part, so
we need time for custom work each one demands for the best result.
Can I order
several recomposed photos to see how they turn out?
Every time we do a recomposed photo, it takes several hours of fairly
complicated and painstaking work per photo. We select a
couple of
background choices; use PhotoShop to remove the dog from the original
photo; and then blend the dog seamlessly into the new background. We do
the work "on spec," meaning that we don't charge in advance for the
time and effort we put into it, but we expect you will like the result
and buy the photo. Even though we say there's no obligation to buy if
you aren't pleased, we stay in business knowing that the vast majority
of the photos we do this way will be purchased.
At times owners will pick several of our photos of their dog and ask to
see them with new backgrounds. This is a lot of intricate work for us
to do “on spec.” If we have an understanding that the owner
intends to buy one recomposed photo from each original shot, then we
will go ahead and produce recomposed proofs for each photo.
But if the owner is thinking of buying the just the best one from the
several ordered, then we ask that the one favored photo be selected in
advance. From the owner’s point of view, this may limit the
choices; but from our point of view, each photo is custom work, and
this isn't a process that's automated for showing off a large selection
that allows for casual "shopping."
Can you
retouch or recompose a dog from a photo taken by another photographer?
It depends.
If you want us to work with a “win” photo or a photo taken by a
professional photographer, we’ll need a written Copyright Release from
the photographer. We ask the dog’s owner to request this Copyright
Release from the original photographer since the owner has already
purchased the photo and has a prior business relationship with the
photographer. Generally, most photographers will give a
Copyright
Release, especially when they are assured that the dog will not be
retouched. We will not take a dog, judges, signs,
or people
from one win photo and insert them into another win photo since we feel
this is unfair to all the photographers involved.
If you would like us to work with a photo that you, a family member or
close friend has taken, we don’t require a written Copyright Release,
but we do like a verbal assurance that there is no problem working on
the photo.
The next
consideration is the
quality of the original photo. So if you send us a photo to
work
from, we’ll need an 8x10 or a 5x7 enlargement. We cannot make
a
new retouched or recomposed photo from a snapshot (4”x6” photo) since
we cannot take a tiny image of a dog and enlarge it fill an 8x10 size
photo. Over-enlarging an image results in loss of resolution, meaning
the image becomes soft and blurry.
We
also need a starting-point photo that has lots of good detail to work
with. It should be sharp enough so we can see individual hairs on the
dog. We can’t make a good photo from a blotchy ink jet print
or a
photo where shadows, a too-strong flash, or bad contrast have made the
detail indistinct.
The size of the dog in
the original image is also a factor. We cannot take a
small-breed
dog that’s perhaps 1/10th of the area of the original photo and enlarge
it so that it fills an 8x10 photo. So if you’d like us to
work
with a photo of your toy dog or small terrier, we’ll need a close-up of
the dog to work from. We might be able to zoom in and enlarge
a
dog’s image by 50% - 100%, but that still might not be enough to look
right in a new “recomposed” scene.
If you’re
sending us a digital file to work from, we’ll need a fairly
high-resolution image to use for a good enlargement. We work
from
300 dpi files, with preferred dimensions of 2400 x 3000 pixels for an
8x10, with dimensions of 1600 x 2000 being the minimum
acceptable. For a 5x7, we prefer dimensions of 1500 x 2100,
with
a minimum acceptable dimensions of 1000 x 1400 pixels.
If you aren’t sure if your photo or digital file will be something we
can work from, we’re happy to have a look at it. If we
decline to
work with it because it isn’t good enough, please don’t be
offended. We just don’t want to spend time and effort working
on
something which can’t result in a product we’re proud of.
Can I buy a
DogAds photo as a digital file instead of a print?
Yes, our images are available either as high-resolution .jpgs or
low-resolution .jpgs, and its important for you to understand the
difference.
The high-resolution images
are 300 dpi. (dots
per inch) .jpegs, sized full frame or cropped to 8x10 shape, as you
prefer. High-resolution files are large files required for
reproduction in print media, that is, publications such as magazines,
books, or catalogs, or when printed as enlargements.
When an owner buys a high-resolution .jpg of a DogAds photo, it’s
priced at $50. That file is basically a “digital negative,”
and
the owner may store it on the home computer and use it repeatedly for
ads or prints. Our copyright permission to reproduce the photo is
implied with this purchase. We can email you this file if you
have a high-speed internet connection, or we can put it on a CD-rom to
mail to you.
When I
send the same
high-resolution .jpg to a graphic artist employed by the owner to do ad
design, I price the digital file as I would price an 8x10 print –that
is, $24. It’s understood that the graphic artist will save the image
and may use it repeatedly in the owner’s ads. The graphic
artist
does NOT have our permission to make prints from this file for the
owner’s personal use. If you (the owner) would like additional prints
of the photo, please order them from us.
We
can also send a high-resolution image directly to a publication for
you. Such high-resolution files are priced at $24 for a
one-time
use by the publication. Generally, we can send the file out
electronically the same day that you order (if we aren’t traveling),
and we do not charge extra for this “rush” service.
Our low-resolution files are about 80 dpi, or 600x480 pixels, which is
a good size for website use or emailing to friends. These low-res.
files are NOT sized for reproduction in magazines or as prints. We
charge $10 per image if you just want to buy a low-resolution image for
your website use.
We’ll send
you a free
low-resolution .jpg, on your request, of any picture that you buy as an
8x10 or 5x7 enlargement.
Email: chris@dogads.com
