Dash Kitten

Cat Photo Confidence For Everyone, Including You

  • Home
    • GET IN TOUCH
    • PRIVACY POLICY
  • About Me
    • Awards
    • Dash Kitten Commemoration
      • The Pinnectomy. Harvey’s Ear Surgery Report
  • Learn Cat Photo Skills
    • Photo Blog
    • #52Assignments Collected Posts Page
  • Learn Cat Movie Skills
  • D.K. Crew’s Quarters
    • New Zealand Spotlight
    • The DK Mailing List
    • Product Reviews & Gift Guides
    • Our Special Pet Blogger Interviews
HOME » 5 Composition Techniques That Will Improve Your Cat Photos

5 Composition Techniques That Will Improve Your Cat Photos

29/05/2019 by Marjorie Dawson 17 Comments

Welcome to our second post on cat photo composition techniques. I have some fun ways to add interest, and introduce ideas to your pictures.

The Pet Parade is the perfect place to explore other blogs and learn so join us and have fun.

Composition is a skill you will start to use consciously over time. You work with an idea or search for what a potential picture has to say to you. As a learner, I sometimes forget to fram a shot AGH! The lesson? Don’t be too hard on yourself if you forget.

Pet Parade Spring

Your message may be one of stillness and beauty, or drama and dynamism but framing it effectively can make a big difference.

Composition Technique – Isolate The Cat Subject

cat photo composition techniques Isolate the cat subject

This is one of my favourite images of Silver our tabby. He is wearing his Tabcat tracker which adds a touch of spot colour, and behind him is an out of focus but still craggy looking wall.

There is nothing else in the picture except Silver. He looks pensive, thoughtful even, and there is nothing else to distract us from his slightly off centre figure. I tried to remember the Rule of Thirds for this shot.

Shoot From Your Cat’s Viewpoint

San Fracisco Photograph Looking up
Looking up – the Cat’s Point of View

One of my favourite cat photo composition techniques. Looking up from the cat’s point of view.

This picture of a vintage cinema was taken in San Francisco a couple of years ago after the BlogPaws® Pet Blogging conference when we visited Savvy and her family. We visited Savvy’s local cat rescue Kitty Corner to donate our BlogPaws swag bag too.

I always think that we must look tall to cats, and I wonder how they see us. Imagine how tall this building looks to a cat. Are you really surprised when a cat jumps on to a lap or a table to look us in the eye?

cat photo composition techniques Looking upwards at a cat
Looking up at a cat (c) DashKitten.com

Talking of looking a cat in the eye. When Miranda is finished she will do that too but right now she is posed on a bannister at eye level which makes her much easier to photograph. Let’s just let her finish her toilette.

Design with Feline Patterns and Textures

Contrast image for Cat Photography
Tuxedo Cat on Terracotta Tiles (c) DashKitten.com

Fur and terracotta tiles are not only a contrast in texture but also in colour. The rusty coloured steps are warm from the sun so no cat is going to ignore the siren call of a warm surface.

Your texture could be a wooden catio walkway, a counter surface or a china bowl as your cat eats. What do you have nearby that would be a contrast of texture to your pet?

Spot in the sun Neko Ngeru Cat Adoption Cafe

Here is Spot from the cat cafe. His fur is a strong and soft contrast to the wooden kitty shelf he is lounging on. An artistic interpretation of contrasting textures and a cute cat who was later adopted.

The Cats Walk Left to Right Rule

cat photo composition techniques Cats walking left to Right

This is a picture of Dash from 2007. It is out of focus but you can see he was a slimline cutie then. This is a composition technique that is not immediately obvious, but Dash illustrates a point particular to Western viewers.

We assume people and pets will move from left to right across our screens. We read this way and unconsciously expect this to happen. You could use this technique to provoke a response if your photography requires it by creating a composition that points the other way.

In countries like Japan where people read from right to left in their own language, this doesn’t apply of course.

Colours and Contrasts with Your Cat

Making a quick visual impression is easy when you can find, or create a contrast in colour. Phoebe, in this photograph, is surrounded by bright green foliage I did not have to adjust because of her own dark brown coat.

Phoebe Portrait
Phoebe the Dark Cat Contrasts with Vibrant Green Foliage

Another way to use eye-catching colours with your photographs is a montage like this from our Probonix post for Humarian. If you have props in your photographs, you can reflect these colours in your image or Pinterest pin, like this example.

Probiotics for my Cat header

For this pin I used a template from Envato Elements. If you are not sure how to create a good pin check online for Pinterest templates, or look at your favourite pins for inspiration.

I recommend using a decent program if you can. Something like Affinity (Mac & PC) which has a one-off purchase price. Or you can try Photoshop Elements. I have just purchased Affinity and will report once I learn more about it.

Have you followed a composition trick with a successful outcome? Or have you accidentally usr one then worked out you did it later? Tell me in the comments!

Join Dash Kitten on Social Media
20
Visit Us
Follow Me
Vimeo
fb-share-icon
Share11
Pin31
Tweet
Share
Share

Filed Under: Camera Skills Tagged With: composition for cat pictures, Pet Parade 302

Meet Marjorie, Writer and Photographer

Portrait by a window with teddy bears Taken with a smartphone.Marjorie is a cat lover, photographer and smartphone moviemaker who loves sharing her knowledge with learners.

Marjorie is a Cat Writers’ Association Professional member, CWA Muse® Medallion and Certificate Winner, and winner of the CWA Kuykendall Image Award for her photography.

 

Comments

  1. Dorothy "FiveSibesMom" says

    05/06/2019 at 4:37 am

    Fantastic composition tips! I love Phoebe’s portrait – gorgeous! A dark cat set against that green background makes her eyes pop! My fave is getting down (here) at dog level! Pinning to share with others!

    Reply
  2. Beth says

    04/06/2019 at 4:28 am

    I appreciate great photography and I really enjoy reading these tips. Phoebe is such a beauty and I love that photo of her!

    Reply
  3. Sweet Purrfections says

    03/06/2019 at 2:45 pm

    Such beautiful photos! I love the photo of Silver. I’m slowly working on composition of photos with the girls, but haven’t been as successful as you.

    Reply
  4. Sadie says

    03/06/2019 at 2:22 pm

    Thanks for the tips. It’s a challenge doing the shelter cat photos – limited space and resources. I do try to go for ‘texture’, and select sheets or blankets with an interesting pattern for the background.

    Reply
  5. Emilia says

    02/06/2019 at 1:26 pm

    I can never think of framing a shot – I just click and hope lol. I’m going to really have to work on training my cats to do tricks and stuff so I can them to sit and pose.

    Reply
  6. Jana Rade says

    02/06/2019 at 12:54 pm

    Shooting from down below was something I came up with after Jasmine’s horror. She could barely walk so she’d just lay in the grass and I’d lay there with her to keep her company. As I was looking up at her, it dawned on me that it would make some great photos.

    We’ve been taking many photos from the ground view since.

    Reply
  7. Dachshund Station says

    02/06/2019 at 12:00 pm

    Very nice photography techniques listed here. I do enjoy the cat pics with the textures as their background the best. I also enjoyed the light green colored grass around the dark colored cat. Beautiful pictures, thanks for sharing.

    Reply
  8. Ruth Epstein says

    01/06/2019 at 5:41 pm

    Fantastic tips and I do agree with you the contrast in colors makes a big difference. I am learning that when taking pics of Madam Layla and see the difference in the photos. Thanks so much as always

    Reply
  9. Michelle & The Paw Pack says

    01/06/2019 at 2:15 pm

    Great tips! I don’t have cats myself, so I always enjoy seeing the cat pictures you share. I’ll have to try some of these techniques with my other pets.

    Reply
  10. Dalton/Benji/Angel-MrJackFreckles/Pipo & Angel-Minko says

    30/05/2019 at 3:04 pm

    I had PSE18, and after having had it for 6 months was beginning to get the hang of t, when my Mac got stolen…so now I am using GIMP on a LINUX machine, borrowed from my son the Geek; getting a bit more familiar with that program, but it is way harder to use than Elements.
    I hope to have Elements 19 on my new Mac when I get that from the insurance…

    You have great tips. I learned a few things about taking pictures from my father, but he did not know anything about taking pics of pets, MOL!

    Reply
  11. Catscue Catmom says

    30/05/2019 at 5:46 am

    I never approach cat photography with any sort of plan or composition in mind – I just snap, snap, snap and hope for the best. Although I did follow Glogirly’s advice on ‘getting down to the cat’s level’ on photos, and that helped the results a lot.

    I think I’ll try planning a little better and thinking more about composition – who knows, maybe someday, if I follow your advice my pics will be as great as yours!

    Reply
  12. Brian Frum says

    29/05/2019 at 11:11 pm

    Those were all such great photos and we love seeing that special Angel too.

    Reply
  13. ERin the cat says

    29/05/2019 at 6:38 pm

    Aww, lovely shots there and some great compositions, too. The AFFINITY program is awesome and I thoroughly recommend it—though there is lots and lots for the novice to learn so I am, for the time being, sticking to the editor suite on my MAC.
    Lots of purrs
    ERin

    Reply
  14. The Swiss Cats says

    29/05/2019 at 5:14 pm

    We didn’t know the left to right rule ! Great tips ! Purrs

    Reply
  15. mommakatandherbearcat says

    29/05/2019 at 3:43 pm

    Err … composition? #GreekToMe

    Reply
  16. meowmeowmans says

    29/05/2019 at 3:06 pm

    I loved seeing that photo of Dash, Marjorie. And how nicely it illustrates the left to right rule. And the photos of Phoebe and Silver are especially striking. Bravo!

    Reply
  17. Ellen Pilch says

    29/05/2019 at 11:16 am

    All your kitties are adorable. Nice to see a photo of Angel Dash. XO

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Join Our Mailing List!

Discover, Learn, Share, Teach.

Dash Kitten Contact Us Graphic for the Blog

Kuykendall Image Award Winner 2020

Cat Writers’ Association
Link to the About Me page introducing Marjorie, Author of the blog at Dash Kitten

CWA Muse® Medallion Winner

Graphic for an Award winner to display on their web site.

Associate Disclaimer

Dash Kitten is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking Amazon.com

RIP Friend Nerissa the Cat

A memorial tribute picture and link to our fellow adventurer

Please follow & like us :)

20
Visit Us
Follow Me
Vimeo
fb-share-icon

Humarian for Pets and People

Humarian Probiotics Promotional graphic for my favourite probiotics

Quote DASHKITTEN for 20% OFF your first order.

Triple Finalist – Nose to Nose Awards 2018

Nose to Nose Awards 2018

Blog Collaboration Award

Special Certificate 2015
Dash Kitten Newsletter Link and Logo including a cute picture of Miranda the cat
Dash Kitten Contact Us Graphic for the Blog

Dash Kitten Social Media

20
Visit Us
Follow Me
Vimeo
fb-share-icon
Dash Kitten Newsletter Logo

NEWS FROM DASH KITTEN

  • Telephoto Lens Zoo Fun at Wellington Zoo
  • Shooting Street Life Photos #52Assignments No. 8
  • Cat Photography Ideas Go Macro
  • New Cafe Kittens – Pooka the Tuxedo
  • The Great Outdoors #52Assignments No. 7
A link to my About Met page

Copyright Notice for Dash Kitten ©

All images and text used on this site, from its creation to date are copyrighted ©  to Marjorie Dawson, Whskr and Dash Kitten.com unless otherwise noted.  Content cannot be used without my specific written permission. Please let me know via the Get In Touch page if you are interested in using images or stories from DashKitten.com

Copyright © 2021 · Enterprise Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

40 SHARE