Any tips?

[Noni]

No, I've not gotten my gear yet, but I will...

I was wondering; does anyone have any tips on photographing cats? I have five, all rescue, and they are all characters (mostly because of the rescue issues...). I'd love to get some good shots of them, as I've been relatively unsuccessful in the past.

Does anyone have any lighting, aperture/shutter clues? Indoors, ceilings about 8 feet, moderate overhead lighting...or the occasional bright windowsill. Mostly I can creep up on them while they're not running pell mell around the house, so that's not an issue...but I was wondering if anyone had any help they'd be willing to share.

Thanks in advance!

best-
Noni.

[Rob612]

I really have no good suggestion, but in my experience home cats are one of the hardest shots I've ever tried to take (as of today, only with crap results, our cat, just to make things more complex, is completely black :()

[Noni]

I really have no good suggestion, but in my experience home cats are one of the hardest shots I've ever tried to take (as of today, only with crap results, our cat, just to make things more complex, is completely black :()

"Queen Charlotte" is a black, long hair, regal fuzzbutt...the only good shot I've ever gotten of her was sitting in the kitchen windowsill, no flash, backlit. She is a gorgeous cat, but darned hard to get a good shot of.

I'm also a tad worried about Simon; incredibly gorgeous, but with the bright blue eyes that come with being a snowshoe Siamese. I can see "red-eye" in certain lights without the camera. LOL!

Well, if anyone has any ideas, I'm listening...

Thanks!

Best-
Noni

[jfrancho]

Dose them up with some good, homegrown catnip and wait about an hour. They'll be to pooped to care about the black flashy thing you keep putting on your face (camera). Avoid the flash, or at least bounce it, as the fur has an irridescent quality to it, gives it a weird shiny look that isn't really there, at least on my cat. Here is pic of my Ceacer, recovering from a visit to the "self serve kitty crack bar":
http://plan-b.smugmug.com/photos/15935266-M.jpg

[robertwgross]

Cats are tough.

Try some side light to get the hair contrast to show.

Get a string with a small cat toy on the end, and have somebody dangle that high so that the cat is looking up at it. Then have somebody squeeze a squeaky toy so that the startled cat suddenly looks into the camera. Snap.

---Bob Gross---

[CappuccinoDavid]

Hey Rob612, how is the BG-E3 Grip I was thinking of getting one? How long is the batter life on it?

[Noni]

Catnip works for 3 of the five...the other two don't care. LOL! Penguin is a tri-color feral, and I can't get too close to her or she takes it as an attack, and defends herself (which can leave me rather bloody), so she'll get the 75-300 lens...Simon is tricolor (black, white, and fawn/buff), with blue eyes, so bouncing is the best bet with him...Esse doesn't care what's on my face as long as she gets her lovin, so she should be easy, but she's not. Pie's shy, and a bold calico (meaning all her colors are sharp, and defined), you already know about Charlotte.

Jfrancho, Ceacer is a gorgeous cat. What lens did you use for his close-up?

Great ideas, thanks, everyone. The nip and the toys seem to be a good start. I know there's going to be a ton of experimentation with them, to see what works best...but they're my family, so while everyone is shooting their kids, I will be shooting my "kids" too!

Best-
Noni

[jfrancho]

Thanks!
Data:
Kit lens at 53mm
Manual Mode
No flash
f/5.6
4/10 sec.
ISO 100
Backlit by a southern window in mid morning, rested the camera on some toy and use the wireless to fire. It took about four shots before he didn't care about the shutter noise. I wound up using ps/cs to fix a weird glare in the corner of his eye. He isn't so gorgeous lately since my 6 year old son decided to trim his whiskers. I can't believe the cat didn't rip his face off! Ceacer is very socially demanding and rough siamese, but he does love his "pet boy."