Photo of my German Shepherd.

I'm on the fence about this one. I like the framing and I like the focus. But something about it doesn't work with me. Maybe more of his ears need to be in frame? Tell me what you guys think.

IMAGE LINK: http://www.flickr.com/​photos/bdawson88/62700​11654/

The framing and crop don't work for me. With the top of his ears cut off and such small space under his muzzle he appears flattened and crammed into the space.

I think it's kind of interesting ... my first reaction was that he looked almost human - sort of like a wolfman! I think that is because of the flat appearance as mentioned by talloulou.

It would be nice to see his ears. To me the angle means he has a very short/no neck. It's an interesting perspective, but it does give him that bear look. His eyes look very soulful.

A very important part of a German Shepherd is their ears. You could argue that about any animal, but especially a German Shepherd, so not only should they show, but they should be upright and alert etc. This doesn't work at all for me for that reason. They also have a very long snout and depth of field should be such that it is a bit more in focus than it is here. Not a deal breaker, like the inclusion of the ears is to ME, but I'd like to see more of the snout in focus.

You did get sharply focussed eyes and some nice light and sparkle in the eyes though. That is often the thing that photographers miss, especially in dark haired, dark eyed dogs. It is the light in the eyes that will make or break a dog portrait, you did that well.

Thank you all for the comments! Much appreciated and helpful. He is a seasoned old man and has been through a lot in his life. I feel his stare is one of a kind so I guess I was trying to portray that as best I could. I'll get him back out for anther shoot and keep in mind what all of you have said.

Yeah, definitely think the ears need to show, it's cropped too tight. It's pretty sharp.