updated photo for critique

So a while ago I posted my photo for CC and the critique was that the background was too busy which was making the photo look unprofessional. So I got rid of the background in Photoshop. What do you think? I am a beginner so I am still figuring it all out so any advice is appreciated, thanks. Also some suggested that I should've waited for the cat to look directly at the camera, but I actually prefer the cat looking at the toy and engaging with the toy.

Again, you need to stage your images. Get the cat off the couch and place him/lure him into a place where you have at least 6 feet distance from the background. Then you can use large apertures to naturally blur the background.

Artificial backgrounds are not the solution; and they can introduce other, even greater, problems that will definitely sink an image that was managing to stay afloat. I once saw a photo of a building which had been taken under an overcast sky that subsequently had that very sky replaced with a sunny one with nice fluffy clouds; too bad that the photoshopper couldn't add the shadows such sunny sky woulda cast. The photo just looked unnatural.

In your case, the white background draws all the attention. Remember: light colours advance, dark colours recede.

Lastly, the picture still looks too busy, what with the couch's armrest and paraphernalia next to the cat. You need to mind your foreground as well as the background, without neglecting the middleground.

I'm not chiding you. But, really, trust me on this: you need to arrange what's gonna be in the frame before you shoot.

All god suggestions above.
Here is my take. See if you can shoot the cat on something less reflective and perhaps in natural light. Maybe on a window sill? I don't know what your situation is like, though. The reflective leather arm chair is not particularly flattering and the flash with small aperture will not produce this lovely isolation of the subject from the background. See if yo can really coax your kitty to a spot where the lighting is better and you have no need for the flash. Open your lens wide to get the cat nicely in focus and with the blurred background your kitty should look jsut right.
Here are some images of my gorgeous visitor (I wish he was mine) to show you the difference between natural and artificial light as well as the isolation of the subject from the background.

Photo from itsallart's gallery.
Image hosted by forum (730648)

Photo from itsallart's gallery.
Image hosted by forum (799239)

john crossley wrote in post #18792390
First of all you have missed a bit behind the cats right ear.
A pure white background is rather jarring to look at and it shows all the rough edges of where you have tried to cut it out. I would suggest that after you have opened the image in photoshop you duplicate the layer and then add Gaussian Blur to the Background Layer until it is really blurry. That way the new background will harmonise with the image a lot better.
Also I used the Pen Tool to cut out the arm rest. Using the pen tool gives you a much smoother and cleaner curve.

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Thank you, will try the pen tool.

Alveric wrote in post #18792501
Again, you need to stage your images. Get the cat off the couch and place him/lure him into a place where you have at least 6 feet distance from the background. Then you can use large apertures to naturally blur the background.

Artificial backgrounds are not the solution; and they can introduce other, even greater, problems that will definitely sink an image that was managing to stay afloat. I once saw a photo of a building which had been taken under an overcast sky that subsequently had that very sky replaced with a sunny one with nice fluffy clouds; too bad that the photoshopper couldn't add the shadows such sunny sky woulda cast. The photo just looked unnatural.

In your case, the white background draws all the attention. Remember: light colours advance, dark colours recede.

Lastly, the picture still looks too busy, what with the couch's armrest and paraphernalia next to the cat. You need to mind your foreground as well as the background, without neglecting the middleground.

I'm not chiding you. But, really, trust me on this: you need to arrange what's gonna be in the frame before you shoot.

Thank you for your advice. I don't have a studio so I don't really have the place where the subject can be 6 feet from the background. And when I go to the clients to photograph in their home, they may have limited space as well, but I do appreciate your advice.

itsallart wrote in post #18792511
All god suggestions above.
Here is my take. See if you can shoot the cat on something less reflective and perhaps in natural light. Maybe on a window sill? I don't know what your situation is like, though. The reflective leather arm chair is not particularly flattering and the flash with small aperture will not produce this lovely isolation of the subject from the background. See if yo can really coax your kitty to a spot where the lighting is better and you have no need for the flash. Open your lens wide to get the cat nicely in focus and with the blurred background your kitty should look jsut right.
Here are some images of my gorgeous visitor (I wish he was mine) to show you the difference between natural and artificial light as well as the isolation of the subject from the background.

Gallery photo (hosted):
posted by itsallart originally in forum: Pets

Gallery photo (hosted):
posted by itsallart originally in forum: Pets

Thank you for your advice, very nice pictures. What lens did you use? The lens I am currently using has max aperture f/3.5 so it's not enough to create a blurred background. I am thinking about purchasing another lens. Thanks again.

Mare333 wrote in post #18792743
Thank you for your advice. I don't have a studio so I don't really have the place where the subject can be 6 feet from the background. And when I go to the clients to photograph in their home, they may have limited space as well, but I do appreciate your advice.

I would follow the advice others have already given. Personally, I'd experiment and learn to shoot in my own house in different rooms and figure how to get the results I like with the different constraints of various rooms before going to a presumabely paying clients house. Also, learn how to work with the subject, just like people you need to build a rapport with animals (I'm a vet BTW - without rapport I wouldn't still have all of my fingers (and skin) intact).

Cats are tricky subjects - they know what you want them to do and proceed to do everything in their power to do the exact opposite!! lol.

Mare333 wrote in post #18792743
Thank you for your advice. I don't have a studio so I don't really have the place where the subject can be 6 feet from the background. And when I go to the clients to photograph in their home, they may have limited space as well, but I do appreciate your advice.

You're more than welcome. I used the Canon EF 70-200mm f2.8 L IS Mark ii USM. If you go back to my post you will see EXIF

But you can use other lenses, I love the EF 135mm f:2 L
The shot where the cat is lying on my patio was taken with the 135mm, a dreamy lens.
Actually, here is a shot in the grass taken with another lens f:4 and you can blur the background just fine; it's all a function of the distance to the subject, too.
Here is a DOF calulator, just plug your info in and you should be fine.https://www.photopills​.com/calculators/dof

Photo from itsallart's gallery.
Image hosted by forum (713857)

Peruse this thread for inspiration: https://photography-on-the.net …/showthread.php​?t=1201680

A faster lens will blur the background more, and that is key with these. Also get in a bit closer, you don't need the entire body of the cat in every shot. Play with the cat to get it to move around to different areas that can have more pleasing backgrounds.

You want to be able to produce shots that the owners cannot reproduce themselves (at all or easily) with their phones. Another goal should be to stage the shot (change your pespective to the animal, move the animal, etc) so that you have as little scene editing as possible. The results will be better if that is the case.

Forget trying to save that image, just crop it as tight as you can and move on. Going forward make sure the subject is the dominant thing in the frame. That's the difference between a portrait and a snapshot

FWIW, I have my 'studio' in my small apartment. I just had to move things out of the way to give myself the fathom I need betwixt the subject and the background. Backdrops and/or rolls of background paper help.

Late to the dance... but my two cents is get your camera down to eye level with the subject, whether it is a cat, or a child. Shooting down almost never looks as good as a shot taken eye level. The eyes should be the subject of the shot... as they say the eyes are the gateway to the soul. It creates a relationship with the subject.

The other thing is to either shoot tighter, or crop in tighter on shots like this. Assuming you captured this with your D3300, you have pixels to spare in this image, so you can crop in a lot tighter. You have 24 mpx to work with, and can go down to 1/4 the original and still have an image that is printable or pushable to the web. That would clean up the shot with a lot less work. You can desaturate the purple to remove that as a distraction as well. Crop in tight on the subject... aka... cat in this case.

Lower and tighter... you'll have a better image with those two to start. It will save you a lot of work later on.

Thank you for your advice, I really appreciate it and it makes total sense.