Recreation #2

Unknown photographer, American, 1900-1910.

Original (top picture)

The original image was created by an unknown American photographer in the time period of 1900-1910. The photographer uses composition to emphasize the dog and its relationship with the background.  Because of the similar color patterns on the dog and used in the background, the dog almost blends in with the background, especially on the right side. The photographer uses an off center composition, as well. The photographer uses a strong sense of lighting in this picture, as the whites are very bright. I think the concept depicted in their photograph is to capture the characteristics and personality of the subject or to place a dog in an unusual context. I say this because as I was trying to recreate this, I found that it is very hard to get a dog to cooperate and stay on a stool like that. The motivation for this piece may have been to capture a memory, to create a portrait, or to appreciate a four legged friend. I like this piece because it is interesting in the way that the subject is photographed.  It has the feel of a human portrait, but in this case it is a dog.  Rather then being candid, it has a very professional or purposeful quality.

Recreation (bottom picture)

For my recreation I wanted to capture what I considered to be a more modern interpretation of dog portraiture.  I wanted to include natural light from an outdoor setting instead of a studio setting. I really appreciate the original photograph, because I had a hard time getting my subject to cooperate and sit on a stool or chair similar to the one above. I wanted to try for the same feel of the original, which I think focuses a lot on posing and a controlled setting, so I wanted to try and capture a similar pose as the original photograph.  I also wanted to background to be similar, so I adjusted the exposure and brightness with the adjustment tool to achieve a similar background effect. I wanted to keep the same perspective because I believe that the straight on viewpoint is an important part of the original composition. However, I think my recreation ended up being a little more candid due to the differences in setting and the fact that my subject is a puppy!