{"id":337582,"date":"2025-12-09T00:35:10","date_gmt":"2025-12-09T00:35:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/?post_type=story&p=337582"},"modified":"2025-12-09T00:35:26","modified_gmt":"2025-12-09T00:35:26","slug":"new-tricks-pet-photography-with-elke-vogelsang","status":"publish","type":"story","link":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/no-no\/stories\/new-tricks-pet-photography-with-elke-vogelsang\/","title":{"rendered":"New Tricks: Pet Photography with Elke Vogelsang"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Elke Vogelsang explains how experimentation and perseverance are key to the success of her pet photography<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Elke Vogelsang is a commercial and editorial photographer based in Germany who specialises in pet portraiture. Known for her characterful images of dogs and cats, she works with a large database of animal models and has a vast catalogue of photos available for licensing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her work has appeared on US and German television as well as in books, magazines and newspapers globally. Elke has also exhibited her photos in a number of countries and is a regular speaker at photography events.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo 2025 \u00a9 Elke Vogelsang | FUJIFILM X-T30 III and FUJINON XF50mmF2 R WR, 1\/800 sec at F4, ISO 2000<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Photography as an escape<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ve specialised in pet photography for a while now and worked as a professional photographer for 14 years,\u201d begins Elke. \u201cBefore that, I worked as a translator. That was an uncreative job since it was technical translations, but I never dared try a creative job because I thought I needed something more secure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPhotography, in the beginning, was my hobby,\u201d she explains. \u201cBut due to some very stressful times, I turned to it more and more as a creative outlet.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Christmas Day of 2009, Elke\u2019s husband suffered a severe brain haemorrhage. In the following months, Elke distracted herself from the pressure of caring for him \u2013 and the uncertainty of his recovery \u2013 through photography. She took on a picture-a-day project to focus her mind and produce a photo diary for her husband, who was experiencing short-term memory loss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo 2024 \u00a9 Elke Vogelsang | FUJIFILM X-H1 and FUJINON XF90mmF2 R LM WR, 1\/640 sec at F2, ISO 500<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

After three months, Elke\u2019s husband began remembering things again. In that time, her photography went from strength to strength. Devouring every book on photographic technique she could find, Elke continued the daily photo project, still using it as a welcome distraction from the stresses of everyday life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Photographing whatever was at hand, the couple\u2019s dogs often became the subjects. These photos caught the attention of friends, who soon asked her to make portraits of their pets \u2013 and it didn\u2019t take long for interest in Elke\u2019s pet photography to snowball.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo 2025 \u00a9 Elke Vogelsang | FUJIFILM X-T30 III and FUJINON XF50mmF2 R WR, 1\/500 sec at F2.5, ISO 500<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Entering the studio<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI used to think studio images of pets were dull,\u201d recalls Elke. \u201cI thought dogs would get bored in the studio, and I preferred being outdoors in nature anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In spite of this, Elke\u2019s commitment to her daily photo project soon found her with limited options for outdoor photography. \u201cIn the winter when it was grey and rainy outside, I thought, \u2018OK, let\u2019s try studio photography.\u2019 I tried to come up with something I found interesting, and that was these funny faces. That\u2019s what would go viral \u2013 and suddenly I was known as a studio photographer.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Elke\u2019s home studio is designed specifically to accommodate her subjects. \u201cI have a simple strobe light on a power setting that doesn\u2019t make too loud a noise. The dogs and cats feeling comfortable in front of my camera is more important to me than any fancy technique the strobe could do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo 2022 \u00a9 Elke Vogelsang | FUJIFILM X-T4 and FUJINON XF16-55mmF2.8 R LM WR, 1\/1600 sec at F9, ISO 200<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy workhorse is the\u00a0FUJIFILM X-H2S<\/a>. I use that most of the time in the studio. I also have a\u00a0FUJIFILM X-E5<\/a> for more personal photography outside the studio, and I enjoy that tremendously.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy studio lens is the\u00a0FUJINON XF16-55mmF2.8 R LM WR<\/a>\u00a095% of the time. At 16mm I can do funny close-ups and wide-angle portraits, while 55mm gives more elegant images, so I only need that one lens for the studio.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOutdoors, it\u2019s different. I love prime lenses outdoors. I like using the\u00a0FUJINON XF23mmF2.8 R WR<\/a>\u00a0with the X-E5. But my absolute favourite lens for outdoor portraits \u2013 of both elegant images and dogs in action \u2013\u00a0is the\u00a0FUJINON XF90mmF2 R LM WR<\/a>. When I want a slightly smaller lens \u2013 on holidays, for example\u00a0\u2013 I use the\u00a0FUJINON XF56mmF1.2 R WR<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo 2025 \u00a9 Elke Vogelsang | FUJIFILM X-T30 III and FUJINON XF90mmF2 R LM WR, 1\/1600 sec at F2, ISO 500<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Working with animals<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI can tell when somebody who doesn\u2019t really like dogs makes pictures of dogs,\u201d suggests Elke. \u201cYou should like dogs and cats if you want to photograph them, I\u2019m quite sure of that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For people who want to make better images of their own animals, Elke recommends starting with the fundamentals of photography. \u201cAt a basic level, you should know how to handle your camera \u2013 don\u2019t bore your pet dialling in settings all the time,\u201d she notes. \u201cBut knowing how to handle the pet is also super important.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEvery once in a while I get a dog that\u2019s more difficult to work with, but with every dog or cat I meet, I learn a new trick to help them enjoy the session.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo 2021 \u00a9 Elke Vogelsang | FUJIFILM X-T3 and FUJINON XF16-55mmF2.8 R LM WR, 1\/1250 sec at F10, ISO 500<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf you want to specialise in pet portraiture, make the effort to meet lots of individual dogs and cats. Ask your friends, ask a dog school. That\u2019s how I started: I took my camera to a dog school and photographed every one of my friends\u2019 dogs, to learn how to motivate them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMost dogs enjoy treats, but I always start with something low priority because dogs get overexcited. The same goes for toys \u2013 sometimes the dog gets this mad look on its face. I always start with something less exciting, then see if I need to push it up.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo 2025 \u00a9 Elke Vogelsang | FUJIFILM X-H2S and FUJINON XF16-55mmF2.8 R LM WR, 1\/1000 sec at F14, ISO 200<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A commercial view<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

After producing images for a variety of clients, Elke has learnt to recognise what makes a pet photo commercially viable and how that may differ from what an owner wants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s different with every dog,\u201d she explains. \u201cSometimes you\u2019ve got the most beautiful dog, a happy character, but when you get them in front of the camera they look sad in every photo. Now, I know that the dog was perfectly happy, but it\u2019s just our humanising way of looking at them \u2013 the shape of their eyebrows and the way they look eagerly towards a treat can lead to a sad expression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI love images like that, but people interpret them as the dog actually being sad. I don\u2019t want people to think they\u2019re upset, so lots of work goes into choosing the right images to show.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo 2022 \u00a9 Elke Vogelsang | FUJIFILM X-T4 and FUJINON XF16-55mmF2.8 R LM WR, 1\/1000 sec at F13, ISO 640<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Through this lens, Elke has built a popular catalogue of commercially licensable images. \u201cIt all depends on who you\u2019re making the photo for,\u201d she remarks. \u201cMy images for the owner of a dog might look different from the images I make for commercial clients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe tend to humanise pets, so people interpret the expressions in a human way. But a happy-looking dog with its tongue slightly out and its lips up isn\u2019t necessarily happy. They could be stressed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou have to find these faces where the dog looks happy \u2013 of course, without stressing the dog. And direct eye contact is always important.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo 2024 \u00a9 Elke Vogelsang | FUJIFILM X-T4 and FUJINON XF16-55mmF2.8 R LM WR, 1\/500 sec at F4, ISO 1000<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Above all, Elke stresses the importance of hard work in any form of photography. She doesn\u2019t consider her aptitude a gift bestowed upon her, but a skill earned through research, experimentation, perseverance and, above all, passion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t pick up a camera and suddenly get good at photography,\u201d she points out. \u201cIt took time. I never thought I had the talent, but nowadays I don\u2019t believe in talent. I believe in actually making pictures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think I\u2019m a technically great photographer, I just have a subject I enjoy very much.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Elke Vogelsang explains how experimentation and perseverance are key to the success of her pet photography Elke Vogelsang is a commercial and editorial photographer based in Germany who specialises in pet portraiture. Known for her characterful images of dogs and cats, she works with a large database of animal models and has a vast catalogue […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":273,"featured_media":336523,"template":"","category":[2084,1006,1202,1055,3211,3309,320,3162,1986,565,13898,7082,13936,8552,13835,13899,7866,8356,7376,3358],"post_tag":[],"b2b-solutions":[],"class_list":["post-337582","story","type-story","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-be-inspired","category-cameras","category-category","category-lenses","category-x-series-mirrorless","category-x-mount-prime","category-products","category-x-mount","category-x-series","category-stories","category-x-e5","category-x-h2s","category-x-t30-iii","category-xf16-55mmf2-8-r-lm-wr","category-xf16-55mmf2-8-r-lm-wr-ii","category-xf23mmf28-r-wr","category-xf50mmf2-r-wr","category-xf56mmf12-r-wr","category-xf90mmf2-r-lm-wr","category-zoom"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-08-28 07:55:07","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/no-no\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/story\/337582","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/no-no\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/story"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/no-no\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/story"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/no-no\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/273"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/no-no\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/336523"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/no-no\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=337582"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/no-no\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/category?post=337582"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/no-no\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_tag?post=337582"},{"taxonomy":"b2b-solutions","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fujifilm-x.com\/no-no\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/b2b-solutions?post=337582"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}