Capturing the Dog.

Having spent many years wandering around the woods with dogs, training dogs and living with dogs I’ve developed a visual sense of “dog character”.  Dogs show mood and intention by body posture and eye.  Actually humans do too but they often give it away verbally so we tend to pay less attention to it..  We call it body language.

"Ponder" All my paintings start with these tiny idea sketches.

I’ve never painted a portrait of just the head of the dog.  There is certainly nothing wrong with this and it has been done throughout the history of the genre, but I have always believed that the whole dog shows ….the whole dog.

Painting the older dog.

Dogs age pretty much the same way that we do.  Their chins sag and their teeth become stained.  Their waists thicken and the gums maybe aren’t so attractive anymore. 

What becomes difficult when I am asked to paint an elderly dog is that the owners still see the young dog in the old dog.  This was a challenging  job because Jeb was sixteen when I met him.  My task wa to paint Jeb but try to recapture some of his youth.  I hope I succeeded.

If you are thinking about having a portrait done of your dog, don’t wait too long.

Woodsley and Jeeves.

I’m not usually a Spaniel fan but these two dogs were something else.

Acrylic glaze on panel.  24″ X 20″  Private commission.

Dogs, Water and Scent.

This is interesting.  My training partner is a police officer.  She has a patrol dog (GSD) and a search and rescue dog (Rotti).  She was called to do a search a month or so ago at a lake in New Hamshire.  The search was IN the lake.  Yes, the idea that the escaped convict can avoid the bloodhounds by running up the stream bed is a myth.  Dogs can detect scent in water.  The gases and cells that are released by the cadavre migrate to the surface and can be detected by dogs.

Dugan is trained to air scent in the boat and direct the boat by moving his body.  He alerts in the same way he would on land.  He found a body in 160 feet of water.  They sent cameras down to confirm.  How cool is that?

Training Tip/ Walking the Dog.

In my experience about 80% of family dog behavior issues are due to lack of leadership and lack of exercise.  I think most trainers will agree. 

Getting on a daily walking schedule with your dog can begin to establish your leadership role and exercise both of you at the same time.

What is a walk?  A walk isn’t a potty break.  It isn’t once around the block.  It is a good forty five minutes or more of walking on leash with your dog.  That could in an urban, suburban or rural environment.  If you are in situation where you can walk your dog off leash and the dog will reliably stay with you, even better.  Most people do not fall into this catagory.

The number one reaon why people don’t like to walk their dog is because of pulling.  Guess what?  That’s not an excuse any more.  The Gentle Leader is one of the most useful and life changing dog accessories to come along,…. ever.  It won’t teach your dog to walk on a loose leash without it but most people don’t have the time or inclination that it takes to do this anyway.  So if you have a dog that loves to really drag you around…get a Gentle Leader.

How does it work?  Some people tell me, “I don’t want to use that because it looks like a muzzle and people will think me dog bites.”  Get over it.  A Gentle Leader isn’t a muzzle.   The top of the dog’s muzzle is sensitive and the dog will yield when  pressure is applied to it.  They will naturally yield on their own.

A Gentle Leader must fit properly and it now comes with a DVD that shows you the correct way to use it.  Have a good dog supplier help you buy the correct size and then watch the DVD.

Some dogs will shake their head or paw at it the first time you put it on.  Pair the putting on of the Gentle Leader with a great dog treat (ie. cookie) and a walk.  Pretty soon your dog will be jumping for joy whenever you bring out the Gentle Leader.  I’ve seen it happen many, many times.  Walking your dog will be effortless and everyone is happier for it.

Training Tip/The obsessive ball dog.

Have you ever visited a friend and their dog happily greets you with a tennis ball in its mouth?  How cute!  You take the ball and throw it for the dog.  The dog races away and before you know it the dog is back,  harrassing you to throw the ball again.

Guess what?  You were just conned.  There is a reason why the dog is one of the most successful species on earth.  They’ve figured us out.

 Some dogs will obessively bring things to us to throw for them because they like to chase things and they have figured out that almost every human will throw the darn thing for them over and over.  If the human  doesn’t  throw it right away even better!  I love surprises and I don’t have anything else to do.  I can keep trying all day long!  Eventually the human will throw the ball.

By throwing a ball for a dog that presents the ball to us we are letting the dog control the game.  By trying to get rid of a nuisance dog by throwing the ball we are simply reinforcing the behavior.  We are actually doing a really good job of creating the nuisance dog by throwing the ball on the dog’s demand.  Get it?

So what to do?  Playing fetch with your dog is really fun and good for the dog, as long as you control when the game begins and when it ends.  If your dog falls into this catagory pick up all toys and only give the dog access to the toy when YOU want to.  When the game is over take the toy away and give the dog a signal that the game is over.  I just show two empty hands to my dog and he knows I’m not going to throw the toy again.  If the dog picks up things on his own like sticks and tries the same behavior you have to discipline yourself and others not to throw the object.  Ignor the dog.  Eventually the behavior will disappear.

My dog loves to retrieve balls, frisbees etc. and I use them in training all the time but he has never, ever tried to intiate a game of fetch with me because he knows it won’t work.  The game must be controled by you.

Artists and their Mediums.

What is a medium?  A medium refers to the materials with which an artist creates his or her work.  Watercolor is a medium.  Oil is a medium.  Pastel is a medium.  Mixed medium means that an artist combines two or more types of materials in a single piece.

Classical art schools generally require students to go through a couple years of foundation classes before they chose a medium.  It is similar to a Bachelor of Arts degree where students chose their major in their junior year.  Your art will only be as good as your foundation.

The choice of medium generally depends on the character of the artist.  Some artists like dry mediums that are applied by drawing  instead of painting.   Some feel more confortable with wet mediums like watercolor or oil that are applied by a brush.

Some artists take a long time to figure out exactly what is the perfect match for their personality and the type of work they want to do.  And then once they do decide,  it takes a long time to master that medium.

Schools and teachers can take you a long way in mastering a medium but in the end the artist just has to figure it out themselves by working and working …and working.  There are no shotcuts.

So if you find an artist that you like that works in oil, don’t ask them to paint in watercolor!

How to Photograph Your Dog.

I learned the hard way that I can not work from photos supplied by clients.  The one major piece that I did this way took me three times as long to complete because of inadequate photos.

When you look at a snapshot of your dog,  a dog that you see everyday,  your brain fills in where the photo fails.   Remember, I have never seen your dog!  My brain can’t fill in.

When I take resouce photos for a job I take many, many photos and it is usually a combination of three or four that I end up using as my resource information.  Rarely is there all the information I need in one photo.

Anyway, here are some tips for getting good photos of your dog.

Go outside on a sunny day.  Have treats in your pocket and a helper.  If you have a point and shoot camera set it to the sports setting at the highest resolution that your camera has.  This will give you a fast shutter speed and a low iso.

With the sun behind you, sit on the ground.  Position the dog broadside to you and have the helper lure the dog’s head slightly up and on a 45 degree angle towards you (but not looking at you).  You should be able to just see both eyes (you should be able to see a tiny bit of reflection in both eyes).  Hold the camera as still as you possibly can.  If you tuck your elbows into your body and kind of brace against yourself while shooting you can eliminate a lot of motion.  Even pushing the shutter button moves the camra.  Take a few shots, give the cookie to the dog (this is important)  and release.  Then set up again.

If you are doing this for an artist, take many shots with the same light exposure, dog facing the same direction at about the same range.  If you want another location, set it up the same way and make multiple shots in the same place.  Your artist will love you for it!!

Solo Exhibition, spring.

If you are visiting historic Charleston , SC and you love dogs you should stop by Dog and Horse Fine Art Gallery on Church street.  It will make you instantly happy!

They will be hosting a show of my Sporting Dog paintings and Dog Show paintings opening on April 3rd. 2009 running through March 3rd.  All their exhibitions are also on-line so if you can’t make it in real space you can stop by in cyber space.  

If you are looking for a great spring get-away you might try Charleston.  The historic town is absolutely beautiful.  Great food and art, great beaches, easy in and out from the cute airport and when in town just park and walk!

Less is More.

Sometimes simplicity is the answer.  This drawing of two German Shorthaired Pointers looks perfect, unmatted,  in this Victorian frame.  Framing can make or break a piece of art.  Keep it simple.  Let the art do the talking.