Behind the Scenes: Photographing Cats

Edgar with ObscureGem's Crochet Cat Toy Ball

Edgar with Crochet Cat Toy

Photographing cats is seriously one of my favorite photography areas to work with. The fact is, cats have such extreme personalities, are completely unpredictable, and often make you work to their needs rather than the aesthetic you were looking for. And it is better that way.

I live with three cats at current, named Edgar, Tugger, and Dmitri (or Demetri, Dimitri, no one really knows), and I go to each one for something different. Edgar, being the youngest, most energetic and borderline bonkers, is in charge of modeling with toys, creates a great atmospheric mood when captured in film, and is in general pretty fun. Tugger, as he's 11 nearly 12, loves posing to show off how adorable he thinks he is (and...well, actually is). Dmitri I rarely photograph because he is an elusive creature that is probably contemplating how to get rid of the dog without anyone suspecting him.

Photo'd above is Edgar, newest addition to our little family, part monster part sweetheart, and a cat who absolutely adores the camera. In fact, several times I had to make him stop rubbing against the camera and have him engage with a toy. I used him twice for ObscureGems' slowly growing cat toy line, and will no doubt use him again. He's just a great sport, I mean, look at him.

The toys are handmade by Nancy Bukovsky (Co-owner of ObscureGems and my mum) out of 100% cotton yarn. There are several Curly Q's floating around the house, and Edgar chased his ball around for just about an hour this afternoon. Shooting for the Etsy shop was a lot of fun, and I'm sure Edgar had a blast. (He should be delighted to know that a couple more designs are being thought of!)