How to take a pet photo that makes a great portrait

Start with good light

Soft daylight is the single biggest help. Sit your pet near a large window, or go outside on a bright but overcast day. Turn the flash off: it flattens fur, causes glowing eyes and hides the subtle colour changes in a coat. Strong midday sun has the opposite problem, creating deep shadows and making animals squint. If the light is behind your pet, their face will fall into shadow, so turn round and let the light fall on them instead.

Get down to eye level

Most pet photos are taken from standing height, looking down. That shrinks the body and distorts the face. Crouch, kneel or lie on the floor so your phone is level with your pet's eyes. For horses, stand back a few paces and hold the camera at about the height of their eye. A straight-on or slightly angled view of the face works best for most styles.

Focus on the eyes

Eyes are what make a portrait feel like your pet. Tap the screen on the eye nearest you to set the focus, and check the photo afterwards by zooming in. If the eyes are soft but the nose is sharp, take it again. A treat or a favourite toy held just above the lens will usually draw their gaze towards the camera.

Keep the background simple

A plain wall, a lawn or a sofa throw is easier for the AI to separate from your pet than a busy kitchen or a crowd of other animals. You can choose a new scene for the portrait, so there's no need to stage anything. Just make sure nothing overlaps the face, such as a hand, a lead or another pet.

Upload more than one photo

If you have several good photos, upload them. A clear face shot plus one or two from slightly different angles helps the AI understand markings, ear shape and colouring. Choose quality over quantity: three sharp photos are more useful than ten blurry ones.

Tips for particular animals

Birds

Avoid shooting through cage bars, which confuse the outline of the bird. Photograph your bird on a perch or a hand during time out of the cage, ideally against a plain wall. Daylight shows true feather colour far better than room lighting.

Reptiles

Glass enclosures cause reflections. Turn off room lights, hold the lens close to the glass, or photograph during normal handling if your animal is used to it. Basking lamps can tint colours orange or purple, so daylight from a nearby window gives a truer result. Never move an animal out of its proper temperature range just for a photo.

Rabbits, guinea pigs and small pets

Get right down to floor level and be patient. Small pets move quickly, so use burst mode if your phone has it and pick the sharpest frame. A little hay or a favourite vegetable will keep them in one place long enough.

Black, white and very dark coats

Black coats lose detail in dim light, and white coats lose it in bright sun. For a dark pet, use plenty of soft, even daylight and look for the catchlight in the eyes. For a white or cream pet, avoid direct sun and don't overexpose. On most phones you can tap the screen and drag the brightness slider down a touch.

Memorial portraits from older photos

If your pet has died, you may only have older phone pictures, and that's fine. Look for the clearest image of the face, even if the rest of the photo isn't perfect, and upload a few so we have more to go on. Find the original file in your phone's gallery or cloud backup rather than a copy saved from social media, which is usually compressed.

Which files to upload

We accept JPG, PNG and WebP files. Upload the original wherever possible. Photos sent through messaging apps are often shrunk and lose the fine detail that helps with fur, feathers and whiskers.

What to avoid

• Filters, beauty modes and heavy editing, which change colours and markings
• Tight crops that cut off ears, the top of the head or the muzzle
• Screenshots that include app buttons, captions or timestamps
• Photos where your pet is tiny in the frame or partly hidden

When you have a photo you're happy with, head to the portrait creator to start your order.