This next segment in a series of interviews with accomplished Schutzhund photographers features Lesya Zaichenko. Lesya is among the youngest of the Schutzhund photographers in the US at only 24 years old. She was born in Kiev, Ukraine, but has called Upstate New York her home for most of her life. She grew up with bull-breeds (English Bulldogs, Bull Terriers, American Bulldogs). She has a BS in Biology and an AAS in Biotechnology and works full-time in a HIV Research Lab. Presently, Lesya owns a young German Shepherd Dog bitch (Dezzy vom Rebel Yelle) that she is training for Schutzhund and a rescued APBT mix (“foster failure”). She and her dogs also share their house with two cats and a python. In addition to the photos above, you can view her work on her website.
How did you get started in Schutzhund photography? What was your inspiration?
I started training in Schutzhund with my American Bulldog in February 2004 when I was 17 years old. Nobody in the club was taking photos of the dogs, so I began bringing my Canon S1IS prosumer camera with me. I remember Saturdays well. I would spend the days at the training field and then the nights editing and uploading the photos. I managed to take some very nice photos with that little camera. I believe that much like with dogs, starting out “low-tech” (aka not easy) helped to teach me the fundamentals and skills necessary for composing and capturing the kind of photos I love. Try catching a dog doing high-speed actions like the courage test, retrieves over a wall or escape bites with a camera with a two second shutter delay! I don’t know that I had a single moment that inspired me, I was just instantly addicted to the sport and photography simultaneously.
How long have you been taking pictures? What events have you taken past and future?
I have technically been taking photos my whole life, starting with the typical un-imaginative photos of friends and field trips in elementary and middle school. My uncle’s wife is a graduate of the Hallmark Institute of Photography, and as a teen I would assist her in photo shoots, but I didn’t catch the “bug” until I got my first dog (excluding family dogs). That was in February 2003, and I quickly became involved in dog sports (AKC Obedience, Agility, then a year later Schutzhund). I always photographed the club trials I attended. Most notably, I was the photographer for the 2010 New England Regional Championship and 2010 New England Regional Conformation Show. I also photographed a charity gala for a pit bull rescue that I serve as a volunteer.
What is your philosophy about photographing Schutzhund dogs?
I try to enjoy the photos I take and to capture both unique photos as well as those that I would personally cherish. I strive to take photos that show the dog’s power and drive in the exercises. It gives me a great deal of satisfaction to preserve and share memories of the dogs that are with us for much too short a time. With the time we spend with them, our working companions forge a deeper bond with us, their handlers, than a regular pet would, and their memories are so precious.
What equipment do you use? What is your favorite piece of equipment that you use for Schutzhund photography? What are “must haves” for any serious Schutzhund photographer – aspiring?
I shoot with Canon equipment. I have two bodies, the Canon 450D and EOS 7D. My camera bag contents are pretty “low tech”, because I am a recent college graduate, and I haven’t been able to invest the capital in the hobby that I would like. The lenses I carry are: the Canon 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS, Canon 55-250 f/4.0-5.6 IS, Canon 50mm f/1.8. I also have the Speedlite 480EXII flash. Since I shoot in RAW, I use 8G and 16G Compact Flash memory cards.
When shooting the 2010 New England Regional Championship, I rented a Canon 70-200mm f/2.8 IS zoom (the big white beast). This lens is my favorite piece of equipment for Schutzhund photography. The f/2.8 aperture of the lens is a God-send when shooting in poor lighting conditions! I also adore my 7D body and its high frame per second (fps) shooting capabilities. For the 2010 New England Regional Conformation show and when I photograph portraits, I rent the Canon 24-70mm f/2.8 L series lens. These are the two lenses that I plan on buying sometime in the future. I’d also like to buy a wide-angle lens.
I believe the “must-haves” are a DSLR camera body, a telephoto lens and a standard lens. If you are willing to invest serious money in your glass, I would strongly recommend the two lenses that I rent, as noted above. The large aperture lenses are essential for capturing the action in Schutzhund in variable lighting conditions.
For aspiring photographers I would recommend a camera that allows you to shoot in aperture priority and shutter priority. Many of the point-and-shoot cameras available today are very capable of taking great photos! Then, get out there and just practice taking photos. Play around with composition, settings, etc. I would also strongly recommend either reading some books on photography techniques or taking a digital photography class at your local community college.
What is your favorite type of picture to take? How do you go about taking the picture? What is the most challenging picture to take? How do you tackle it?
My favorite photo to take is the one that shows the relationship between the dog and handler. They show the dog working willfully for its handler, and its handler relishing in the relationship with their dog. Much of the time, this is either a candid shot or a shot during the heeling exercises. Another photo that I love, but believe is often overlooked, is the dog running the blinds. I like to compose these photos at the moments where the dog is rounding the blind. Sometimes you get lucky and capture the moment when the dog enters the “hot” or “find” blind with good aggression and intensity.
The most challenging photos for me are of the dogs going over the jump/wall, especially when I am positioned at an angle where I cannot track the dog approaching the jump with my camera. Also, the long bite presents a challenge when trying to capture the dog the moment it is about to strike the sleeve but also in focus! Most dogs are moving at such a high speed that even when shooting in AI SERVO (a Canon camera setting), the camera has difficulty tracking the focus.
For the long bite, I make sure that my camera is set to shoot in high-speed bursts (the 7D shoots at 8 fps), and I track the dog running down the field. My focus is set to a single spot. I shoot continuously from the moment the dog is about to gather itself, through the completion of the catch and on to when the helper begins to drive the dog.
For the jumps, I set my focus point on a solid object; such as, set the focus spot(s) to the bottom half of the viewfinder, so it is focusing on the jump . Then I set my aperture small enough to allow some wiggle room in the depth of field of the shot, while also allowing some background blur to enhance focus on the dog. This is not always possible with overcast days when I must open up the aperture to stop action in the dim lighting.
Other tips for new and/or experienced photographers?
My strongest suggestion for old and new photographers is to not be shy (I struggle with this!). I recommend aspiring photographers invest in lenses more so than in the camera body. Lenses will grow with you; a body may become obsolete. Do not get caught up in the megapixel (MP) race. More doesn’t literally mean better. After a certain point, if you aren’t planning on printing large posters or billboards, the high MP cameras are just over kill. The only place a high MP photo is beneficial is when you plan on doing a lot of cropping.
When buying a camera body, pay attention to the speed of the camera. How many frames per second is it capable of shooting? What are the ISO settings on the camera? Those capable of shooting at very high ISO often do better shooting in lower lighting conditions. Beware! High ISO will cause more noise in your photo.