My Favorite Cheerleader

[zdog]

Hi this only my second time posting, so i'm posting as much to see if I "get it right" as for the critique.

This is one of my four dachs, dressed for Halloween. I've seen someone elses shots with shallow DoF on their dogs that i love and was trying to imitate. Don't think I quite got it right, does her nose being out of focus distract? I also would like comments about the crop. I was tring to remove body parts from her 3 dachshund friends, but is it too tight? Since I'm a newbie to this all, any other comments are very welcome. I like the shot because I LOVE her, so its hard to be objective. Also, what is the easiest way to get and post EXIF data?

Exif data

Camera Canon EOS 40D
Exposure 0.01 sec (1/100)
Aperture f/1.8
Focal Length 50 mm
ISO Speed 400
Exposure Bias 0 EV
Flash Off, Did not fire

[tingeliM]

That's a cute fellow you have there!

I like the tight crop otherwise, but I'd take a little bit off from the top and add a little to the bottom (if that's possible with the original photo). It would look a little more balanced like that, in my opinion.
Personally I'm not distracted by the nose being out of focus. The blue eyes are so captivating =)
If that red thing is a part of her costume, I think it should be in focus. Now it's a little distracting due to the red color, and if you hadn't told that she's wearing a costume, I wouldn't have guessed it.
The easiest way to copy/paste the EXIF data is to either copy it from the photo's Properties, or from Flickr (Actions>View Exif info), as far as I know.

Pet photography is a lot of fun and when you get that great shot, it's even more satisfying because it's not necessarily that easy with animals who tend to move around a lot. Try experimenting with different kinds of angles. Usually the best angles are from the dog's eye-level or even below it.

Check out some of my experiments with dogs, if you like =)
Old Mister Sleeping
Lapponian Herder Queen
And more in this set

[zdog]

Thank you so much for commenting. I can't add more to the bottom of the picture , but will take more off the top. The red is her cheerleader outfit - I knew no one would no what it was, but didn't think of it as distracting until you pointed it out. I guess because I knew what it was it made sense to my eye. I think i'll try the same setup without the outfit and see what I get. Thanks again for your comments.