Good, copyright free, reference photos are essential for me to create a wonderful, realistic portrait.: the more detail that I can see, the more I can put in.
Here are some hopefully help ful tips
- please try to use a camera rather than a phone, as phones have very small lenses and can distort an image. For example a horse may appear to have a large nose and small ears
- outdoors is best, on a bright sunny day without flash, to give better definition, and truer colours
- stand back from your subject, using a telephoto lens if possible to give a close-up with less distortion
- try to capture a characteristic pose, well several poses. Perhaps a friend could try to get your animal's attention so that they look alert, unless a more laid back image is preferable
- please take a range of images, to enable me to see your animal from different angles. Phones are useful for more natural shots to show character.