Live Animal Photography Props?
Tuesday March 11, 2008
Its nearing Easter and this is the traditional time for spring-themed children's portraits. Lots of flowers, brightly-colored plastic eggs, and live baby rabbits or baby chicks. Some stores have gone so far as to offer baby chicks dyed pastel colors for the holiday season. Very few would argue about how absolutely adorable children look when reaching out for a small ball of fuzz in a portrait. But is it really a good idea to mix kids and baby animals on a large scale? Is buying a few baby chicks for a couple of dollars apiece and putting them in an Easter basket in a studio for 8 hours a day under flashing lights with 3 year olds trying to taste them honestly a good idea?Sure, there are pros and cons for using live animals as props. However, the cons truly seem to outweigh the pro side. Beyond the poop that live animals bring to the studio, they also bite on occasion. Rabbits have even been reported to have died from fear when passed around to so many unfamiliar people. In 2007, there was a Salmonella outbreak related to baby chicks purchased for Easter. Add on top of that the threat of really bad publicity from animal rights groups such as PETA and live animal props start to lose a lot of their appeal.
While more expensive to purchase initially (but cheaper in the long run), there are very realistic fake baby chicks(as shown in image above) and fake rabbits on the market for use specifically as photography props. Photographers can even go so far as to purchase movie-quality props if they so desire.
What do you think? Do live animals make good photography props? Or should we take a little extra time with our photographs to make fake animals acceptable substitutes?
Photo © 2008 Liz Masoner licensed to About.com, Inc.
Comments
I full heartily think it is not a good idea to use live animlas especially babies for photo props. It is always the animals that suffer. There are enough stuffed and other things out there to use. And it’s cruel to dye them.
The worst part of using live animals is not even how they are used or treated for the photo shoots, its how they are treated after the season is over. Many are put down, released into the wild or given away to people who will never care for them.
I think that fake props are the only real humane way to go. There are probably some responsible photographers who will treat the animals like they are there own pets and take good care of them, but I really think that the majority just see them as props.
I agree with both Steph and Brian. Fake is the way to go…if you want to take photographs with REAL chicks or bunnies go to a farm and take a few picts and done. i know people who have gotten bunnies for easter and then they get bored and tired of them and either keep them in a little tiny cage or just let them roam loose to serve as dinner for another animal….=(
Years ago a friend of mine took her son to get Easter photos and he picked up the ducklings and smashed their heads together killing them both. He didn’t understand-he was 18 months old. It was a horrible situation. Since then I’ve always thought it was an irresponsible thing to do. The alternative is to use stuffed animals-it is humane. We have to stop using and abusing animals in this world.
In a strictly commercial setting with lots of children and clients, fake animals are the only acceptable and humane way to go. However for a single shoot on location, the supervised use of animals would be acceptable. The live interaction of animals and people can sometime produce the best results. However, this approach is only for those photographers that are more caring and responsible for the health and welfare of both animals and people than the clock and the dollar.
As a Studio Photographer who’s had years of experience working with young children and young animals in the studio, I’ve never encountered anything that made the overall experience bad. My company adopts out the bunnies used in our images; we cycle rabbits so no bunny ‘works’ for more than a four hour shift before being left alone for at least six hours. Yes, the cage can be a bit of a pain, but daily cleaning, plus the natural rabbit habit of going only in one or two corners, kept the issue to a minimum. Occasionally a bunny would bite, but only at clothing. We had, last season, one incident where a bunny bit a customer, and that was after repeated warnings to keep their fingers (a parent, I might add) out of the rabbit’s mouth. The bunny was subsequently put on ‘break’ for the rest of the day ;p.
I feel bad that so many of you have had such bad experiences bringing animals into the studio, but I’m a firm believer that if you set ground rules to the clients, and away time for the animals, the whole can be very enjoyable, and in many situations, hilariously adorable. Cruelty only enters into the equation when people are not properly educated as to the handling of these animals, or don’t enforce the rules when dealing with clients who don’t understand the creatures.