By Jay Scott Kanes

HONG KONG -- “Does your pet want to be ‘a somebody’ in the animal kingdom?”

That’s the question from photographers André Eichman and Vicky Baker when promoting their new business, The Petographer. A married couple living on Hong Kong’s Lamma Island, they adore animals and so decided to specialize in “fine-art pet photography”.

“It’s a pleasure to work with animals, and you can’t place a value on the joy that fills people’s faces when they see their pet photos,” André said.

“I really believe in this,” Vicky said. “We don’t want just pretty portraits. We try to capture the individual animals’ characters.”

“Absolutely,” André added. “Animals have as much character and variety as people, plus some. And there’s no pretence. They don’t worry if their fur looks just right.”

“Oh, but I did meet one dog like that,” Vicky recalled.

Hong Kong has many photographers, but few focus on pets. “André had the idea,” Vicky said. “We talked about it, and decided to proceed. So far, it’s going well.”

Vicky and André make house calls across Hong Kong, often carrying lights and backdrops. “Even if the animal’s really shy, it’s at home and feels safe,” Vicky said.

“We go where the animals are,” André added. In theory, that could mean almost anywhere.

Clients choose among package deals, involving contact sheets, prints and enlarged photos, starting at HK$2,900.

“Pet-owners will keep the images forever,” André said. “They’ll treasure them even after the pets, sadly, are gone.”

Most of the subjects are cats or dogs, but Vicky and André have shot intriguing images of monkeys, pigs and others. “I love to photograph them all,” André said. “We’ll work with any animal close to a human’s heart.”

Originally from Wales, Vicky worked in the media, including TV advertising, for 15 years. For nine years, she has focused on photography. Her own pet is a tabby cat named Sam.

André comes from San Diego, but lived in Europe and Canada before arriving in Hong Kong in the mid-1990s. Having studied fine art, he launched a photography career. He did solo exhibitions in New York, where he worked as a fashion photographer, and in Tokyo, Hong Kong and Singapore. He enjoys art-book projects. Often he has visited animal shelters, photographing the residents to help them find homes.

Most pet-photo sessions last about two hours. “Often the animals don’t respond well to directions,” Vicky said. “For me, it’s about creating the right situation. With cats, I’ll bring little distractions and toys they can play with, things they’ll reach out to touch. For dogs, you may need food treats.”

André has a philosophy. “When entering an animal’s space, we need to show respect,” he said. “I ease into it to avoid shoving a camera into a pet’s face right away. Sometimes I set the camera down. Dogs sniff and look at it. Cats end up inside my camera bag. Once everyone’s relaxed, I can start snapping photos. I need to improvise and be quick too because they seldom stop and pose.”

Have these photographers been bitten by angry dogs keen to chase them away? “That’s never happened to me,” Vicky said.

“Almost,” André conceded. But even that “intimidating” experience led to a memorable photo, “a great shot” of a snarling dog peering up through a glass table laden with pastries.

For more information: www.thepetographer.biz



Vicky charms a potential model
before reaching for her camera.




Portraits may deliver beauty in
black and white or full color.




A cat-model considers the photographer's antics.




André works, shooting at a cat's level.


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