Iris photo shoot with your dog or cat? 🐩 🐈

Probably one of the most-asked questions — alongside those about the human iris — is whether we also photograph the iris of dogs, cats, horses or guinea pigs.

Pets are full family members

So ask yourself: an iris photo shoot with a cat or dog — is it really worth it this way?

Our furry friends are family — no question about it. Only people who don't care for animals at all would argue otherwise. But honestly — what kind of people are those ;-) Kidding. To each their own.

It's a completely reasonable question when you're booking a family iris photo shoot with us. Can Nala 🐈 join our iris artwork? And Bello 🦮 is part of the family too! Absolutely true.

We tested this for you

You may already know we're known for photographing the real iris. In my view, that should apply to all family members. Cat and dog included.

There are providers (especially abroad) who offer this. We tested it for you (sounds like something out of a TV science show 🙃).

Just to justify why we tested it at all: we don't automatically assume we know everything better. Sometimes there are situations (very rarely 🙃 — just kidding) where others do it better or smarter.

Since I couldn't — for the life of me — imagine how this might work photographically, even roughly, someone from our team volunteered to stop by on the way to holiday and test out iris photography for dogs.

Iris photo shoot on a dog — doomed to fail!

No point in building up artificial suspense here. The service is heavily advertised, the dog actually played along impressively well — and the result: nothing! Even with the dog's cooperation, there wasn't a single usable image.

As you can see: unusable. I count 8 reflections in one tiny iris. A pupil opening that would prompt any police officer to order a drug test — and on top of that: pretty much everything out of focus. I'd love to play that «fail» sound here — no idea what it's called, but you're hearing it right now, aren't you? «Waa waa waaa …»

How much do you love your pet?

Do you love your pet? If the answer is «yes» (which I hope it is!), then don't do this. It's pure stress for your four-legged friend. I was also sent a short video (for privacy reasons I won't share it here). In the video you can clearly see the dog yawning constantly — which anyone who knows dogs will recognise: a sign of stress!

This isn't about publicly shaming anyone. BUT: as an animal lover, I'm firmly against iris photo shoots with cats or dogs in this form! I'd almost go so far as to say that in Switzerland, this borders on animal cruelty (in the broader sense — the dog wasn't hurt and was, I've been assured, completely normal afterwards).

I'll give you the answer upfront: no! Not in any way. We only want the best for our furry friends, right? And if we want the best for our four-legged family, we don't do this.

Is it all fake or what?

From a business perspective I'm asking myself: those who offer iris photo shoots for animals — have they actually ever produced usable results? Is this just a teaser offer so clients book the appointment and are then disappointed on the spot when it doesn't work? And since the whole family is already there, the iris shoot happens anyway?

I'm not accusing anyone of running such a scheme — but the question does come up, doesn't it?

Can you now book an iris photo of pets at Iris Foto Schweiz?

Very simple answer: NO! As long as neither I nor anyone on our team has the brilliant idea of how to photograph a pet without such stress, we won't offer it.

Iris photo shoot on a dog — doomed to fail!

If we ever do offer it one day — having found the holy grail — we'll announce it with drums and trumpets.

Until then: have a look here, we've also answered all the other questions that might come up.

Frequently asked questions about iris photography.

Any more questions — let me know!

PS: if you enjoy our magazine, leave me a heart (it's anonymous and free) — or better still: drop a comment.

Behind the scenes — a look behind the curtain.

The secret of authentic iris photography.

Eyes don't lie — everything the iris can tell you …