Hold still: Gabriel Pereira from Woking, Surrey with his pet snails Wayne, Lucy and AaronChildren have traditionally been the stars of family portraits - but these days they are increasingly likely to be upstaged by their pets.
Photographers say that there has been a 20 per cent rise in demand in the past year for shots featuring not only dogs and cats, but also more unusual animals including horses, cows, sheep – and even ferrets and snails.
But it doesn’t always come cheap, as parents are paying up to £3,000 for the distinctive images. Richard Mayfield, creative director at Venture Photography, which runs a nationwide chain of studios, said: ‘They say never work with children or animals but we think the opposite.
Children and animals are unpredictable, and that’s great for capturing dynamic photographs.
My little pony: Charlie Wells from Wakefield with his pony Lucy‘We always ask clients if they would like to bring any pets along to their shoots as we want to capture the character of the families we photograph, and often their pets help them to relax.
‘We get a lot of domestic pets such as dogs and cats but more unusual pets can be really interesting from a photographer’s perspective.
This year we’ve seen lots of rabbits in particular as more and more are kept in the house and so really feel like part of the family.’
Who's a pretty boy: Alfie with Holly the Rosecrown Conure, left, and Jax Dawes from Beanham near Reading with ferrets Mud and Stinky, rightA glance at these pictures proves just how astonishing the animal magic can be.
Toddler Alfie Poutney, from Felixstowe, poses with a green parrot perched on his flat cap; Charlie Wells from Wakefield gives his pony Lucy a nuzzle on its muzzle; James Corrigan is pictured with his Dutch dwarf rabbit perched in the centre of his skateboard; toddler Poppy Hanshaw reaches out to stroke Lego the lamb; and Harry the tortoise provided the main focus for a Home Counties family portrait.
But the most unusual image surely has to be Gabriel Pereira from Woking, Surrey, posing with his pet snails Wayne, Lucy and Aaron.
Slow motion: The Conneely family with their pet tortoise Harry
Love ewe: Poppy Hanshaw with Lego the Lamb
Bull in a photo shop: Natalie Stoppard and Ted the Bull Jersey CowA glance at these pictures proves just how astonishing the animal magic can be.
Toddler Alfie Poutney, from Felixstowe, poses with a green parrot perched on his flat cap; Charlie Wells from Wakefield gives his pony Lucy a nuzzle on its muzzle; James Corrigan is pictured with his Dutch dwarf rabbit perched in the centre of his skateboard; toddler Poppy Hanshaw reaches out to stroke Lego the lamb; and Harry the tortoise provided the main focus for a Home Counties family portrait.
But the most unusual image surely has to be Gabriel Pereira from Woking, Surrey, posing with his pet snails Wayne, Lucy and Aaron.
Fowl play: The Webber Family from Reading with dogs Maisy and Tilly and Chicken Dusty, left, and Ciara Carmichael-Gordon with her pet Bearded Dragon Mr Carlisle, right
Hop on the skateboard: James Corrigan from Lisburn with him and his brother Edward's Dutch Dwarf rabbit Ron
Lindsay Miles with her partner Daryl and Daughter Skye with rabbits Mary and Dandilion and chickens Rosie and Maysource: dailymail
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