Which background colour should you choose to perfectly frame your dog or cat photo?

Although you can have any colour for your pet print that doesn't help you if you're not sure which one will suit your furbaby.

So this is my quick guide to help you.

 A teeny, tiny bit of science

This colour wheel is a simple way of showing colours and their relationship to each other - colours are either harmonious (ones that sit next to each other on the colour wheel) or complementary (ones that are opposite each other).

For example, the dog portrait of Indi on the left is on a 'harmonious' colour because the dusky pink background is closer to her fur colour creating a more balanced and softer result. The royal blue on the right is 'complementary' because it contrasts with Indi's fur (the colours are opposite on the colour wheel) and gives a punchier look to the picture. When picking a colour for your picture have a think about which effect you find more appealing.

 

Black / dark fur

Dark fur looks really smart on dark colours, just look at Nellie and Alice below. 

But if you'd like them to 'pop' from their backgrounds you can put them on bright colours. Blacks, browns and greys work on most colours except, occasionally, some shades of blue.

 

If you want to keep the look neutral you can never go wrong with a light grey because it always looks stylish.

White / pale fur

Light toned cats and dogs are also great on most backgrounds. This example shows Pablo on a selection and all 3 work really well.

 

The silvery grey creates a cooler mood, the turquoise is more vibrant and is complementary to his colouring and the deep red picks up the pinky tones on Pablo (harmonious) and adds warmth overall.

 

Other colours

Further examples of pets on other colour backgrounds including: blue tones; green shades; grey tones; reds and pinks and other colours.