To make a good picture you also need patience and the desire to make it good. Many more people will see your photo of the animal than will see him in person. The image that you make may be the key to his being adopted by the right person. Light Direct light hits the subject directly. The subject is in the sunshine.
Indirect light is light that is reflected onto the subject.
The subject is in the shade. A very cloudy day is like shade. Animals may be photographed beautifully in either type of light, but there are advantages and disadvantages of both. The advantages of direct light are that it has a brighter, cheerier, feeling, animals coats show up better, and brighter light means a lower f-stop which will usually result in sharper pictures. The disadvantages are higher contrast and shadows, especially difficult with black dogs.