I really work hard to keep my backgrounds from being too busy when I’m photographing.  Especially when it comes to pet photography.  I want all of the focus to be on the animal, with no distractions.  Sometimes it’s virtually impossible to do that, depending upon the setting – especially at dog shows when there are so many people, chairs, fences, and other animals.  One solution is to shoot with a very shallow depth of field so that even if the background is busy, it’s out of focus.  Another solution is to get really close to the main subject and eliminate the background as much as possible.  That was the choice in this image and it works for me!  I love the focused look of this dog!