A young man stands in three-quarter view, dressed in dark hunting attire and holding a long rifle upright in his gloved left hand. His face is pale and smooth, framed by short blond hair beneath a brown cap, and he gazes outward with a calm, direct expression. The figure's right arm is bent at the elbow, resting against his side, while the left hand grips the wooden stock of the firearm near the lock.

A large, tawny hunting dog sits at his feet, facing to the left but glancing up toward its master, its body rendered with soft, textured brushstrokes that suggest the sheen of its coat. The young man wears a heavy brown cloak draped over his shoulders, with a patterned black and silver sleeve visible on his right arm, and tall boots that reach just below the knee. Behind him, a tree with broad, dark leaves stretches diagonally across the upper right of the canvas, its trunk and branches painted with loose, energetic strokes.

The background opens onto a landscape of blue-green hills and cloudy sky, the distant mountains painted in cool tones that contrast with the warm browns and golds of the foreground. Light falls from the left, illuminating the sitter’s face, gloves, and the dog’s back, while casting soft shadows that model the folds of his clothing and the contours of the animal’s body. The composition is vertically oriented, with the upright figure and rifle echoed by the tree trunk, and the dog’s seated form anchoring the lower right corner.

The brushwork varies from the smooth modeling of the face to the broader, more textured handling of the landscape and the dog’s fur. Cardinal-Infante Ferdinand of Austria, in Hunting Dress is painted by Diego Velázquez in the 1630s. He is depicted with a rifle and accompanied by a hunting dog, emphasizing his status and the aristocratic pastime of hunting. The scene is set outdoors, with the inclusion of a tree and a distant mountainous landscape, situating the figure in a natural environment.