Like Owner, Like Dog: I Capture Dog Owners Mimicking Their Best Friends

My name is Ines Opifanti and I am a photographer from Hamburg, Germany. For this series, I photographed dog owners who mimic their dogs’ facial expressions. Almost 3 years ago I adopted a puppy out of the blue and quickly noticed her amazing ability to pull off almost human-like facial expressions.

But, what about the other way round? How easily can humans “read” our dogs’ facial expressions? I was very curious, so I posted a request for volunteers in a local, dog-centered Facebook group. I made appointments with over 30 mostly total strangers and their dogs.

I photographed the dogs first, letting them sit on a small podium. Owners had to interact with them, telling them phrases they know the dogs will react to. Of course they got lots and lots of praise and treats so they quickly stopped caring about the lights or the camera. It’s important that dogs are calm and relaxed, so they can show their natural behavior and are not frightened. After the dogs were photographed, the owners have to interpret and mimic. I noticed that dog people get really good in interpreting their own dogs. It’s really a fascinating thing because we’re two completely different species after all.

More info: ines-opifanti.com