This subject is infinite! There will always be powerful, witty, funny, tender, iconic … and so on … photographs of dogs now, historically, and going forward. Most of the photographs I selected for this post are images created by legendary photographers. They are not the cute pet pictures we see on social media and believe me, I love those, too and post millions of them myself. I think you’ll agree – these images here are of a whole different, um, breed.
Bull Dogs
Photo: Elliott Erwitt
Blaze Starr in her living room, July 1964 Photo: Diane Arbus
Birmingham, England, 1991
Photo: Elliott Erwitt
Photo: Jill Freedman
Photo: Elliott Erwitt
Woman & Afghan
Photo: Richard Avedon
Photo: Helmut Newton
Paris, 1953 Photo: Édouard Boubat
Sheepdog Photo: Jill Freedman
Photo: Jill Freedman
Photo: Jill Freedman
Photo: Jill Freedman
Photo: Garry Winogrand
Leaping Lurcher, 1973 Photo: Fay Godwin
Photo: Elliott Erwitt
Photo: Norman Parkinson
Photo: Michel Vanden Eeckhoudt / Kehrer Verlag
Photo: Bruce Weber
Trevor & Billy, Adirondacks Photo: Bruce Weber
East Hampton, NY Photo: Elliott Erwitt
Photo: Sarah Moon
Neuilly, France, 1952 Photo: Elliott Erwitt
Photo: André Kertész
Photo: Elliott Erwitt
1946 Photo: Elliott Erwitt
Photo: Arthur Elgort for Vogue
Military Dogs in Action Photo: Simon N. Ricketts
Shadows Photo: André Kertész
2000 Photo: Albert Watson
Photo: Elliott Erwitt
Hammacher-Schlemm Swiss Watch Gold Dog Collar, 1953 Photo: Yale Joel
(Photographer Unknown)
The Louvre, Paris, 1969 Photo: Robert Doisneau
Photo: Robert Doisneau
Paris Photo: Joel Meyerowitz
Performing Dogs, National Circus of Vietnam, 1994 Photo: Mary Ellen Mark
Simone avec Lily et Zett, Avril 1913 Photo: Jacques-Henri Lartigue
Kate Moss Photo: Herb Ritts for Vogue
Cindy Crawford Photo: Helmut Newton
Cindy Crawford Photo: Patrick Demarchelier
Photo: Jacques-Henri Lartigue
Photo: Jill Freedman
Marilyn Monroe (Photographer Unknown)
Photo: Jill Freedman
9-month-old William Kerbe, grandson of city police Sgt. William Kerbe, shares his playpen with Kirke, a police dog, 1959 Photo: Richard Stacks for the Baltimore Sun
Photo: André Kertész
Harlem, 1943 Photo: Gordon Parks
Woman, Dog, & Balenciaga Hat, 1954 Photo: Henry Clarke
Brazil, 1990 Photo: Elliott Erwitt
What I love about this shot above, is what looks to be that of the male/female dynamic and conceivable attraction that is apparent between the two dogs and between the two people. Or, it could be construed as a dichotomy – the blatant display, one dog pursing the other, and on the other hand, a complete separation between the two people – the game of hard-to-get. Who knows … there are a few ways you can look at this photograph, but regardless and per the usual, Elliott Erwitt is a brilliant observer.
British Antarctic Expedition 1910-13 Photo: Herbert Ponting
Amundsen’s Favorite Dogs, Fix and Lassesin; Amundsen’s Expedition at the South Pole (Photographer Unknown)
Photo: Tim Flach
Photo: Tim Flach
Lucas with his service dog, Juno, a Belgian Malinois (Photographer Unknown)
Lucas with his service dog, Juno, a Belgian Malinois – You can read the beautiful and touching story (re: photograph above) here: Experts Said it Wouldn’t Work, But Rescue Dog and Dying 4-year-old Proved Them Wrong
Photo: Christopher Gibbs
(Photographer Unknown)
While I most definitely do not consider myself in the league of some of these greats, I am a real dog person and thought I would add just a few of my own photographs that might fall under the category of reportage, portraiture or art.
Boy with his Chihuahua, Hoboken, NJ Photo: Kritina Lee Knief
Scottish Deerhound and Brussels Griffon Photo: Kritina Lee Knief
Dog Sleeping on Dock, Caye Caulker, Belize Photo: Kritina Lee Knief
Just Another Line at the Post Office, Caye Caulker, Belize Photo: Kritina Lee Knief
Comments encouraged and feel free to comment with a photograph of your dog, a random dog, or an image you think should have been included in this post. (There are far too many to include, of course!)
Love this post! I am a dog lover too:)
Thank you.
There is a lot of amazing imagery here.
Oh how grateful I am to have stumbled on this series! Thank you so much! I am too a dog lover & I have 2 GSP’s that I adore…would love if you could spend a little time with them, I know they’d love you!
Thank you! I’m so happy you enjoyed these photographs—some amazing photographers and incredible moments. I’d love to meet your pups😊🐕🐕