Gerrard Gethings says: “Certain breeds would be essential because of their unique characteristics: Afghan hounds, poodles, pugs, bulldogs etc. I put out the word on social media and was inundated with dogs. I chose 10 of them and then set out to find their human counterpart.
Fenella and Georgine, a saluki
“The plan was to shoot the dogs, find the humans, style them, then have them behave or pose in a similar way. This process would be repeated until we had all the shots. At the same time I would always have one eye on people I passed in the street. Many of the subjects I stopped in the park or on the bus, and had to find a tactful way of saying you look exactly like a poodle, can I take your photograph?
Henry and Hope, an Afghan hound
“Without exception, people reacted positively. I always led my request with a compliment, particularly if it was to a total stranger … ‘I’m working on a photographic project and you have beautiful hair/ interesting teeth/a magnificent nose!’ I’ve been taking photographs for a long time so am well versed in administering dubious compliments.
Amelia and Artemis, a standard poodle
“Almost all the dogs were funny. The giant Newfoundland had way too much love to give and almost killed my assistant, knocking her to the ground and cuddling her into submission. Our beautiful, competition winning, standard poodle was in hair and make-up for about two hours, and then the next dog turned up early. They took one look at each other and set off together, rolling and barking and generally going bonkers. The groomer was distraught. One dog mistook my tripod for a lamppost and every other dog who followed saw this as an invitation that would be rude to ignore.
Sophie and Percy, a pug
“During the casting process, I decided I simply had to photograph the Turkish man who helps out in my local shop. He has an amazing beard but speaks hardly any English. It was impossible to explain to him that he reminds me of a miniature schnauzer. I gave up in the end but wrote down the studio address and a time on a piece of paper. He showed up anyway, with absolutely no idea what was about to happen. His pictures were great.”
Jessica and Buddy, a bichon frise
Adam and Doug, a Newfoundland
Sergei and Spike, a Siberian husky
Emma and Ralph, a Hungarian puli
Sally and Raffles, a dalmatian
Barry and Bubbles, a rottweiler