Photographer Captures the Undeniable Similarities of Dogs and Their Humans

Dog Photography by Gerrard Gethings

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Dogs and their humans have developed bonds so strong that it's no wonder they start to resemble each other. The similarities often exist in subtle yet undeniable ways—be it through flowing locks, soulful expressions, or a silly grin. Photographer Gerrard Gethings highlights these “doggelgängers” in his charming collection of colorful portraits.

The idea that a bonded dog and human share a resemblance has been put to scientific tests. Michael Roy, a psychologist at the University of California, San Diego, was one of the first to examine this theory. He did so by going to three dog parks, snapping pictures of the pups and their owners separately, and then asking groups of participants to match them. Roy found that study participants were able to suss out the pairings with “reasonable accuracy.” This result and these types of investigations have since been repeated many times. In a test run by Sadahiko Nakajima from Kwansei Gakuin University in Japan, he found that 80% of participants could correctly pick the dog/owner pairs.

Now, you can try your own version of this study—sort of. Gethings' striking photographs are part of a memory card game aptly called Do You Look Like Your Dog? Featuring 50 cards, it challenges you to match 25 people with their furry friends all while enjoying Gethings' fun photography. The boxed game was released through Laurence King Publishing and is available on Amazon.

Photographer Gerrard Gethings snapped striking portraits for the memory card game Do You Look Like Your Dog? available now.

Memory Card Game Featuring Dogs and the Owners

Think you can match a pup and their owner just based on their looks?

Memory Card Game Featuring Dogs and the Owners

Memory Card Game Featuring Dogs and the Owners

Memory Card Game Featuring Dogs and the Owners

Memory Card Game Featuring Dogs and the Owners

Memory Card Game Featuring Dogs and the Owners

Dog Photography by Gerrard Gethings

Dog Photography by Gerrard Gethings

Animal Photography by Gerrard Gethings

Dog Photography by Gerrard Gethings

Animal Photography by Gerrard Gethings

Animal Photography by Gerrard Gethings

Gerrard Gethings: Website | Instagram | Facebook

My Modern Met granted permission to use images by Gerrard Gethings.

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Dog Portraits Capture the Unique Personalities of Pups Around the World

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11 Photographers Who Have Elevated Pet Photography into an Art Form

Sara Barnes

Sara Barnes is a Staff Editor at My Modern Met and Manager of My Modern Met Store. She is a graduate of the Maryland Institute College of Art where she earned her BFA in Illustration and MFA in Illustration Practice. Sara is also an embroidery illustrator and writer living in Seattle, Washington. She runs Bear&Bean, a studio where she stitches pet portraits and other beloved creatures. She chronicles the creativity of others through her website Brown Paper Bag and newsletter, Orts. Her latest book is Threads of Treasure: How to Make, Mend, and Find Meaning Through Thread, published in 2014. Sara’s work has been recognized in Be Creative With Workbox, Embroidery Magazine, American Illustration, on Iron and Wine’s album Beast Epic, among others. When she’s not stitching or writing, Sara enjoys planning things that bring together the craft community. She is the co-founder of Camp Craftaway, a day camp for crafty adults with hands-on workshops in the Seattle area.
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