When Canadian photographer Pete Thorne photographed his grandmother on her 100th birthday, he discovered that older faces can make for powerful portraits. Her 100 years of experience were apparent in her face. "She saw more things than most of us ever could. More joys, more triumphs, more sadnesses, more everything."
He says he decided to start photographing older dogs, as they "are often passed over in favour of younger, cuter puppies in shelters, and elsewhere. Puppies may be cute, but these dogs actually look wise. And cute. They're the kinds of dogs who have comforted you, frustrated you, peed on you, and been your friend through it all."
Elmo, a 14-year-old pitbull was the first dog Pete shot for the Old Faithful photo project. "He's straight up smiling for his portrait," says PetePete ThorneChiliPete ThorneColonel Sanders is a 10-year-old Chinese Crested. Morgan, his owner, says: "He is spry for a 10 year old but a side effect of being hairless is shallow rooted teeth. His are all slowly falling out and were causing him discomfort until I started making him all his own human grade food. When he sneezes a tooth can just pop out!"Pete Thorne
As he started taking portraits for this series, he realised how distinct older dogs' faces are. Their lumps and bumps, grey hair and missing teeth are evidence of both a struggle with old age, but also of a life well lived.
Pete regularly posts updates to his Old Faithful Facebook page, and hopes to produce a coffee table book. He says he has been overwhelmed by the response to his photos. "People from all over the world have reached out. People who had older dogs, people who had recently lost beloved dogs, people who didn't have any dogs at all.
"One message seemed to resonate with everyone," he says. "Despite everything we're told, it turns out that faces, like companionship, get better with age."
Gigi is a 13-year-old snaggle-toothed Italian greyhound. Sean, her proud owner, says: "Gigi was the runt and only female of a litter of five. She was going to be bought by a guy who wanted to puppymill her to make quick cash. So I scooped her up. She's the best dog ever."Pete ThorneBenjamin was found as a stray and ended up in a shelter about a year and a half ago. Pugalug Pug Rescue took him in and a family adopted him. He is estimated to be about 14 years old.Pete ThorneSheba was one of the first dogs Pete photographed. She was also one of the oldest and a bit frail, he saysPete ThorneMance is a 13-year-old Old English Bulldog. Pete says: "He has bone cancer, which adds a lot of character to his face. He's in a pretty fragile state so I made my first trip out of the home studio to photograph him, in all his asymmetrical charm."Pete ThorneJackson is a 14-year-old Black Labrador mix. Pete says: "There's something about the expression on his face that seems like he is peering into your soul."Pete ThorneEmmy is a 14-year-old wolfhound mix. Pete says: "This proud bearded lady got so excited for her photo shoot she pooped in my roomie's shoe!"Pete ThorneWeezee is a 10-year-old pug mix. Pete says: "Although she looks a little concerned about having her photo taken, she was very well behaved and one of the easiest to photograph"Pete ThorneSpudPete ThorneHazel had to have both of her eyes removed as she couldn't produce tears and was in pain. She had five microchips from being re-chipped every time she was sold to a new puppy mill. She was rescued and adopted by Blanche Axton at www.pugalug.comPete Thorne
