Chinese New Year: The Year of the Dog: More than half of UK dog owners take more pictures of their dog than their family or friends
2018 is set to be the Year of the Dog in more ways than one, as Huawei, one of the global technology leaders, reveals that more than half (55%) of dog owners across the UK confess to taking more photos of their four-legged sidekicks than their family or friends. The study of more than 1,000 dog owners across the UK was conducted by Huawei to celebrate the recent launch of its Huawei Mate 10 Pro, the world’s first AI-enabled smartphone that automatically recognises dogs and other objects, making it easier for people to take pics of their pets like a pro.
On average, dog owners in the UK take 202 pictures of their furry friends each year, with people in Edinburgh the most snap happy, taking 298 of their pooches per year, followed by dog owners in Bristol and Leeds at 283 and 256 photos per year respectively.
Labradors, known for their friendly, playful manner, top the list of most popular breeds to snap, followed by Cocker Spaniels and German Shepherds, all of which recently featured on the ITV show Britain’s Favourite Dogs.
Following in the paw-prints of other trend-setting celebrity pooches, a third of owners surveyed (31%) already have, or plan to set up a social media profile for their four-legged friends.
“Our ambition is to make sure that our AI technology empowers our customers in everything they do,” commented Andrew Garrihy, Huawei Western Europe Chief Marketing Officer. “Whether it’s taking a picture-perfect shot of their pet or their partner, the AI-powered photography in the Huawei Mate 10 Pro unlocks the potential of everyone.”
Other stats from the research include:
Over a third of 16-24-year olds (39%) get their dogs to pose and look cute for photos
19% get creative with backgrounds to get the best Instagram-worthy shot
Facebook (55%) and Instagram (24%) are the social media platforms of choice to share pics of our four-legged friends
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Joanne Carter
Joanne Carter is a British photographer, photography journalist, editor and curator and the founder and editorial director of TheAppWhisperer.com, an independent international photography publication established in 2009.Her journalism, criticism and commentary have appeared in The Times, The Sunday Times, The Guardian, Financial Times, BBC, Vogue Italia, LensCulture, Popular Photography, Android Magazine, NikonPro, DPReview, Which Digital Camera and Which Camera. She has lectured internationally on photography and mobile art, served as a juror for international photography awards, and exhibited her own photographic work across the UK, Europe, South Korea and the United States.Alongside her editorial work, Joanne's photographic and postgraduate research explores death, grief, memory, representation and social inequality through contemporary photography, participatory practice and visual research methods, with the longer-term aim of developing this work through doctoral research.Through TheAppWhisperer, she continues to publish independent photography journalism spanning contemporary photographic practice, mobile imaging, photographic apps, computational photography and emerging imaging technologies.Joanne is available for editorial commissions, photography projects, judging, curatorial work, speaking engagements, consultancy and selected collaborations.
