What makes a pitbull dangerous? Is it their nature or their nurture? These are the sorts of questions that US-based pet photographer Katie Brockman has raised after recently becoming the International Dog Photographer of the Year 2026.
Crowned queen of the Studio category as well as the overall competition, Brockman’s portrait of her adorable pet bully, Caldwell, highlights what she says are the “injustices” he, and all bully breeds, face “simply for existing.”
“For this image, I wanted to convey society’s complicated relationship with pitbulls and bully breeds,” she told the competition organizers. “The collar and chain represent breed bans, restrictions and other ways pitbulls are punished.”
Brockman used real newspaper clippings to make Caldwell’s crown and collar, which featured headlines both praising and demonizing pitbulls.
The photographer said these represent how the breed is unjustly “caught in the middle” between critics and advocates through no fault of its own.
A longtime advocate of the breed, Brockman adopted Caldwell from a rescue center, finally giving him a forever home after three years.
The award-winning photographer believes it’s “still a long road” until pitbulls are treated equally to other breeds, but she’s confident it will eventually happen.
The Dog Photography Awards celebrated canine frames across a range of themes and settings.
In the Action category, Slovenian photographer Nika Kuplenk Golobič placed first for her high-octane shot of a client pooch named Ori springing toward the camera through the snow.
Golobič explained that she got “incredibly lucky” as the location and the light created a “magical atmosphere.”
And over in the Dogs & People category, Sarah Ebner, from Switzerland, came out on top for her self-portrait taken with her dog, Koda.
Ebner explained that the photo was captured in a special place where she used to take both Koda and her other dog, Faye, who died last year. “Even though she wasn’t physically there with us anymore, in my heart, she was there with us.”
The 2026 edition of the photography competition saw roughly 1,900 entries from 50 countries. As the overall winner, Katie Brockman claimed €700 (approximately $800 / £600), an engraved trophy and a spotlight placement in the competition’s annual book and winners’ gallery.
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