William Wegman meets Rembrandt in these quirky, painterly portraits of dogs that capture the mischievous nature of our favorite companions. Cami Johnson takes pictures the old-fashioned way, with medium-format film and no digital manipulation. The result is rich, fully realized images that seem to capture a dog’s very essence.

What dog lover will be able to resist the portrait of a carnivorous shepherd contently lounging on a velvet-tufted chair or a rabbit-hunting dachshund surrounded by lawn ornament bunnies? And if readers can’t detect that naughty canine glint by visual cues alone, Johnson offers charming profiles of her subjects and their various foibles. The stories range from a pair of poodles who compulsively hide (single) socks to an English sheepdog who refuses to walk in the shadow of garbage cans to the mutt who licked the color from a dozen Easter eggs. From steely-stomached gluttony to a mud-rolling disregard for baths, the quirks of doghood are revealed—and embraced!—here with wit and affection.

Classically trained photographer Cami Johnson has published work in Urban Dog, Town & Country, Boston Magazine, Mother Jones, and elsewhere. Her dog photographs have also been exhibited nationwide. She lives outside Boston with her two dogs, Sunny and Max (our cover dog!).

Ken Foster is author of the bestselling memoir The Dogs Who Found Me and the upcoming Dogs I Have Met and the People They Found (October 2008). He lives in New Orleans with his three dogs.