
Meet Big Papa, one of the canine stars of photographer Sophie Gamand's series "Flower Power: Pit Bulls of the Revolution." Gamand partnered with animal shelters for the series an in effort to "challenge the way we look at pit bulls."

Gamand says she was not a fan of pit bulls after being attacked by a large dog as a child. Volunteering in a shelter and becoming an animal activist changed her attitude toward pit bulls, like Regina here

Photos of Rey and other shelter dogs are intended to entice prospective owners to adopt. "Pit bulls are often powerful dogs who are very loyal. Like any other breed, they need proper care, training and socialization," Gamand says on her website. "Pit bulls have become the disposable dogs of America."

Gamand creates the crowns for the dogs and brings them to shelters for the shoots. "The dogs have been doing incredibly well wearing the crowns. Of course there is a lot of bribery involved!"

Images of Aphrodite and her friends from New York's Sean Casey Animal Rescue have been spreading across social media after the shelter shared them on Facebook on March 12.

Through pictures of Cali and her cohorts, Gamand hopes to change the way we look at pit bulls and "renew the dialogue around these misunderstood dogs."

Many of the models have been adopted thanks to their portraits, Gamand said. The photos posted on Sean Casey's Facebook page of Shirley and others have been viewed 4.5 million times and shared more than 71,000 times.

How many takes do you think it took to get Styles to pose for this portrait?

How can you resist Slim in a flower crown?


