Maddie The Coonhound a fun side project of photographer Theron Humphrey as he travels across America shooting portraits and telling the stories of everyday people for his project, This Wild Idea. In between he takes pictures of his dog – Maddie The Coonhound – that seems to enjoy being a model.

Soldiers of the 70th division of the American 7th Army hold up a Nazi flag and a portrait of Adolf Hitler, taken during the World War II capture of Saarbrucken. (Photo by Horace Abrahams/Keystone/Getty Images). 22nd March 1945

Actress Tang Wei poses at the “Wu Xia” portrait session during the 64th Annual Cannes Film Festival on May 15, 2011 in Cannes, France. (Photo by Andreas Rentz/Getty Images)

The National Geographic Photo Ark is a travelling exhibition of photographer Joel Sartore’s quest to create a photo archive of biodiversity around the world. So far, Sartore has captured studio portraits of more than 6,000 species – a number that he hopes to double. On 1 July, the ark will open at Melbourne zoo – the first time it has been exhibited in the southern hemisphere. More than 50 portraits will be on display, including many of Australian endangered animals being protected by programs at the zoo itself. These captions have been edited from text supplied by Melbourne zoo. Here: Barking owl. (Photo by Joel Sartore/National Geographic Photo Ark/The Guardian)

Series of portraits by Muir Vidler for his project Rebels Without a Pause: Britain's ageing rebels and mavericks.

These animal portraits and painted headdresses by Amy Hamilton are adorably perfect for this time of year. They feel so soft and wintery, and would make amazing notecards for gifts.