Our images of the year

Hollie Latham Hucker

Technique editor

‘Always by my side’ by John Ferrett

I'm a huge fan of the array of fantastic photography competitions we see each year – big and small. It's great to see so many photographers from different backgrounds participating from all corners of the globe. We've seen some stunning photographs in 2017; it's hard to pick a favourite. However I must admit that I have a soft spot for any photograph that includes a dog – it won't take much to win me over! So this year I was particularly excited to see the finalists for The Kennel Club's Dog Photographer of the Year. Now in its 12th year, the international competition received almost 10,000 entries from 74 countries. It must have been a hard task for the judges to whittle it down to the 10 winners of each category. The image I picked was second place in the Assistance Dogs category. Taken by John Ferrett, it shows Reno, a Labrador Doberman cross, whose owner is a double amputee and registered blind.

This image really struck a chord with