A man on each arm

Such a great freeze frame of some of the fashion of the era. I just adore the sailor themed outfit the girl is wearing. It must have been pretty muddy out, as they appear to have rain boots on. There is nothing on the other side to tell where in the world we are. Maybe its better to just guess.

More presents

Another great shot of some young girl unwrapping her gift. I've noticed that most photos at christmas revolve around materialistic items. Presents, Decorations, Dinner, Trees. Maybe thats because it is so hard to capture the sir it of the holiday season on film. Or, perhaps those material things are so intwined with the emotions we feel this time of year that its hard to tell them apart.

Christmas unboxing

A typical shot of christmas morning, with everyone unwrapping presents, finding out what Santa brought them. One boy got a Walkie Talkie. I wonder where its partner is. On the left it gives the date as JAN 70 ,but thats a little off. It's sad that this photo is no longer with the family, but at least they have the memories. 

This is my entry for Sepia Saturday.

Ananas

The french word for Pineapples, which I found immensely funny in elementary school. These people seem to be peeling (?) a lot of them. A luau, perhaps? Behind the chain link fence there appear to be even more in the ground, so this is probably Hawaii or somewhere apse as tropic. When I first saw this photo, I didn't even notice what the man was doing, I could only look at that woman's glasses. Almost as big as Edna Modes from The Incredibles. They go with her dress. How go-go.

Oh Canada

I just love these small Kodachrome prints. these ones were taken in september 1960. On the sing it says "Canadian royal mounted police". Based on the trees, this was probably taken in Ontario or British Colombia. I still haven't figured out exactly where.

The same but different

Sometimes when you are at a flea market or buy a group lot on eBay, it's easy to spot photos that come from the same family. It could be the handwriting on the back, the development sticker, or maybe a familiar face. But sometimes, they seem completely different. In this one, I almost didn't see that they were taken in the same room. Both had different people in them, and were shot at angles that were slightly different that I had no clue they were related. What tipped me off was the fruit painting in the top right corner. If not for that, these two would never have been together.

Trim and a haircut

Some people who collect photos only focus on the image. The image is the most important thing, but we shouldn't forget that a found photo is a 3 diminutional object. Some have borders, some have smudges or ripped corners. Some, like this one, have been trimmed, perhaps to fit in an album, or just for aesthetics. This one really helps with what would be a rather pedestrian photo.

Vignette

This shot was obviously taken by a professional. It was put on some very nice postcard stock and looks to have stood the test of time well. Unfortunately, there is no information on the back, so it could have been reprinted. All we have is this woman's face, fading away.

Polaroid

Polaroids have always had their charm, whether it be a classic sx-70 with the iconic borders, or the colour pack film with its over saturated pictures. But another great kind is the black and white shots. This one is from the 60s or 70s at some unnamed play park. That jungle gym is probably still their. Happy kids, smiling faces.

Death

Some photos don't need words on the back to tell a story. This one looks to be at a funeral or hospital. The whittled flowers make it all the more sad. It's one of the smallest photos in my collection.

Ain't she sweet

Even though this is a minuscule photo, less than an inch, it has amazing clarity. On the back, written in fountain pen is:

Ain't she sweet. Incidentally, the spots on my face belong to the veil, not my face                                                            July 1939.

I love this caption. I wonder why she had that veil. Perhaps she was at a funeral, but I feel this was a happier occasion. The background gives us nothing else to go on, but it seems to be chosen carefully. The photographer looks to be somewhat skilled. Or, it as just a fluke. Who knows.

A villa on the water.

Sometimes, black and white can make water look spectacular. Maybe it was taken in a low lying boat, or it could be on a shore bank. Either way, They got a good perspective. I'm no architect, but the buildings don't look north american. It could just be a style. Wherever it is, It looks like a wonderful place to relax.
This is part of an eBay lot of 300 photos. To see others from that collection, click the "300" tag.

Tiny

One of the defining features of found photos is the size of them. There are very few large no  professional photos. most vernacular ones are no bigger than 6" by 4". Anything more than that is an enlargement. Amateur photography wasn't meant to be large and filled with detail. It was just supposed to document a person or place or event. In the same way as he telephone was only clear enough to hear another voice the consumer photograph was meant to show just enough to get a rough idea of what happened. This one is on the smaller end, measuring less than an inch. However, this one looks to be cut from another, larger photograph. How big it was originally is a mystery.

One big family

Before the holidays are totally over, I thought I'd treat you to Three found photos. They were all taken at the same time and place, perhaps a family reunion or a wedding. The first two are all the kids with a grandmother. The last one has some more adults with some questionable hairstyles. Judging them as well as the clothes puts these photos right in the middle of the sixties. All of those kids are the baby boomers. Who knows what they accomplished.

Meaning

Last week we talked about Photos with no meaning. This one is different. On the surface, It looks like it could be Just an accidental photo, but with the instantness of polaroid, it probably wouldn't have survived. Looking at the composition, This could be an artistic photograph. Look at the composition, the leading lines, the repetition. This was clearly planned. Except it wasn't. On the back, it says:
                                      2 1/2 in. at one end       1 1/2in at the other end.                                                          It wasn't a keen eyed photographer at all, just a construction worker who needed to take measurements. Of course, there are still mysteries, such as where and what this is and what those figures mean. But those are questions for another time.

Two of hearts

These two photos came in a large grab bag on ebay (you can see others by using the 300 tag). Sometimes when you have more photos you get more clues, like where they are, what they are doing and even who they are. Other times, it just raises more questions. Is that woman the babies Mother, or a relative, or someone else? Is the photographer the dad, or an uncle? Where are they? There are no clues on the back, only some prices on the back from an antique store. I guess sometimes things have to stay a mystery.

Third wheel

I feel that in this photo you can tell who the odd one out was. Sure, it could be that the viewfinders back then were hard to use, but that takes some of the story away. Maybe girl number 2 stayed bitter all these years, or it could be totally reversed. Another theory would be that the other friend is behind the camera, but thats not very interesting. What is interesting are their shoes.

Scott

This is from a lot a purchased on eBay with the theme of cameras in the shot. It should be no secret that I adore vintage cameras and have over 300 in my collection. This one has a Kodak Instamatic in it. It appears to be an early model without the signature flashcubes, but instead, a flashbulb. Seeing cameras in photos like these also makes you realize that the photo didn't just appear, it was created by someone else. Who were they? Why did they take it? So many questions. Back to the shot: I love how the person at the centre of the photo (On the back it says he's Scott) poses. He looks confident, ready for anything , but also laid back. Nothing else on the back, so we have no idea who the guy holding the camera is. Or, he could be Scott. The is the mystery of found photos that is so fascinating.