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By eulee, 17/05/2010 12:08 am

Recently I found this series of images form my own family….of a few eras ago. They were residing on my mac after I scanned them a few months back. They look like they belong to a museum! This is so cool. I’m amazed at how preserved they look. I estimate the pictures of my grandma was taken when she was about 5 and that would mean that that photo would be approximately 90 years old! I guess I’m fortunate to have in possession these images from circa 1920s.

I love studying old photos. I love looking at the styling, props, posture, lighting, etc. I feel transported in time when I stare hard at them, imagining the shoot itself. Kind of like the scene from Dead Poets Society when Robin William’s character, Keating, was showing his boys some old photos and he says to them:

“They’re not that different from you, are they? Same haircuts. Full of hormones, just like you. Invincible, just like you feel. The world is their oyster. They believe they’re destined for great things, just like many of you. Their eyes are full of hope, just like you. Did they wait until it was too late to make from their lives even one iota of what they were capable? Because, you see gentlemen, these boys are now fertilizing daffodils. But if you listen real close, you can hear them whisper their legacy to you. Go on, lean in. [the students lean in] Listen, you hear it? [whispers in a raspy voice] Carpe — hear it? — Carpe, carpe diem, seize the day boys, make your lives extraordinary.”

What also amazes me is the cameras at that time had long exposures. This was taken with a large format camera, pre-Cartier Bresson and his 35mm Leica days. So one had to practically sit still for minutes while the exposure is made. Can you imagine that happening now? It’s hard to get people to sit still for 1/60s. This is one of the reasons why people look they way they do. Unsmiling. You can’t hold that smile for minutes.

So I’m very fascinated with these images, a few of the many that I scanned. There’re still quite a few still waiting for me to retouch and restore. This will be my personal project for awhile.

My great grandparents and my grandma

My grandmother

My grandparents

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By eulee, 12/03/2010 9:38 am

Folks, there’s one more slot for my upcoming workshop in April. Let me know fast if you’ve decided to join us. Details can be found in my Workshop page.