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Tag Archives: vintage photography

Teeny, Tiny Puppy

September 6, 2016
Vintage Photobooth
41 Comments

photoboothgermanytinypuppygirl

In this photobooth photo from 1930s Germany, you could almost miss seeing the tiny dog swaddled in a blanket. By the size and angle of the hand, it appears to me that this slightly nervous looking girl is not the one holding the petite pup. I won’t stand by that observation, as it could simply be an illusion of perspective created by the hand’s relative proximity to the camera, but it seems to be a hand too large to belong to such a small child.

The composition of this image is striking though, no doubt, unintentional. It nicely emphasises the diminutive size of both child and canine. I also like the fact that one can see the bottom of the backdrop curtain, a feature mostly obscured in early booth photos.

Fake Fur Fabulousness

August 19, 2016
Vintage Photobooth
37 Comments

photoboothSerbiaLady1970s

I bought this photo from a gentleman in Serbia. As for the other two photos I have posted from the same seller, I hope this is a Serbian woman, or in the case of this having been taken in the late 1970s or early 1980s, (the most likely possible dates of the image) a Yugoslavian woman.

I was very taken with the look on this young lady’s face. The position of her poised hand, gently resting on her chin, gives her a quizzical, thoughtful appearance. This is intensified by the lovely, faraway look in her eye. I wonder if she chose this position to make sure her ring was captured in the frame? Her fake fur coat looks warm and cozy but not like any real animal I can think of, save for a hyena.

As with all my photos, I wonder how this little gem escaped its home and made it onto an auction website? Maybe this was given as a token of affection to a boyfriend; the one who gave her the ring, perhaps? And as relationships come and go, the owner may no longer have cared enough to keep the image. Unfortunately, we will never know, but she is loved and respected here at least.

 

About A Boy – 1965

August 4, 2016
About A Boy, Vintage Photobooth
16 Comments

photoboothAboutABoy06

This is the sixth and final part of a series of photobooth strips of the same American boy. I think he would have been 14 or 15 years old when he sat for these photos.

In this group of snaps, our handsome subject is looking like he is close to getting his man face but is still not quite grown up. Sadly, he has lost his unrestrained joy at making faces for the camera. Maybe he was just concentrating so hard on holding up his friend, that he forgot to smile. Either way, it is the tiny pup that has now become the star of the show. He is a cute little canine, who appears to be a lot more cooperative in the portrait taking stakes than my own pooch, Snowy.

Well before coming to the end of this series, some of my loyal commenters wondered what he might look like now, or where he might be? Unfortunately without a name to add to these photo treasures, it is highly likely we will never know.

To see the other photos of this young man, please click here. And while you are clicking, you could try hitting here to see another long series of photos of a girl called Becky or here to see another girl growing up in a photobooth, Donna.

About A Boy – 1964

August 3, 2016
About A Boy, Vintage Photobooth
7 Comments

photoboothAboutABoy05

This is part five of a series of photobooth strips of the same American boy. For each year that there are photobooth pictures in this group, I have estimated his age. In these photos I think he would be 13 or 14 years old.

With an unusual hat and ill-fitting jacket, the young extrovert of earlier photos is still in evidence. He is still showing some joy at having his photo taken, but not nearly as much as in earlier photos. Rather than a lumberjack coat, this time he is wearing a lumberjack shirt.

Do you think his mother bought the jacket two sizes larger than needed, as mums do in the middle of these growth spurt years? Or could the jacket be his dad’s or a hand-me-down from an older brother? I imagine this boy to be an only child due to his appearing in so many photos without a sibling, so do not particularly like the hand-me-down hypothesis. And what type of hat is that? I have no clue!

To see the other photos of this young man, please click here. And while we are at it, you could click here to see another long series of photos of a girl called Becky or here to see another girl growing up in a photobooth, Donna.

Wedding Shopping- 1 November 2002

July 25, 2016
Photobooth 45 Year Project (Archive)
9 Comments

photoboothTriniWeddingPrep
1 November 2002, Melbourne Central Shopping Centre

Whilst living in the UK, I briefly returned to Australia to be bridesmaid for my bestie Petrina. We snapped this strip of photos whilst out buying bits and pieces for her special day.

This group of photos comes from my series Photobooth 41 Year Project. You can see all the posts that document the series by clicking here. I am still adding to this project using mostly digital booths to create the images. The project is now close to entering its 44th year. Could it be the world’s longest photobooth project?

About A Boy – 21 December 1959

July 25, 2016
About A Boy, Vintage Photobooth
4 Comments

 

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This is part three of a series of photobooth strips of the same little American boy. My estimate is that he would be 9 or ten in these photos.

I wonder if the first strip was deemed unsuccessful, resulting in the second one being taken with a different background and a properly adjusted seat? I like the way the second strip shows a progression from not quite ready, to small smile, to bigger smile, to wide eyed grin. We can still see the cheekiness and spirit on show in previous strips, albeit slightly toned down.

Having been taken on the same day, he is wearing the same lumberjack coat in both strips. Being slow to pick up on fashion trends in those days, this style of boy’s clothing didn’t make it to Australia until the 1970s. It is a trend that is currently being revived in some retail outlets today. Blah! But I digress! It is interesting to me that with a less reflective background, his hair looks much darker and by adjusting the seat he looks older than in the first strip.

To see the other photos in the series, please click here.

Puppy Love

July 14, 2016
Vintage Photobooth
20 Comments

photoboothChildPuppyDon'tOwn

A special little photo that, sadly, somebody else owns. Enjoy!

Moose-Tache

July 6, 2016
Vintage Photobooth
8 Comments

photoboothCarteD'identite

I purchased this French identity card solely due to the wonderful moustache of the sitter. It almost wouldn’t have mattered if it had not even been a photobooth photo, such is my love of his facial, follicular folly.*

So, let me introduce to you Cesar Joseph Henri. I am unable to work out his surname, unfortunately. He was described as being 1.70 metres tall, having an oval face, strong nose and brown eyes. Strangely, his hair is described as grissonant (greying), which seems very polite given that he looks to be well and truly into silver fox territory, and especially strange when they then go on, quite impolitely, to say he has a bad complexion.

Cesar was born in Marseille on 25 September 1873, making him 66 years old when he applied for the card. Marked with the seal of the 4th Arrondisement of Marseille on the 18 December, 1939, one assumes that this city was his lifelong residence.

When it comes to his facial-hair, fashion choices, Cesar looks to have his feet firmly planted in the century in which he was born. His taste for a style of the Victorian era must have been very passé by 1939.

As the title of this post suggests, the size of his moustache makes me think of the elaborate antlers of a mature bull moose. It is known that the size of antlers signals to the female moose, the male’s social standing and breeding abilities. Perhaps, amusingly, this is what our sitter was wanting to project to the female populace of Marseille.

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* I just had to throw in the word folly, as fellow blogger Melinda Harvey and I have decided it is a marvellous word that deserves greater quotidian usage. I felt I needed to throw in another of my favourite words, quotidian, just ’cause I could. Please take a look at Melinda’s blog, One Day/One Image, if you love contemporary black and white photography. You will not be disappointed.

 

Twins – 22 June, 1962

June 22, 2016
Vintage Photobooth
22 Comments

photoboothTwinsMF
As I still use a photobooth that produces images very like this one, it is hard to believe this photo was taken 54 years ago, today.

I recently bought this from an American seller. The listing stated that the pair above, were male and female twins, on the basis of an M and F marked on the back of the photo, along with the date. I don’t believe it. I think they are both boys. The letters could just as easily be referring to their names, Mackenzie and Felix for example.

I would like to know what you think. Are these twin boys, twin girls or a boy and a girl? Please leave a comment, below.

 

A Gentleman Of Distinction

June 17, 2016
Vintage Photobooth
15 Comments

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photoboothGermanGentleman01

I do not own these two striking portraits, unfortunately. These are scans from the website where they were sold. I was taken by the gentleman’s confident and regal bearing, so put in a bid, but lost out at the last moment.

These poses are more suited to a formal studio-composed photographic portrait, than to a five minute snap in a humble photobooth. The images date from the 1930s and were taken in Germany.

My gent is wearing a very well tailored and no doubt fashionable overcoat. His felt hat looks luxurious and expensive. I can just see him flicking the brim upwards, after having positioned the hat at just the right angle, prior to heading out into a bitter winter wind. Around his neck he is wearing what my Grandfather called an opera scarf, probably made of white silk. I imagine his breast-pocket handkerchief also to be white and made of the finest linen. His scarf is covering most of his tie but one can just discern a flattened dot pattern woven into the, doubtless silk, fabric.

He looks to be a well off and important man, who knows that image and demeanour are everything. I wonder why he chose to take these photos? Was his hat or coat new? Did he want to try a photobooth for the first time? It would have been an innovation and novelty in the 30s. No doubt he was very pleased with the results as the photos have been kept in good condition for over 80 years. I am envious of the new owner and hope that they look after the photos so that they last for at least another 80 years.