This is a small print that came into my possession one way or another, and it's a fine early example of street photography. It probably dates from the 1920s and I have no idea as to either the location or the identity of the subjects. Like all such photos, however, it is dripping with social … Continue reading Walking Snaps
Category: Pictures From Nowhere
Portrait Of An Unknown Man With Hair
Let me start by saying that I have no idea who this is. Neither do I know how it came into my possession. Whatever the story of its life as a photograph - from Victorian studio to the box in the corner of my room marked "Found Photos" - it surely pales into insignificance compared … Continue reading Portrait Of An Unknown Man With Hair
Tall And Short
You can see how this photograph came about, you can read the mind of the photographer - big and small, tall and short, contrasts ... or whatever. The really intriguing question is who are these five men and could they possibly be related. There are some facial similarities, but surely the gene pool couldn't be … Continue reading Tall And Short
Tasker And Self At The Gliding Club
You almost get a sense of freedom when you are dealing with found photographs (aka photos of unknown origin). The photographs are really "moments in time"; the subjects have no back stories and their futures our outside our knowledge or control. You are free to concentrate on the image itself. That instant in time that … Continue reading Tasker And Self At The Gliding Club
Chapters From A Book Yet To Be Written
This group of young ladies, in what can only be described as eccentric dress, comes from a batch of photographs I bought several years ago which also contained some photographs of performances by the Brighouse Amateur Theatrical Society. We can therefore surmise that these fine ladies were the chorus from some Brighouse amateur theatrical production … Continue reading Chapters From A Book Yet To Be Written
Some Stone, Some Cast Iron, Some Concrete
It's one of those images you can't categorise: part photo, part impression, part memory. Look closely and you might spot some stone, some cast iron, some concrete, and a fair amount of vegetation added for taste. Look closely, and you might even spot Halifax.
What A Difference An “E” Makes
A new batch of Victorian and Edwardian Carte de Visites dropped through my letterbox the other day and amongst them was this fabulous little photograph. Whilst most of such random purchases can only be captioned “unknown sitter”, this particular one had the addition of a pencilled name and date on the back. The date was … Continue reading What A Difference An “E” Makes
As Was
In those days, if you were going to have your photograph taken, you would get out your Sunday best, your chapel suits and parlour dresses. You’d wash your faces, comb your hair, and smile against a studio backdrop. Not this family, however. THIS WAS LIFE AS IT WAS.
Photographic History At Its Seductive Best
This has always been one of my favourite Found Photographs - a tiny two inch print of unknown origin with the name Ethel Johnston written on the back. It could have jumped out of William Boyd's fabulous "Sweet Caress" - photographic history at its seductive best.
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