Furry Shoulders

I've written this before, but it bears repeating.  Photographs of women are more interesting then men.  The long dress, the hat, the lace-up boots, and, of course, the fur.  Not a lot of variety in pictures of men.  Women, on the other hand, are all over the place.

Plant Head

A note to photographers everywhere.  Always check the background.  You can never tell what might be lurking back there.

Wallet Photos

When I worked at the photo labs, I hated printing wallet photos.  It wasn't that they were harder to print than any other photo, it was, that when I was done printing, I had to spend time with a razor blade and  T-square trimming everything down to size.  The labs that I worked didn't really cater to that market, but every once in awhile....Let's just say that trimming out 100 wallet prints has to be one of the dullest jobs on earth.

Fun fact, credit cards are the size that they are because of wallet photos.  It didn't take long after the invention of photography for wallet makers to realize that people would want to carry photos of their family and friends around in their pocket.  When credit cards came along, it was obvious, that if they were made the same size as a wallet photo, there would be a ready made slot for them.  Today, as all those photos get transferred to smart phones,  all that's left in the wallet are credit cards and a driver's license, also the size of a wallet photo.

Cat's Eye Glasses

I've always liked those vintage cat's eye glasses.  It's that whole alluring librarian thing.  (If you can't tell, I love to read.)  But that hair.  An unfortunate fifties fashion choice.

Photo studios often provide their customers with small, quick and dirty, prints so they can choose which images get blown up.  That's what this collection of photos was for.  And the winner is...The top photo in the column.  At least it's the one with an X on the back.  

The Little Sister

Written on the back, "Your "little" sister Irene."  I've got a lot of pictures of women in the files, and will be putting some of them up over the next few posts.

The Interview

At first glance this one seems pretty straight forward.  Two people sitting in a living room.  Well dressed, so maybe a party or a couple getting ready to go out for the evening.  But then, we see the microphone, and the man holding some papers.  Is it someone's home, or is it an office of some kind?  There is a piano and some chairs, but no couch.  A waiting room, maybe.  The woman is paying attention to the man, but is she also speaking into the microphone?  Is she someone famous being interviewed?  On the radio, perhaps, or maybe a recording?  Does the piano indicate that she's a musician, or is it just a bit of furniture, a bit of status for the middle class?  Even the picture in the background raises questions.  It has a label on the frame, so probably not a family photo.  Is that little metal plate for the benefit of visitors, or did it just come with the picture, bought at a local furniture store?  Such a small photograph, but so many mysteries.  Dated, "OCT 58"

1908

No, 1908 is not the date this photo was taken.  Take a look at the lamp post on the left.  Now that that is cleared up, won't someone tell me the location of this picture.  The building in the background is pretty distinctive.  My guess is Paris, from the 1920s, and that this young lady is hanging out with the whole lost generation crowd.