Category Archives: history

holy mouse-traps, Batman!

Posted on April 30, 2020 by Robert

Toronto. Sitting comfortably on vacation on the shores of Lake Como, Henry painted the lush Italian landscape. 1834 was a wonderful year. As he idly dreamed, he thought about ways to capture the scene without recourse to his brushes. Back … Continue reading →

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have camera, will travel

Posted on April 29, 2020 by Robert

Toronto. The dirty ’30s! What a terrible time. What a wonderful time. Itinerant photographers, known since the beginning of the art, roamed the streets searching for a buck. Many had just a camera plus a pony and assistant for a … Continue reading →

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village people

Posted on April 27, 2020 by Robert

Toronto. Ever hear of the Chautauqua movement? I didn’t either! It was an American organization that expanded into Ontario at Niagara-on-the-Lake. George Dunbar wrote, “A friend sent me this link to the history of Chautauqua, Niagara-on-the-Lake. Some interesting old photographs here. To … Continue reading →

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toys for little boys

Posted on April 26, 2020 by Robert

Toronto. Sawyers of View-Master fame were justifiably proud of using Kodak products. This link is to a review of the talk we heard on September 20, 2006 by Mary Ann and Wolfgang Sell, members of the NSA and View-Master experts. An advertisement … Continue reading →

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another high flyer

Posted on April 23, 2020 by Robert

Toronto. American photographer and LIFE photographer, Margaret Bourke-White was very popular mid last century. I wrote a post on her back in March 18, 2019 of last year. This photo (at left) shows her high above NYC using a press … Continue reading →

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taking a bite in the big apple

Posted on April 22, 2020 by Robert

Toronto. This photo was taken in 1932 by an unknown photographer,  It shows a bunch of skyscraper workers sitting out in space along a girder as they eat lunch high above NYC at a time when many skyscrapers were being … Continue reading →

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1906 – a bad year for San Francisco

Posted on April 21, 2020 by Robert

Toronto. We often feature photographers here. This time it is the German/American Arnold Genthe. He had the fortune (misfortune?) to be in San Francisco in 1906 when a devastating earthquake struck California near that city. Genthe’s photos are available on … Continue reading →

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the Jack Roy of photography

Posted on April 20, 2020 by Robert

Toronto. Jack Roy used the stage name of Rodney Dangerfield. As Dangerfield, his catch phrase was, “I don’t get no respect”.  The vast majority of professional and amateur photographers viewed Polaroid in the same light. Polaroid had very innovative cameras … Continue reading →

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Yousuf Russia LIFE 1963

Posted on April 19, 2020 by Robert

Toronto. One of our most famous portrait photographers of all time was Karsh of Ottawa. Some members strive to collect portraits taken by Karsh. One member – Shelton Chen – even wrote and published a book of Karsh Portraits. In … Continue reading →

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gearing up for great pix

Posted on April 17, 2020 by Robert

Toronto. In the early decades of photography, the media were so slow a hat or lens cap worked just fine to control exposures. Lenses were left open or used waterhouse stops inserted into a slot in the lens barrel until … Continue reading →

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