Category Archives: history

exciting city life and death

Posted on August 22, 2023 by Robert

Toronto. A news photographer led a hectic and dangerous job at times. We have seen many news photographers in Toronto, including our late editor Bob Lansdale and his wife Margaret. Bob mentioned to me at one time getting a shot … Continue reading →

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a broader view

Posted on August 18, 2023 by Robert

  Toronto. Over a century ago, cameras were made to take a very wide, ‘panorama’, photo. Kodak made some with a lens that swings in a 180 degree arc and the famous geared version (Cirkut) that rotated the entire camera … Continue reading →

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heavenly shower

Posted on August 16, 2023 by Robert

Toronto. Each year as the world rotates around the sun, it passes through the comet debris known as the Perseids meteors. The best and most spectacular display of the resulting ‘shooting stars’ is mid August. While Astronomical  Photography was and … Continue reading →

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train photography

Posted on August 13, 2023 by Robert

Toronto. For many decades travel by train was elite. Train travel gave way to aircraft in time and then passenger trains slowly disappeared for the most part. Most modern day trains are busy shipping goods across North America. A couple … Continue reading →

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aide-de-combat

Posted on August 9, 2023 by Robert

Toronto. The idea for this article comes from my good friend George Dunbar. The Legion magazine is online in both official languages. We mentioned war photographers in a number of earlier posts. Here we relate to the techniques of the … Continue reading →

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botany and the first book with cyanotypes of specimens

Posted on August 5, 2023 by Robert

Toronto. Did you ever wonder about the first time a book was printed with photographs included? And the topic? and the author? Well, wonder no more! My good friend and fellow PHSC member, Les Jones, (author, sports photographer, past president … Continue reading →

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Lucy again

Posted on August 4, 2023 by Robert

Toronto. No, not the TV series, “I Love Lucy”, and the madcap antics of Lucille Ball, her husband Desi,  and friends. but the tiny drawing aid, the camera lucida. In an earlier post this year (Feb 19th, 2023) titled simply … Continue reading →

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it ain’t no Leica

Posted on August 1, 2023 by Robert

Toronto. Like many 1940s, and ’50s 35mm cameras in contemporary ads, Clarus touted quality comparing the camera indirectly to a Leica, but far less costly. Like the famous little camera manufactured in Germany by Leitz, Clarus was small, compact, chose … Continue reading →

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the stone kids

Posted on July 31, 2023 by Robert

Toronto. Giass was king of the photographic base materials for decades covering wet plate, dry plate, and into the film era. Glass was an ideal medium for photography. It was transparent, flat,  grain free – if carefully made – and … Continue reading →

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focus eruptus

Posted on July 30, 2023 by Robert

Toronto. Photography was used to record volcanic activity over a century ago, an activity that continues to this day. A more recent example being a colour video of  an eruption in Hawaii (shown on TV). The record of an eruption … Continue reading →

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