Category Archives: history

a fair collection

Posted on October 8, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. In 1880, the company that became Bell Canada was founded in this city – later to move to Montreal, the major city in Canada at the time. The site called Daily Hive has numerous photos of the CNE over … Continue reading →

Posted in history | Tagged , , | Comments Off on a fair collection

so near yet so far

Posted on October 6, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. The second book in Douglas Adams‘ five volume “trilogy” – The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – is titled “The Restaurant at the end of the Universe“. It clarifies the difference between physical distance and temporal distance. Similarly, while … Continue reading →

Posted in history | Tagged , , | Comments Off on so near yet so far

he is the flash man

Posted on October 5, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. The March, 1946 edition of Popular Mechanics has an article on a unique 35mm camera designed for the US Army’s Surgeon General. Around the camera’s lens is a flash tube that flashes a 1/25,000th second burst of light “brighter … Continue reading →

Posted in history | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on he is the flash man

anything for a buck …

Posted on October 4, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. Some people will do anything for money. While a dollar ring sounds junky (and maybe it was), 20 years later 18k gold was still about $25/ounce Canadian. This ad, from the March 1946 issue of Popular Mechanics magazine, touts … Continue reading →

Posted in history | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on anything for a buck …

a letter of recommendation

Posted on October 3, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. Have you ever noticed that others imitate successful processes? For decades in the first half of last century, camera makers used to tout how reliable their models were by printing  ‘letters’ from organizations that pushed them to the max. … Continue reading →

Posted in history | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on a letter of recommendation

Sgt Leonard E Thompson: Combat Cameraman WW2

Posted on September 30, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. Being a small country (population), and a relatively new country, we seldom see our heros get recognition. Sgt Thomson is a fine example. The Canadian Film & Photo Unit website recounts many tales of the Canadian photographers who recorded … Continue reading →

Posted in history | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Sgt Leonard E Thompson: Combat Cameraman WW2

more than one way …

Posted on September 26, 2022 by Robert

Toronto.. … to skin a cat (sorry cat lovers) was an expression when I was a kid. It meant that a problem often had more than one solution. During the Great War (WW1), a Canadian hospital (McGill hospital) was set … Continue reading →

Posted in history | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on more than one way …

fit for a Queen …

Posted on September 21, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. We were all sorry to learn of the death of Queen Elizabeth II recently. Television offered numerous programs about the Queen, her history, and her state funeral. In one program we learned of her favourite past times. I found … Continue reading →

Posted in history | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on fit for a Queen …

the way we were

Posted on September 20, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. Photography changed the way we look at the world and ourselves for ever. Today the smartphone bunch knock off stills and videos galore. When photography began, it took skill and patience to ‘create’ a likeness of the scene in … Continue reading →

Posted in history | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on the way we were

face of the future

Posted on September 18, 2022 by Robert

Toronto. Today, with smartphones de rigueur,  we take television and videos for granted. It wasn’t always so. In 1926, the Scottish inventor, John Baird held a demonstration for the media in London, England. Baird demonstrated, “the first workable system of … Continue reading →

Posted in history | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on face of the future