Photography, dodgy hair cuts, strange fashions and family

Me and my dad circa 1975, Saundersfoot.

I have just been looking through some old photographs that I scanned and saved onto the computer several years ago. I hadn't realised that I had transferred them over to my laptop too, so it was rather a nice surprise to find them sitting in a file waiting for me to open it up. Isn't it strange looking back and seeing your parents looking so young? This is a photograph of me and my dad at Saundersfoot beach, I would guess at 1975 judging by my age. For the record I have no plans to terrify the public and copy the clothing from the photograph. I promise that you are all safe.

As a social history addict, I adore looking at old photographs, particularly of family. I was lucky enough to have borrowed all my Gran's photo albums and to have scanned quite a lot of them in. Some of the photographs that I like the best are from the early 1900s up to the late 1930s, predominantly of my Gran and her family. It's wonderful to see the change in the way that we take and pose for photographs over the last hundred years. For instance, the photograph to the left is my Grandad and his mom in 1917, while the one below that is my Gran (standing on the chair), her three sisters and their nanny. I'm not sure of the date of this one, but my Gran was born 1919, so I would guess at early 1920s. My Great Grandmother passed away from uterine cancer when my Gran was still quite young, after spending time in an asylum. I am unsure of the reason that she had been committed, and sometimes wonder if it was due to post-natal depression or some similar condition.

If you compare these with the photographs below, I am sure you'll agree that there is a huge difference in the way that people pose for the camera. Part of that is going to be down to changes in technology. The cameras used to take these two photographs in 1917 and early 1920s would have had much slower shutters speeds to achieve the same quality of photograph, in comparison with today. It looks as though my gran had moved a little here, as her face is slightly blurred and she does look as though she's getting bored. I think another big thing is the change in the way we dress. Both these photos are not only much more posed, but clothes seem more formal - particularly if you look at the photographs below.

The photograph immediately to the left shows my Great Grandmother, Jessie, and her grandchildren - from left to right they are Pam, Georgina (Bunt), my dad Pete and Christopher. I love the differences in how the photographs are taken; everything is so much more casual. Shutter speeds, films, heck everything to do with photography has improved by around 1950 when this was taken. But still, if you look at this in comparison to the photo of me and my dad, clothing is still much more formal and covering much more - and, is my uncle Chris wearing a tie while paddling in the sea? I am finding that a little on the weird side.

Bunt, Pam, Gran, Dad, Chris - I think at Dudley Zoo.

I know that the earlier photos have been taken in a formal photographers studio while the one from the 1950s and mine from 1975 are outdoors and much more casual, but even so all of the photographs are, to some degree posed. The photographer has had to choose when to take the photo, from what angle, who and what to include, as well as all the decisions involved in shutter speed, aperture, focus and so on. In truth, there isn't any such thing as a completely natural photograph, because even if the subject is unaware of the camera, the photographer is making all those decisions and creating the image that they want you to see.

Personally, I'm just glad that fashion has changed and become more casual, even if it has included some dodgy mom hair-cuts when it came time for school photographs, as evidenced by the photo of me and my brother, below. Yes, that is me in a dress - not something you're likely to see repeated all that often. I would say that I was around 3 in that photograph, with my brother, Simon, still under one year old. Thank you for tolerating my fascination with photography and social history. Believe me, I love to see everybody's photographs on social media - even selfies - though I do admit that I am less keen on photographs where people are trying to imitate ducks...