1896, 1924, 1956, 1998
Four generations starting with my granddad (in the photo) born in Italy in 1896 and came to the US in 1901 through Ellis Island and worked as handyman and painter in NYC. My dad, born in 1924, still active at 94 years old. Joined the Navy at 17 and fought in the South Pacific. He was tugboat crewman, a teacher, a professional photographer, an amateur musician and more. Me, born in 1956. A theologian, technologist, and marketing/communications consultant. And my son, born in 1998, a Junior in college, Air Force ROTC, and headed to pilot training. My grandfather lived with us so my life exposure spans 1896-today. Amazing.
My Grandfather at a Bus Stop in Frenchtown NJ
This photo was taken by my dad with a 620 box camera held at waist level similar to this camera.
The Assignment
We have an interesting challenge for you this week creative Framers. The challenge is “old” and yes, you are going to have to think first WHAT you would define as old before you even start shooting.Just like every other week, you are encouraged to interpret this theme in any creative way that you can think of. You can, for example, edit a photo to make it look old. You can take a photo of an elderly person or an “old” object such as a music cassette or a dial phone. Maybe you can go and look in your granny’s for some vintage clothing. Or you can even try and take a photo with an old camera. Our wabi-sabi lovers can go and look again for beauty in the old, the worn, or anything else that shows the patina of life. Remember that we are quite a diverse group here and everyone will think a bit differently about EXACTLY what is old, so please keep that in mind. We live in an instant and fast-paced world and just about everything seems old in a few months or even weeks. So this week, we are making space for the old and showing that it is still beautiful and appreciated.