Have you ever been here?
Have you ever noticed that tourists take pictures of the same spot, over and over?
Here for instance are three photographs of Balancing Rock near Colorado Springs, Colorado. They are from three different estate sales and unrelated in any other way except they are black and white photographs. They are taken from almost identical camera angles.
It's probably because the spot is an easy one to access, to get the family in the picture and the light is right for the time of day.
There are photographs of this rock from many angles, but this one is repeated often.
This is called Balancing Rock. It's a popular tourist shot with or without the guy holding it up.
This one at the left looks similar, but it is probably shot from the opposite direction.
Another popular tourist snap is the sign at state borders. Texas is seen often.
Umbrella Rock in Tennessee is another popular tourist destination. There are many photographs from the early days of photography, cabinet cards and real photo post cards taken by a professional photographer at the site. The photographs show the formation almost always from the same angle.
There are even post cards from that era showing the scene. The rock is fenced off now as being too dangerous.
Here are two different tourist snapshots of the same place.
Palace Ruins
but I don't know where.
This looks like the "Aztec Ruins" in western New Mexico but that is just a guess.
It is a misnomer of course. The Native American settlement is not connected with the Aztec tribe of Mexico at all.
Watch this space. There's more to come.
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I'm always surprised when photographers don't take full advantage of a rock such as you show and use the perspective of their subjects looking as if they're holding up said rock with their hands.
ReplyDeleteI know I would. Much more fun.
XO
WWW
Thanks, WWW. I hope to add more to this page soon.
ReplyDeleteYes, in researching the location I found quite a number of pictures of the rock taken from the same spot. There were a number of them posed as in picture number 3 with someone “holding up” the Balancing Rock.
I found many pictures of the “Table Rock” in Tennessee. There are people sitting and standing on and all around it. But the camera angle is the same. I saw only one with a gentleman posed as if he were holding up the left side.
It is a great temptation. I think it adds a personal touch to photographs to have a family member doing something besides just standing with their toes together, hands behind their backs and squinting in the sun.
Here is a picture I took about 15 years ago. http://www.flickr.com/photos/49024304@N00/50918964/
Oh that was a giggle, my style of pic, extraordinary rock too. I must cruise the rest of your pics, they are so interesting. Giving life to the old postcards is truly inspired!
ReplyDeleteXO
WWW
Thanks very much, WWW.
ReplyDeleteOld photographs are fascinating in many ways. When one thinks of them as a bit of time from the past, they become important and unique. A camera is our only time machine.
I hope you can take a trip through some of the thousands of photographs collected here (or on Flickr). I enjoy finding them and listening to the stories they have to tell.
When I hear comments like “My dad had a car like that,” I know I have sparked a pleasant memory.
Recently I have gotten several comments in the WW2 set. People have found the base where their dad was stationed or the actual aircraft that their dad flew missions in. One mother told me how one picture helped make a grandfather a real person to her two children by showing them the actual B-17 that he flew.
And when someone finds a relative pictured here, it is a special treat for me. On this page is one such story from the Milner family. I was able to return a dozen or so dust-bin doomed photographs to their family historian. http://lostgallery.blogspot.com/2009/03/turn-it-over-theres-something-on-back.html