Crooked Family Tree

West 47th Street, NY NY (circa 1934)

On a recent visit with my amazing Aunt Pat on Long Island, we sat down and browsed thru some old family photographs.  What an absolute treasure.  Most of the pictures were not labeled at all, and some had partial information.  Together, we played detective for a few hours and filled in as many of the blanks as possible.

We grouped the pictures in a variety of ways … some had obviously shot the same day, others had matching serial numbers on the back from the developer, while others were so unique we couldn’t group them.  If one picture was labeled “About 1928″ we carefully wrote that on the like pictures.  If 5 pictures were all of the same people (and we were certain who those people were) we wrote the same info on each picture.  Maybe they will get separated in the future.

At one point Aunt Pat asked, “Have you done this with your own pictures?”

Ack.  The more I think about my own pictures, the more worried I get.  It’s all fine and good that the majority are digital … but almost none are labeled with names and places.  That is something that will get easier with time.

Dates and times have been part of digital pictures from the beginning.  Many new cameras have started tagging photos with GPS information (referred to as geotagging).  iPhoto ‘09 has added facial recognition.  Those technologies will become more and more the standard over time.  But what good is that if your pictures are rotting away on an old hard drive or CD-ROM.  Yup.  CDs and DVDs aren’t going to last a fraction as long as those unlabeled pictures sitting in that shoebox.

Get in the habit of printing them, or copying them to new media every few years.

To understand my favorite photograph of the day, you have to know that I’ve never seen my grandmother smile.  She was … serious.  Even when in a good mood, she had a stern look on her face.  Also, my grandfather passed away before I was born.  If this photo had been taken today, I think almost any photographer would have deleted it immediately.  But look closely and you’ll see it tells a story.

Dellers at Sunken Meadows

The camera was probably set on the ground (the grass is so close to the lens).  I think the timer has been set.  The family is in a park, maybe having a picnic.  My grandfather is sitting on his knees, with part of a smile on his face.  Had he planned on sitting lower?  Is that his suit coat under him?  To his left is Uncle Lawrence, waiting patiently.  The picture was taken the year my father was born, but he’s not in the picture.  Grandma is likely pregnant with him.  Aunt Patricia holds her baby doll and wears a grin as she watches Grandma race into position.  Look closely at my grandmother and you might see it.  Is that a dimple?  And a smile?  She tries to sit down in time.  Click.  She doesn’t quite make it, and I’m thankful.