The Falklands War (Spanish: Guerra de las Malvinas) was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and its territorial dependency, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.
The conflict began on 2 April, when Argentina invaded and occupied the Falkland Islands, followed by the invasion of South Georgia the next day. On 5 April, the British government dispatched a naval task force to engage the Argentine Navy and Air Force before making an amphibious assault on the islands. The conflict lasted 74 days and ended with an Argentine surrender on 14 June, returning the islands to British control. In total, 649 Argentine military personnel, 255 British military personnel, and three Falkland Islanders died during the hostilities.
The conflict was a major episode in the protracted dispute over the territories’ sovereignty. Argentina asserted (and maintains) that the islands are Argentine territory, and the Argentine government thus characterised its military action as the reclamation of its own territory. The British government regarded the action as an invasion of a territory that had been a Crown colony since 1841. Falkland Islanders, who have inhabited the islands since the early 19th century, are predominantly descendants of British settlers, and strongly favour British sovereignty. Neither state officially declared war, although both governments declared the Islands a war zone.
The conflict has had a strong effect in both countries and has been the subject of various books, articles, films, and songs. Patriotic sentiment ran high in Argentina, but the unfavourable outcome prompted large protests against the ruling military government, hastening its downfall and the democratisation of the country. In the United Kingdom, the Conservative government, bolstered by the successful outcome, was re-elected with an increased majority the following year. The cultural and political effect of the conflict has been less in the UK than in Argentina, where it has remained a common topic for discussion.
Diplomatic relations between the United Kingdom and Argentina were restored in 1989 following a meeting in Madrid, at which the two governments issued a joint statement. No change in either country’s position regarding the sovereignty of the Falkland Islands was made explicit. In 1994, Argentina adopted a new Constitution, which declared the Falkland Islands as part of one of its provinces by law. However, the islands continue to operate as a self-governing British Overseas Territory. (Wikipedia)
HMS HERMES about to berth at Portsmouth Harbour on her return from the Falkland Islands, 21 July 1982.HMS HERMES passes HMS VICTORY as she enters Portsmouth harbour on returning from the Falklands on 21 July 1982.The aircraft carrier HMS HERMES sails out of Portsmouth for the South Atlantic, at the start of the Falklands War, 1982.HMS HERMES leaves Portsmouth for the South Atlantic, 5 April 1982.View from HMS HERMES of the vast number of small boats which welcomed the aircraft carrier home from the Falklands and escorted her into Portsmouth Harbour on 21 July 1982.Surrounded by life rafts launched by her crew, the Argentine cruiser GENERAL BELGRANO sinks after being torpedoed by the British submarine HMS CONQUEROR on 2 May 1982.THE FALKLANDS CONFLICT, APRIL – JUNE 1982 (FKD 4) The Churchill class nuclear powered submarine HMS CONQUEROR returns to her base at Faslane in Scotland on 3 July 1982 after deployment to the South Atlantic during which she sank the Argentine cruiser GENERAL BELGRANO on 2 May 1982. HMS CONQUEROR was the first nuclear submarine to sink another warship in combat. Two British Aerospace Sea Harrier FRS 1s in flight. They are from background to foreground: ZA176 and XZ451 both of 801 Naval Air Squadron.Two British Aerospace Sea Harrier FRS 1s in flight. Nearest to the camera is ZA176 of 801 Naval Air Squadron. The other aircraft is believed to be XZ451 also of 801 NAS.A formation of Royal Navy Sea Harriers in flight shortly before being deployed during the Falklands Conflict.THE FALKLANDS CONFLICT, APRIL – JUNE 1982 (FKD 83) A British Aerospace Sea Harrier (ZA177) of No 800 Naval Air Squadron, Fleet Air Arm, piloted by Lt Simon Hargreaves lands on the flight deck of the amphibious assault ship, HMS INTREPID during the Battle for Tumbledown on 13 June 1982. The Harrier was unable to use the SHEATHBILL temporary airstrip on the Falkland Islands and lacked the fuel to return to HMS HERMES. It therefore diverted to HMS INTREPID which had been recommissioned at the start of the Conflict.HMS PLYMOUTH on fire after being attacked by five Argentine Mirage aircraft on 8 June 1982. The ship was badly damaged but survived.HMS ARGONAUT on fire in San Carlos Water after being attacked and badly damaged in Argentine air attacks on 21 May 1982.The sinking of HMS ANTELOPE in San Carlos Water. The explosion of the second Argentine 1000-lb bomb on board the ship broke its back and cause the frigate to sink. A bomb disposal officer had been attempting to defuse the bomb at the time.The sinking of HMS ANTELOPE in San Carlos Water. Argentine 500lb bombs explode on board HMS ANTELOPE on the night of 23-24 May 1982. Two bombs had been dropped by an Argentine aircraft flying at extremely low level on HMS ANTELOPE during the day of 23 May. The bombs, which did not explode, lodged in the engine room of the ship. One detonated while it was being defused. The explosion broke the back of the ship which sank.The bow and stern sections of HMS ANTELOPE in San Carlos Water in the Falkland Islands after the ship was sunk by Argentine air attack on 24 May 1982.The sinking of the Royal Navy frigate HMS ARDENT. Close up showing the stern of HMS ARDENT on fire after being attacked for the second time in San Carlos Water by the Argentine Air Force on 21 May 1982. No fewer than five bombs had struck ARDENT’s hangar and flight deck area and 22 lives were lost.The sinking of the Royal Navy frigate HMS ARDENT. HMS ARDENT on fire, with HMS YARMOUTH alongside, after being attacked for the first time in San Carlos Water by the Argentine Air Force on 21 May 1982. The ship had been struck by two 1,000lb bombs and 22 lives lost. HMS YARMOUTH attempted to assist with firefighting and then evacuated the crew (who can be seen lining the side of the ship.Survivors of HMS ARDENT wearing “once-only” survival suits, on the flight deck of HMS YARMOUTH after abandoning ship in San Carlos Water on 21 May. HMS ARDENT had been damaged in two Argentine air attacks.The abandoned HMS ARDENT in San Carlos water after two Argentine air attacks. HMS YARMOUTH (left) pulls away from ARDENT after taking off her crew.A low aerial view of HMS ARDENT at anchor in San Carlos Water after being damaged in the stern by the first of two Argentine air attacks by A4-Q Skyhawks of the Argentine Navy’s 3rd Fighter Attack Squadron. In this attack, two 500lb bombs exploded in the Ship’s hangar, destroying the Westland Lynx helicopter and Seacat missile launcher. A third bomb lodged in the After Auxiliary Machinery Room without exploding. Although not disabled at the time of this photograph, the subsequent air attack brought the Ship to a halt. HMS ARDENT sank on 22 May.Damage to the hangar and after superstructure of HMS ARDENT sustained in two attacks in Falkland Sound by A4-Q Skyhawks of the Argentine Navy’s 3rd Fighter Attack Squadron in San Carlos Water on 21 May 1982. In the first attack, two 500-lb bombs exploded in the Ship’s hangar, destroying the Westland Lynx helicopter and Seacat missile launcher and a third lodged in the After Auxiliary Machinery Room without exploding. In the second attack, two more direct hits on the Ship’s stern caused the fires to spread out of control and brought her to a halt. Twenty two lives were lost during the attack. HMS ARDENT sank on 22 May.Lieutenant Commander N D Ward AFC RN, Commanding Officer of No 801 Naval Air Squadron, Fleet Air Arm on board HMS INVINCIBLE. The photograph is believed to have been taken on 21 May after Lt Cmdr Ward shot down an Argentine Mirage. He is seen here wearing his flying helmet.A Royal Navy gunner mans a deck mounted 7.62mm General Purpose machine gun for use against low-level Argentine air attack in San Carlos Water. He is wearing an anti flash hood and gauntlets as protection against the possibility of fire.Royal Marines from 3 Commando Brigade raise the Union Jack on landing at San Carlos beachhead during Operation SUTTON on 21 May 1982.The San Carlos landings on 21 May 1982. Two Royal Marines of 40 Commando keep watch at dawn, armed with a 7.62mm General Purpose machine gun, on board the P & O liner CANBERRA. HMS FEARLESS is in the background.Sergeant “Sharkey” Ward of 40 Royal Marine Commando prepares a meal on a hexamine stove in a slit trench at San CarlosView from SS CANBERRA in San Carlos Water with a Westland Sea King HC.4 on the flight deck. HMS FEARLESS is in the background.The British Task Force under Argentine air attack in San Carlos Water in the Falkland Islands, 21 May 1982. MV NORLAND is straddled by bombs as she prepares to head for open water after disembarking men of 2nd Parachute Regiment.A Royal Marine of 40 Commando on patrol near San Carlos.Three landing craft from HMS FEARLESS, containing Royal Marines from 3 Commando Brigade, head through rough seas for BLUE Beach at San Carlos on 21 May 1982. HMS FEARLESS is in the background with two Sea King helicopters on her flight deck. Delays meant that the landing operations mostly took place in daylight.Two Royal Marines of 40 Commando defend the landing site at San Carlos with a Browning .5″ machine gun. A landing craft from HMS INTREPID is in the background.A Scorpion light tank of the Blues and Royals setting off on patrol near San Carlos, with a young Falkland Islander riding in the turret as a passenger, probably to provide the crew with local knowledge.Two Royal Marines of 3 Commando Brigade “blacked up” and ready to board a landing craft at the start of Operation SUTTON, the landings at San Carlos Bay.Landing craft from HMS INTREPID approach the beach at San Carlos in the Falkland Islands to land British troops, 21 May 1982.Royal Navy Sea King Helicopters transport troops up to Darwin from San Carlos on the Falkland Islands, 28th May 1982.Burial of Argentine dead at Darwin.Two Royal Navy Westland Sea King HAS.2s with an Army Air Corps Gazelle at Fitzroy.Surrendered Argentine weapons at Port Stanley. A picture of the Madonna is taped to the butt of a discarded Argentine rifle.Captured Argentine prisoners are marched away from Goose Green under guard.An Argentine prisoner of war, one of the many who surrendered at Goose Green, cooks a meal on elementary equipment in the sheep shearing shed which was converted to a temporary holding area for Argentine prisoners .Men of 2nd Battalion, Parachute Regiment wait on board the ferry NORLAND before the landings at San Carlos in the Falkland Islands, 20 May 1982.After landing at San Carlos, a heavily laden paratrooper of 2 Parachute Regiment heads south for Sussex Mountain on 21 May 1982. From there the Battalion attacked Goose GreenSoldiers of 5 Infantry Brigade disembark at a jetty from one of HMS INTREPID’s landing craft at San Carlos Water in the Falkland Islands, 1 June 1982.Troops of 5 Infantry Brigade come ashore at San Carlos in the Falkland Islands, 2 June 1982.5 Infantry Brigade lands at San Carlos on 2 June 1982. In the foreground, men dig in. In the background troops march to their dispersal areas and a Sea King helicopter delivers a truck by air. Storage containers line a prefabricated metal roadway.5 Infantry Brigade assemble on the beachhead at San Carlos.Fires smoulder on Hill 60 near Goose Green, Darwin, following the engagement between 2 Parachute Regiment and Argentine forces on 28 May 1982.Lance Corporal Drew Sheehan and Lance Corporal Garry Bingley of 2 Parachute Regiment undertake live firing practice with a 7.62mm General Purpose Machine Gun on improvised Anti Aircraft mountings from the deck of MV NORLAND as it approaches the Falkland Islands. Corporal Bingley, who served with D Company, was killed at Goose Green on 28 May after charging an Argentine machine gun position near Coronation Ridge. He was awarded a posthumous Military Medal.Argentine prisoners, carrying their kit, walk out to the airfield at Port Stanley, where a temporary prisoner of war camp was set up by British forces after the Argentine surrender.Argentine rifles piled beside the road leading to the airfield at Port Stanley after being surrendered.The Falkland Islands Company jetty at Port Stanley after the Argentine surrender. A mixture of British and Argentine vehicles are parked in the background.Naval Party 8901, the Royal Marine garrison of the Falkland Islands evicted by the Argentine invaders, with the Falkland Islands flag outside Government House, Port Stanley, after the Argentine surrender, June 1982.Transport in Port Stanley shortly after the Argentine surrender. British and Argentine vehicles pass on the road while Royal Navy Sea King helicopters hover overhead.Destruction in Port Stanley, photographed after the Argentine surrender. The police station at Port Stanley was struck by an AS 12 missile fired by a British Wessex HU 5 helicopter of No 845 Naval Air Squadron, Fleet Air Arm on 12 June 1982. The missile had been aimed at the Town Hall which was being used by General Menendez, Commander of Argentine forces in the Falkland Islands, and his staff. This photograph was one of many confiscated from Argentine prisoners by 3 Commando Brigade Royal Marines Intelligence Section.An Argentine armoured car abandoned in the snow at Port Stanley during the Falklands winter which set in shortly after the Argentine surrender.British troops at Fitzroy.View of Fitzroy Cove with RFA SIR GALAHAD burning in the distance.RFA SIR GALAHAD on fire in Fitzroy Cove after an Argentine air attack. Thirty three Welsh Guardsmen were killed in the attack. The ship was later towed into deep water and sunk as a war grave.8 June 1982.Damage control parties fight the fires on board RFA SIR GALAHAD at Fitzroy after the Argentine air attack of 8 June.Lifeboats carrying soldiers of 1st Battalion Welsh Guards from the blazing RFA SIR GALAHAD after the devastating Argentine air attack at Fitzroy in the Falkland Islands, 8 June 1982.The remains of the damaged RFA SIR TRISTRAM (left) alongside RFA SIR GERAINT after the devastating Argentine air attack at Fitzroy on 8 June 1982.An Argentine IAI Dagger passes low over RFA SIR BEDIVERE in San Carlos Water on 24 May 1982.A Rapier surface-to-air missile battery watches out for Argentine aircraft at San Carlos in the Falkland Islands, June 1982.A Royal Marine with a Blowpipe surface to air missile defends the landing site at San Carlos.A Royal Marine of 3 Commando Brigade helps another to apply camouflage face paint in preparation for the San Carlos landings on 21 May 1982.Argentine soldiers buy postcards at a souvenir shop in Stanley, on the Falkland Islands, shortly after their invasion, on April 13, 1982.Argentine military personnel of the 601 Company take their position in the Strait of San Carlos during the Falklands War, in this May 1982 photo.On May 25, 1982, Argentine Army General Mario Benjamin Menendez, who ruled as governor for the 73 days of the Falklands War, addresses his troops in Darwin.During the 1982 Falklands War, the Argentinian cruiser General Belgrano sinks amid orange life rafts holding survivors in the South Atlantic Ocean, after being torpedoed by the British nuclear-powered hunter-killer submarine HMS Conqueror on May 1, 1982. While Argentine and Chilean ships managed to rescue 770 men, 323 were killed in the attack.Argentine soldiers carrying military supplies shortly after invading the Falkland Islands, on April 13, 1982.In Buenos Aires, tens of thousands of Argentinians gather at Plaza de Mayo to show their support for President Leopoldo Galtieri during the Falklands War on April 10, 1982.Argentine army soldiers read newspapers in Port Stanley during the Falklands War, in this April 1982 photo.Argentine “Air Macchi” fighter-bombers take part in operations over the Falkland Islands on May 21, 1982.An Argentine Hercules C-130 military aircraft flies to Puerto Argentino during the Falklands War in this May, 1982 photo.Two Argentine soldiers run along Ross Road in Port Stanley to take cover from a bombing alert during the Falklands War, on May 4, 1982.An Argentine army officer walks next to a British war plane that was shot down during the Falklands War in Darwin in this May, 1982 photo.Hundreds of people jam Calle Florida in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on May 21, 1982 to read the latest newspaper in the window of a store. The crowd was especially large when war news from the Falklands became available.The surviving crew of Argentine Navy patrol boat, Alferez Sobral, stand at attention in the city of Puerto Deseado on the Argentine mainland, during a ceremony honoring their companions killed when their boat was attacked by Britain’s HMS Coventry, on May 4, 1982.Argentine soldiers take position in Port Howard, Falkland Islands, in May of 1982.
Flamenco dancing, Spain, 1908Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, 1908Bulgarian Army with machine guns, 1908Bulgarian peasants, 1908Bulgarian shepherd, 1908Bullfighting, Madrid, 1908Children playing bullfighting, Spain, 1908Children playing in the park, Madrid, 1908Danish infantry, 1908King of Spain, 1908People at beach in San Sebastián, Spain, 1908San Sebastián beach, Spain, 1908San Sebastián beach, Spain, 1908San Sebastián beach, Spain, 1908San Sebastián, Spain, 1908San Sebastián-royal cabin, Spain, 1908Amsterdam canal, Holland, circa 1908Barcelona riots, circa 1908Beggar sweeper, London, circa 1908Bucharest street scenes, Romania, circa 1908Bullfighting, Portugal, circa 1908Cais do Sodré railway station, Lisbon, Portugal, circa 1908Cossacks, Russia, circa 1908English demonstration, circa 1908English suffragette, circa 1908Hyde Park, London, circa 1908Hyde Park, London, circa 1908Jews going to the Wailing Wall, Jerusalem, circa 1908London street scenes, England, circa 1908London, England, circa 1908Petticoat lane, London, circa 1908Police on the street in England, circa 1908Polish smile, circa 1908Princess Marie, Romania, circa 1908Princess Victoria Gde Duchess Cyril-Imperial Family, RussiaRussia, circa 1908Russian celebrity, Mrs. Kropinski, circa 1908Russian marriage in Finland, circa 1908Sandown, Isle of Wight, England, circa 1908Spanish artillery, circa 1908St. Petersburg Palace, Russia, circa 1908St. Petersburg Palace, Russia, circa 1908The quays of the Neva river in Petersburg, Russia, circa 1908
Often referred to as “The First Lady of the American Screen,” Bette Davis created a new kind of screen heroine. She was a liberated woman in an industry dominated by men. She was known as an actress that could play a variety of difficult and powerful roles, and because of this she set a new standard for women on the big screen. Independent off-screen as well, her battles with studio bigwigs were legendary. With a career spanning six decades, few in the history of film rival her longevity and appeal.
Bette Davis was born Ruth Davis on April 5, 1908 in Lowell, Massachusetts. Just before her tenth birthday, Bette’s father, Harlow, left the family. Although she had little money, her mother, Ruthie, sent Bette and her sister to boarding school. Upon graduating Cushing Academy, Bette enrolled in John Murray Anderson’s Dramatic School. In 1929, she made her Broadway debut in Broken Dishes. She also landed a role in Solid South. In 1930, she moved to Hollywood to screen test for Universal.
Six small films later, Bette’s contract with Universal was not renewed. She wanted to go back to Broadway, but a phone call from Warner Brothers quickly changed her mind. In 1932, she signed a seven-year contract with Warner Brothers. The film The Man Who Played God (1932) landed Bette on the path to stardom. She was a smash when she was lent out to RKO for the role of Mildred in Of Human Bondage (1934), her first critically acclaimed hit. Her role in Dangerous (1935) led to her nomination for a Best Actress Oscar. She became the first Warner Brothers actress to win the coveted award.
Despite her success, Warner Brothers continued to offer Bette unsatisfactory roles. In 1936, she challenged the studio by going to England to make pictures. Jack Warner sued her, and she was forced to honor her contract. Upon her return, however, Bette was offered a new contract and better roles. In 1939, Bette won her second Oscar for Jezebel (1938). She also received Oscar nominations the next five years in a row.
Although she earned a reputation for being difficult to work with, Bette set a new precedent for women. By 1942, she was the highest paid woman in America. Bette contributed to the war effort by helping to organize the Hollywood Canteen during World War II for soldiers passing through Los Angeles. Inspired by New York’s Stage Door Canteen, Bette transformed a once-abandoned nightclub into an inspiring entertainment facility. “There are few accomplishments in my life that I am sincerely proud of. The Hollywood Canteen is one of them,” Bette later commented. In 1980, she was awarded the Distinguished Civilian Service Medal, the Defense Department’s highest civilian award, for running the Hollywood Canteen.
Bette made a roaring comeback with her role as Margo Channing in All About Eve (1950), and she received her eighth Academy Award nomination. Her career was resuscitated again in 1962 with Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?. Soon after, Bette began her second career as a horror maven and continued to welcome new opportunities with television appearances. In 1987, Bette played a blind woman in The Whales of August, co-starring Lillian Gish.
With a career total of more than 100 films, Bette changed the way Hollywood looked at actresses. In 1977, she was the first woman to be honored with the American Film Institute’s Lifetime Achievement Award. She was also the first woman to be president of the Motion Picture Academy of Arts and Sciences. At the age of 75, Bette had a mastectomy due to breast cancer. Nine days later, she suffered a stroke. Despite her failing health, she continued to act until her death. Bette passed away October 6, 1989 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France.
The 1920s saw a modernisation in fashion. It continued the change from more restrictive fashions of the Victorian and Edwardian eras.
Men also began to wear less formal daily attire and athletic clothing or ‘sportswear’ became a part of mainstream fashion for the first time.
The 1920s are characterised by two distinct periods of fashion: in the early part of the decade, change was slower, and there was more reluctance to wear the new, revealing styles made popular. From 1925, the public more passionately embraced the styles now typically associated with the Roaring Twenties.
These styles continued to characterise fashion until the worldwide depression worsened in 1931.
Take a look at these snaps to see what men’s fashion styles looked like from the 1920s.
True, the streets don’t look as festive, and store facades aren’t as decked out as they are today. But in terms of the crowds, the vendors, and all the kids captivated by toy displays, holiday shopping in New York City hasn’t really changed much in the past century, as these photos from abut 1910 reveal.
These pictures are mostly from ‘Linda McCartney: Life in Photographs’, a rich, evocative low-key look at the human side of the celebrities we are set up revere – to watch but not always to see.
Linda McCartney was famous for her vegetarianism, animal rights activism and her work as a music photographer, capturing such famous faces as Aretha Franklin, Bob Dylan, Jim Morrison, Twiggy and The Grateful Dead. Her portrait of Eric Clapton made the cover of Rolling Stone magazine in 1968 – the first time work by a female photographer featured on the cover. She was also, of course, the first wife of Beatle Paul McCartney.
Excerpts from BBC’s interview with Linda McCartney in 1994 (via Taschen)
Photography really happened when I was living in Arizona and a friend of mine wanted to go to this art class at the Tucson Art Centre and it was in the evenings and she said “Please come along with me, I really want to go.” And I said “No way.” She said “Well I won’t go if you don’t come,” so I went and I thought it would be teaching you what a camera was and everything, and it wasn’t, it was looking at photographs from Walker Evans and Dorothea Lange, Ansel Adams… really great photographers. Dorothea Lange was the biggest in my eyes. She photographed the migrant workers… And Walker Evans was the other [great] one. Again I think it was that whole period that inspired me.
Hazel Archer, who was the teacher in the class, said “OK, I’ll see you next week, take your pictures and come back.” So I went up to her and I said “Well I don’t have a camera and I don’t know how to take pictures,” [and] she said: “Borrow a camera, buy a roll of film, and take pictures.” She inspired me to become a photographer, because of the photographs she showed me, unlike fashion photography, they were photographs of life, of people, of sadness, of poverty, of nature, everything—I loved it.
Her break
When the Rolling Stones were trying to get publicity for themselves, when they were touring over here, they sent Town & Country an invitation which I opened and put in my drawer and thought, “Well, I’ll go to that one!” Someone came up to me and said “Well, we just don’t have room for all the photographers and all the journalists so you will be the photographer.” I thought “Oh my god, I’m not really a photographer, does she know?” But I bluffed my way, I mean I didn’t bluff it, I figured it’s her choice. So, I got on the boat and had a lot of film with me and really enjoyed taking pictures. I think my only worry was that the pictures wouldn’t turn out, in truth… I was a bit shy and introverted, but looking out through the lens I saw, and I forgot myself and I could actually see life. This enthusiasm came out of me, and it did, photography changed my life in that way, so it wasn’t just the Rolling Stones, it was the whole thing.
The subjects
And I sort of had to pick what the musicians would be and I got to pick the models and everything. So I said well great, we’ll use Jimi Hendrix Experience, Tiny Tim, you know, I just thought of people that were around… Aretha Franklin. You know it was quite a buzz. You wouldn’t think Aretha, this great soul singer, would agree to dress in fashion, but she was great, so great. And we met at the Hilton hotel in Los Angeles and she was in tears, and she was sort of drinking vodka and she was just a mess, so depressed. She had this big manila envelope of money, paying off the band, and she was going through really bad times.
I took pictures of her, really a beautiful face, with these sort of tears and everything, and the sadness was amazing. And then we would go outside with the wig and the clothes and everything and the contrast—it is amazing how fashion looks so glamorous and behind it is so much sadness really.
But the best thing was after I did all this and I gave them the photographs, it turned out I got $ 750 for a black and white page, and $ 1000 for a colour page—what!? I would have done it for nothing, if they had only known…
Technique
I think you just feel instinctively, you got to just click on the moment. Not before it and not after it. I think if you are worried about light meters and all that stuff, you just miss it. For me it just came from my inners, as they say. Just excitement, I love it—I get very excited.
When I think about how and when one releases the shutter, it’s for a multitude of reasons. Every photographer is searching for a definition that he or she doesn’t really know how to explain until after the fact. When we are holding the print in our hand, then we know what it was we were really looking for and whether or not we found it. The real thing that makes a photographer is more than just a technical skill, more than turning on the radio. It has to do with the force of inner intention. I have always called this a visual signature. It has to do with the kind of visual overtone that emanates from the work of certain photographers who have managed to gain access into this level of performance within the medium. I don’t think of skill, talent, technique, n’importe quoi. I’m only interested, as Bill Grant said, in the results. It’s the results that count.
The Beatles
When I came to England, I wanted to photograph the Beatles, and Stevie Winwood, who had since left The Spencer Davis Group and started a group called Traffic. So that was great.
And then The Beatles I wanted to photograph as well. So I took my portfolio over to Hilly House, their office, and Brian Epstein’s assistant said “Fine, you can leave your portfolio and we’ll get back to you.” So after about two or three days he got back to me saying “Oh yes, Brian loved your photographs, and yes you may photograph The Beatles. They’re releasing an album called Sergeant Pepper, and they are doing a press thing at Brian’s house and you can be one of the photographers. And, by the way, Brian loved your photo of Brian Jones and one of the ones of Keith Moon.” I said, he can have them! So that’s how that happened, too, I got to photograph The Beatles, so my dreams came true.
Linda McCartney- ‘Mirror, Self Portrait’ (1992)Eric Clapton on Rolling Stone 1968Paul and Linda at the NME awards in 1978Paul and Linda at the 13th Grammy Awards in Los Angeles. Paul won Best Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or a Television Special for the song ‘Let it Be’Photographer Linda Eastman (1941 – 1998) talks to Beatle Paul McCartney at the press launch of the Beatles new album ‘Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’. The couple married two years later.Paul McCartney, photo by Linda McCartneyPaul, Stella and James, Scotland, 1982Self-portrait, Arizona 1991Self-portrait, Sussex, 1985Paul McCartney and Michael Jackson, London 1983.Jimi Hendrix, New York, 1967‘Twiggy’ – Linda McCartney, 1969Jim Morrison, New York, 1967Paul with Willem De Kooning in East Hampton, 1983. Photo by Linda McCartneyPaul McCartney, Los Angeles, 1968Queen’s Speech, Liverpool, 1968Paul and Linda attend the premiere of ‘Live and Let Die’.‘John Lennon In Colour’ – Linda McCartney, London, 1969Janis Joplin with Big Brother and Holding Company 1967Paul McCartney and his wife Linda (1941 – 1998) with their daughters Heather, Stella and Mary in Rye, East Sussex, 4th April 1976.The Beatles at Brian Epstein’s house in Belgravia 1967Brian Jones and Mick Jagger New York 1966Linda and Paul get married at Marylebone Register Office, March 1969
Pictures: Bonni Benrubi Gallery, Linda McCartney: Life in Photographs
Colorado. Main St, Lamar, 1948Colorado. Maxwell House, Lamar, 1948Florida. Cypress Gardens, 1946Florida. Downtown in Lakeland, 1946Florida. Ferris wheels of Royal American shows at the fair, Tampa, 1946Florida. Newsstand in Lakeland, 1945Florida. Rexall drug store in Lakeland, 1946Florida. Royal American shows at the fair, Tampa, 1946Florida. Royal American shows at the fair, Tampa, 1946Florida. Tarpon Springs, 1946Maine. Brick Store Museum in Kennebunk, 1948Maine. South Bristol, 1948Massachusetts. Clara’s Ship Models, Cape Cod, 1949Massachusetts. Gloucester, 1949Missouri. Central Hotel, Kansas City, early 1940sMissouri. Kansas City taken from Power and Light Building, Folly Theater at top center, early 1940sMissouri. Plaza Theater, Kansas City, 1940Missouri. Power and Light Building at night, Kansas City, Christmas 1940Missouri. Power and Light Building, Kansas City, circa 1940Missouri. Power and Light Building, Kansas City, circa 1940New Jersey. Texaco,New Brunswick, 1949New York. Al Deppe’s restaurant, Staten Island, 1947New York. Card Seed Co. fire, Freedonia, 1948New York. Citizens Bank, Fredonia, 1946New York. Citizens Bank, Fredonia, July 1946New York. Firehouse and church, Fredonia, 1941New York. Main St, Fredonia, May 30, 1946New York. New York World’s Fair, 1940New York. New York World’s Fair, 1940New York. Shoemanthal’s Gulf station and garage, Fredonia, 1948New York. VE day at Bakers Square, Fredonia, 1945New York. VE Day, Main St, Fredonia, May 8th, 1945Ohio. Parade in Hudson, 1940Ohio. Street scene of Athens, 1948
Given how many historical photos are video are shot in black and white, many of us can forget that the past was also in full color – we just don’t get to see it. However, these photos of Russia in the beginning of the 20th century by photographer Sergey Prokudin-Gorsky give us a rare glimpse into the past in full and glorious color.
Color photography, in the way that we understand it, was not possible at the time, but it was possible to create a color image for the viewer by completing three separate photographs. Prokudin-Gorsky had to take three separate photographs of the same subject – once with a red filter over the lens, once with a green filter, and once with a blue filter (red, green, blue – RGB – is a set of color channels used by many digital images as well). Later on, these three monochromatic images would be projected through filters of those same colors onto a screen and superimposed. When viewed through a final filter, they would appear as a realistic color image to the viewer.
A trained chemist and artist, Prokudin-Gorsky began creating tricolor photos after studying with German photochemistry professor Adolf Miethe. Tsar Nicholas II was so impressed by Prokudin-Gorsky’s work, including his famous portrait of Leo Tolstoy, that he commissioned the photographer to take pictures all over Russia. Though he fled Russia after the October Revolution, the negatives he took with him that weren’t confiscated were eventually purchased by the U.S. Library of Congress in 1948 and published in 1980.
Emir Seyyid Mir Mohammed Alim Khan, the Emir of Bukhara, seated holding a sword in Bukhara, (present-day Uzbekistan), 1910General view of the Nikolaevskii Cathedral from southwest in Mozhaisk in 1911A switch operator poses on the Trans-Siberian Railroad, near the town of Ust Katav on the Yuryuzan River in 1910Sart woman in purdah in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, ca. 1910. Until the Russian revolution of 1917, “Sart” was the name for Uzbeks living in KazakhstanA group of Jewish children with a teacher in Samarkand, (in modern Uzbekistan), 1910A dog rests on the shore of Lake Lindozero in 1910. From the album “Views along the Murmansk Railway, Russian Empire”An Armenian woman in national costume poses for Prokudin-Gorskii on a hillside near Artvin (in present day Turkey)A general view of Sukhumi, Abkhazia and its bay, seen sometime around 1910 from Cherniavskii MountainRussian children sit on the side of a hill near a church and bell tower near White Lake, in Russia, 1909Alternators made in Budapest, Hungary, in the power generating hall of a hydroelectric station in Iolotan (Eloten), Turkmenistan, on the Murghab River, 1910A man and woman pose in Dagestan, 1910On the Sim River, a shepherd boy. Photo taken in 1910, from the album “Views in the Ural Mountains, survey of industrial area, Russian Empire”Nomadic Kirghiz on the Golodnaia Steppe in present-day Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, 1910Isfandiyar Jurji Bahadur, Khan of the Russian protectorate of Khorezm (Khiva, now a part of modern Uzbekistan), full-length portrait, seated outdoors, 1910A boy leans on a wooden gatepost in 1910. From the album “Views in the Ural Mountains, survey of industrial area, Russian Empire”Factory in Kyn, Russia, belonging to Count S.A. Stroganov, 1912A group of women in Dagestan, 1910A water-carrier in Samarkand (present-day Uzbekistan), 1910Prokudin-Gorskii rides along on a handcar outside Petrozavodsk on the Murmansk railway along Lake Onega near Petrozavodsk in 1910Peasants harvesting hay in 1909. From the album “Views along the Mariinskii Canal and river system, Russian Empire”Laying concrete for the dam’s sluice, 1912. Workers and supervisors pose for a photograph amid preparations for pouring cement for sluice dam foundation across the Oka River near BeloomutA Georgian woman poses for a photograph, 1910General view of the wharf at Mezhevaya Utka, 1912Cornflowers in a field of rye, 1909. From the album “Views along the Mariinskii Canal and river system, Russian Empire”Self-portrait on the Karolitskhali River, 1910. Prokudin-Gorskii in suit and hat, seated on rock beside the Karolitskhali River, in the Caucasus Mountains near the seaport of Batumi on the eastern coast of the Black Sea.A chapel sits on the site where the city of Belozersk was founded in ancient times, photographed in 1909A boy sits in the court of Tillia-Kari mosque in Samarkand, present-day Uzbekistan, 1910Molding of an artistic casting (Kasli Iron Works), 1910. From the album “Views in the Ural Mountains, survey of industrial area, Russian Empire”A woman is seated in a calm spot on the Sim River, part of the Volga watershed in 1910General view of Artvin (now in Turkey) from the small town of Svet, 1910
