Shipping out to China in December 1947 with three ten-year-old German cameras and a plum assignment from LIFE magazine, Jack Birns was fulfilling a boyhood dream. The reality was something else: refugees and prostitutes, soldiers and beggars, street executions and urban protests photographed in difficult and often dangerous circumstances amidst the poverty, corruption, and chaosContinue reading “80 Amazing Photos of Shanghai, China between 1947 & 1949”
Tag Archives: life & culture
31 Terrifying Photos Showing the Early Days of Dentistry
People calling themselves dentists appeared in the late 1700s, though the profession wouldn’t be licensed for about 100 years. Before dentistry was licensed, doctors addressed tooth health. And before there were doctors, things were pretty dicey. If you think going to the dentist today is scary, imagine a guy with a bloody apron approaching youContinue reading “31 Terrifying Photos Showing the Early Days of Dentistry”
22 Amazing Photos of Soviet Withdrawal From Afghanistan in 1989
The final and complete withdrawal of Soviet combatant forces from Afghanistan began on 15 May 1988 and ended on 15 February 1989 under the leadership of Colonel-General Boris Gromov. Planning for the withdrawal of the Soviet Union (USSR) from the Afghanistan War began soon after Mikhail Gorbachev became the General Secretary of the Central CommitteeContinue reading “22 Amazing Photos of Soviet Withdrawal From Afghanistan in 1989”
25 Amazing American-Made Station Wagons From the 1960s
28 Vintage Photos of the Streets of London in the Late 19th and Early 20th Century
39 Amazing Photos of New York City Subway Passengers From the Late 1930s and Early 1940s
As photographic technology advanced—cameras became more portable and film more sensitive to light, requiring shorter exposure times—people were no longer required to stay still for pictures. Walker Evans was among the photographers who capitalized on this flexibility. Between 1938 and 1941, he took his camera underground, where he photographed subway riders in New York City.Continue reading “39 Amazing Photos of New York City Subway Passengers From the Late 1930s and Early 1940s”
20 Vintage Photos Show Beautiful Women’s Fashions in the Roaring Twenties
1920s fashion was the perfect blend between style and function. Beautiful clothes that allowed women to move. The 1920s heralded a dramatic break between America’s past and future. Before World War I the country remained culturally and psychologically rooted in the nineteenth century, but in the 1920s America seemed to break its wistful attachments toContinue reading “20 Vintage Photos Show Beautiful Women’s Fashions in the Roaring Twenties”
44 Amazing Vintage Photos Showing Life in the Warsaw Ghetto in the Summer of 1941
On 2 October 1940, Ludwig Fischer, Governor of the Warsaw District in the occupied General Government of Poland, signed the order to officially create a Jewish district (ghetto) in Warsaw. It was to become the largest ghetto in Nazi-occupied Europe. All Jewish people in Warsaw had to relocate to the area of the ghetto byContinue reading “44 Amazing Vintage Photos Showing Life in the Warsaw Ghetto in the Summer of 1941”
Cycling on the Streets of Paris in 1942
These photographs were taken by André Zucca in Paris while the city was occupied by the Germans during World War II. Zucca was a French photographer and Nazi collaborator, most well known for his work with the German propaganda magazine Signal. While everything changed with the German occupation, most things also remained the same. TheContinue reading “Cycling on the Streets of Paris in 1942”
46 Amazing Colorized Historic Photos That Bring the Past To Life!
Relating to the past can be difficult when all you have to look at are faded black and white photos that feel like they are from another planet. The mind thinks and remembers in color, meaning a color photograph is much easier to connect with than a black and white photo. Thanks to film colorizationContinue reading “46 Amazing Colorized Historic Photos That Bring the Past To Life!”
