In recent weeks I've shown my Finnish heritage in photos and memoirs, and although I haven't spoken of my husband's ancestry, I've shown items belonging to his namesake, Uncle Nelson.
This week I want to show a shared passion - photography. If you've followed any of my blogs, you know I'm never without a camera and take pictures of everything. What I didn't realize when I started posting my family history was that my grandfather, known as Pappa, was a professional photographer before he left Finland. Couple that with the knowledge that my mother started taking pictures as a teenager, and you see where my love for the hobby comes from.
Although I'd love to claim this early 1900's photo as one from my family history, I'm actually using it with permission from the collection of www.kodakgirl.com.
See the camera the girl is holding? It's a Kodak 3A Pocket Camera. And that's the one that brings Nelson's family history in line with mine since he's the one with that particular model. His father, Wayne Draper, passed it on down from his father, Noah Draper. Nelson also received a box of letters written by his grandfather, Noah Draper, to Ethel Nelson, the woman he would later marry. The letters and photos start in 1911 and carry through WW1. I'll be featuring them in a future blogpost. For today, I'll start with some photos of the camera.
This week I want to show a shared passion - photography. If you've followed any of my blogs, you know I'm never without a camera and take pictures of everything. What I didn't realize when I started posting my family history was that my grandfather, known as Pappa, was a professional photographer before he left Finland. Couple that with the knowledge that my mother started taking pictures as a teenager, and you see where my love for the hobby comes from.
Although I'd love to claim this early 1900's photo as one from my family history, I'm actually using it with permission from the collection of www.kodakgirl.com.
See the camera the girl is holding? It's a Kodak 3A Pocket Camera. And that's the one that brings Nelson's family history in line with mine since he's the one with that particular model. His father, Wayne Draper, passed it on down from his father, Noah Draper. Nelson also received a box of letters written by his grandfather, Noah Draper, to Ethel Nelson, the woman he would later marry. The letters and photos start in 1911 and carry through WW1. I'll be featuring them in a future blogpost. For today, I'll start with some photos of the camera.
1911 Kodak 3A Pocket Camera
1911 Kodak 3A Pocket Camera
1911 Kodak 3A Pocket Camera
A bit of history on Kodak... In 1888, Kodak was the first company to mass produce a camera. Called, the Kodak Camera, it came loaded with enough film for 100 pictures and claimed that anyone could use it without instructions.
To prove their point, Kodak began an ad compaign using women which would continue for decades. Called Kodak girls, the ads featured women in normal walks of life using cameras. What I dislike about the ad campaign is that it shows the women of that era as being so simple-minded even they can use the camera.
1888, The 1st Kodak camera and Kitty Cramer, the 1st Kodak Girl
What I found fascinating about these ads is that it features active women doing things outside the home. They're always on the go, taking photos of all kinds of interesting people and things.
A Kodak Girl on the go carrying a Folding Pocket Kodak camera.
In the above ad, the Kodak girl is carrying a folding pocket camera similar to the Model 3A that Nelson received. I think she looks great!
And here's a fun bit of research...
And here's a fun bit of research...
1890 Kodak Factory Kodak factory at Harrow, 1890s Kodak’s Harrow factory was in use from 1891 for emulsion-making, paper-coating and for the processing and printing of customers’ films. In this view, taken soon after its opening, female employees are seen printing negatives by sunlight in the upper gallery of Building 1. The egg-white needed to coat albumen paper for contact printing was supplied by a flock of a hundred chickens kept on the site. Gelatin silver print (printed later) Image and text supplied by the British Library Online Gallery |
Considering that Kodak has been in the news lately because of it's financial woes, I found it bittersweet to research their successful early stategies which benefited so many people. I wish they had been able to continue. And I thank George Eastman for making his vision a reality for the common person.
Do you have a camera? What was your first one and what kind do you have now?
Do you have a camera? What was your first one and what kind do you have now?
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GIVEAWAY
Winner's Choice!
Leave a comment with a
valid email address by midnight, May 27th
to be entered in a draw for a book
from my giveaway pile.
If you're the winner, I'll email you the list and you can pick.
The pile contains an assortment of books including
inspirationals, mainstream,
autobiographies, self-help, devotionals and children's books, all new.
And maybe even a Dean Koontz novel, What the Night Knows, if it's still available.
May 23 UPDATE
The children's books are all gone, but the Dean Koontz novel is still available.
Winner beware!
The fiction books are a mix of inspirational and mainstream and
may contain scenes offensive to some people - which is why I don't want to keep them.
But I'm just guessing because I haven't read them.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GIVEAWAY
Winner's Choice!
Leave a comment with a
valid email address by midnight, May 27th
to be entered in a draw for a book
from my giveaway pile.
If you're the winner, I'll email you the list and you can pick.
The pile contains an assortment of books including
inspirationals, mainstream,
autobiographies, self-help, devotionals and children's books, all new.
And maybe even a Dean Koontz novel, What the Night Knows, if it's still available.
May 23 UPDATE
The children's books are all gone, but the Dean Koontz novel is still available.
Winner beware!
The fiction books are a mix of inspirational and mainstream and
may contain scenes offensive to some people - which is why I don't want to keep them.
But I'm just guessing because I haven't read them.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
