Organized group photos can be fun or downright boring and forgettable. The best are usually of children because they have yet to learn how to veil their personality. Class photos are often pretty good unless the shot is taken at such a distance as to just look like a pyramid of humanity with no discernible faces.
I often find when looking at class photos, if they're of a period when I was also in school, I feel like I recognize some of the kids. I don't know who these children are but because of the clothing and hairstyles they look like the same kids who were in my class thousands of miles away. I can pick out the class nerd, the class clown, teacher's pet, and so on. But if it's a photo out of my time period comfort zone they just look foreign to me as in the second photo below.
There are a lot of life stories in this photo and I'll never know any of them. Written on the back is:
Tony 2nd grade
No indication as to which one might be Tony. And I love the children waiting to the left in the background, waiting for their turn for their class shot. The photo is of little to no monetary value, but if you take the time to study the faces you'll find your mind coming up with stories and memories worth even more.
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Oh, I adore class photos and feel exactly the way you do about them. I can connect on such a personal level.
ReplyDeleteI love the second photo. The first one I can just glance at, but for me it is the second one I get drawn into. I love the little fellow at the back end of the line, by the teacher. The mix of ethnicity and ages reminds me of my ESL students.
ReplyDeleteThese are the kids that I want to know. Children of itinerant labor?
Maybe children from near by Native American community?
They are all well dressed and spiffed up for the class picture.
The first one reminds me of the old Crest toothpaste ads "Look ma, no cavities!" They just look like perfect little kids of the 50s.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, the second one is fascinating. I have no idea where it was taken, but most likely Northern California. So I imagine some of the children might be from the Pomo tribe. I love how they're lined up by size and on the slant. They couldn't find a level place to take the shot? I wish I could see what the teacher is holding. An apple?