Old Photographs and Anniversaries

I rarely post on Saturdays, but today is special. I want to share my experience over the last thirty minutes, and remind you of just how special the career path we've all chosen is.

It's June 29 and would be my parents 72nd wedding anniversary. Sheila and I are also celebrating our 9th wedding anniversary. When Sheila and I decided to get married, we chose the same day my parents were married believing it would be good karma. Well, we were right, and even with Mom's Alzheimer's the first couple of years we were married, we still celebrated together.

But our anniversaries aren't the topic this morning, but the fun of a Throwback Thursday on a Saturday. I knew I wanted to write something this morning about my folks - so I started out looking through a couple of old albums. I found the picture above of the two of them on a mini-vacation in 1948. They were with their friends at the Lakeside Hotel in Eagles Mere, PA. 

I scanned the images and did a little post-processing on the contrast and sharpening in Luminar and couldn't help but notice a few different "signs of the times."
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• It's an afternoon out, and they're both dressed up! I can't find very many photographs of my Dad when he didn't have a suit, sport jacket or tie on. But here's my biggest discovery - 1948 and Dad's without socks. He was a fashion statement even back then!
• Check out the teeter-totter. Safety regulations long ago banned the free placement of the apparatus over the crossbar, and I'm not sure playgrounds today even have them.
• On the back of the print, Mom wrote who they were with, where, and the date.  Most of us have files or boxes of old photographs with no information. Sure our cameras and phones give us dates and co-ordinates, but not the good stuff. And too many of us aren't disciplined enough with our own images to capture some of the most fun information. 

That brings me full circle to the fun of this morning and a reminder to all of you. The joy of our industry is all about the memories photographs help people capture. But it's also about the fun of the search! Hunting for an old photograph to share this morning put a smile on my face that will be there all day. I found everything from old school pictures to Mom and Dad to my old report cards, and in the process thinking about how lucky Sheila and I were to have my folks around to 88 for Mom and 93 for Dad.

During that time, we were able to share and appreciate their incredible zest for life and the love they had for each other as well as the two of us. I remember thanking my Dad once for keeping an open heart regarding my relationship with Sheila and getting remarried. His response, "When you love someone, you always keep an open heart!"

So, Happy Anniversary to my honey. What an incredible trip it's been and continues to be. Sure do love ya!  And, here's to you Mom and Dad - for your love, and all the incredible memories, as well as a big thanks for Mom's never-wavering habit to write on the back of every photograph!

And to all of you - take the time this weekend to pull out an old album and take a stroll down Memory Lane. The older the photographs, the more you'll appreciate the true beauty of imaging - capturing memories and turning them into tangible moments we can hold in our hands and cherish!

Happy Saturday!

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