30 Black and White Photos That Show Beautiful Beach Fashions of the Early 1950s

Known internationally as a photographer of social justice issues, Gordon Parks was also a celebrated fashion photographer for magazine such as LIFE, Vogue and Glamour.

In 1940, at the age of 28, Gordon Parks walked into Frank Murphy's fashion department store in St. Paul, Minnesota. A self-taught photographer with no formal experience in fashion work, he boldly offered his services to photograph models wearing the store's fashions. After some initial disagreement between the husband-wife co-owners, Parks was given the chance to prove his merit - an event that would prove fortuitous and guided the direction of his future as a photographer. With borrowed equipment, Parks made his way through the fashion shoot that would precipitate his career in photography. Unfortunately, in Parks' inexperience, he double-exposed all but one photograph. Luckily, this one portrait, seen here, was enough to showcase his potential and he was given another chance - eventually leading him to shoot all of the department store's fashions, in addition to local media outlets.

As a working photographer, being able to supplement his documentary work with fashion photography so effectively made it so he would always be able to find work in times of uncertainty in job security. His background in both fashion and documentary photography would set him apart and prove to make him an asset at Life, making his acclaimed career at the magazine possible. Working with fashion helped to inform Parks' overall style as a photographer. While he is today best known for his artful and intimate portraits of race relations, poverty, civil rights, and urban life, he is still heralded as a leading figure in mid-twentieth century fashion photography.

Here's an editorial shot by Gordon Parks for LIFE magazine in 1951.

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56 Incredible Colorized Photos That Revived 'Russia During WWI'

These incredible photos were colorized by Olga that show Russia during World War One.

Shell hole, 1914

Colonel Grigory Kuchin, 1914

General Aleksei Brusilov, circa 1914

Michael A. Dashkov, Captain of the 9th Russian Army under the command of General Lechitsky, November 19, 1914

 Portrait of a Russian nurse, 1914

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Incredible Photos That Capture Everyday Life of the U.S in the Early 20th Century

A photo collection that shows what everyday life of the U.S. looked like from the 1900s and 1910s.

Chinatown, New York, 1900

Broadway in Skagway, Alaska, 1900

Esplanade Street, New Orleans, circa 1900

Esplanade Street, New Orleans, circa 1900

French Market in New Orleans, Louisiana, 1900

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30 Amazing Candid Snapshots of Sydneysiders and Sydney’s Bustling Streets From the 1880s

Photography is an amazing medium. In certain frames it can give us a candid glimpse of everyday life and transport us to another era. This is exactly what happens in these fabulous snapshots taken by photographer Arthur K. Syer.

Syer’s friend the illustrator and cartoonist Phil May asked Arthur to take the photos for him to capture everyday life on Sydney streets. He wished to used the photos as a study for his illustrations – a gesture here, the tilt of the hat there, characters and types.

And so in the 1880s Arthur K. Syer strolled through the streets of Sydney with his parcel-wrapped, hand-held ‘Detective Camera’. This innovative little camera, way before James Bond or Maxwell Smart, allowed Arthur to take photographs without the subject’s knowledge.

The photos are compelling. You feels like you are there wandering along the street yourself. Check out some of amazing candid photographs taken by Arthur Syer below.

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A Gallery of 50 Rare Continuity Star Wars Polaroids Taken From the Set of ‘Return of the Jedi’

Polaroid was once one of the most trusted brand names on any film set — in the years before affordable digital cameras Polaroid instant film was a primary tool for prop people, the wardrobe department, and most importantly the script supervisor. That’s often the hardest-working person on set, and the one who is the person most responsible for maintaining continuity from scene to scene, and who creates a rough guide to get editors started on their work. Most of these Polaroids were trashed after a film’s completion, or kept and never made public.

Decades later it is these continuity Polaroids that give us a unique look into the production of Return of the Jedi. These Polaroids show costumes, background extras and aliens, rarely seen props and details of the sets and glimpses of deleted scenes that we never got to experience on the big screen. Enjoy this gallery of Return of the Jedi Polaroids and step back to the production of a little sci-fi movie shot in 1982.

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Rare and Extraordinary Vintage Photographs of Hamburg in the Early 1910s

Hamburg, city and Land (state), located on the Elbe River in northern Germany. It is the country's largest port and commercial centre.

Prior to the constitutional changes in 1919 it formed a civic republic headed constitutionally by a class of hereditary grand burghers or Hanseaten. The city has repeatedly been beset by disasters such as the Great Fire of Hamburg, exceptional coastal flooding and military conflicts including WW II bombing raids. Historians remark that the city has managed to recover and emerge wealthier after each catastrophe.

Here's a collection of 15 rare and extraordinary vintage photographs that capture street scenes of Hamburg in the early 1910s. The photos were taken mostly in 1910 and 1911.

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Richard Colley: Life Story of a British Gay From the 1920s and 1930s Through Amazing Pics

These photos from The Library of Nineteenth-Century Photography that belonged to an Englishman by the name of Richard Colley, known as 'Dick' or 'Dickie' to his many friends. Most of photos are dated from 1922 to 1925, some others are dated 1932 and 1933.

Richard Colley enjoyed a privileged lifestyle of holidays, afternoon parties, receptions and costumed balls, interspersed with trips to the races and to the theatre. Many of his friends in the album are unidentified, but it is clear that he knew Dorothy Gish, Gaby Deslys, Harry Pilcer, Beatrice de Bourbon, and the former Queen of Italy.

Richard Colley in strange costumes, circa 1920s

It is possible that he himself enjoyed a brief career as a dancer or in silent films. It is also possible that Colley was not his original surname. Preliminary research suggests that he was born Douglas Colley Best.

A number of different homes appear in the albums, including Richard's childhood home, The Grange at Canon Pyon in Herefordshire, where his parents still lived. He himself had a flat in London at 107, Queen's Gate, Kensington. He spent time in the early 1930s at Warren Cottage in Kingston, and he also had a house at Palm Beach in Florida. Many photographs show the exterior and interior of all these homes.

Holidays featured with a man identified only as Russell, clearly his boyfriend. The first trip together was a motor tour of England and Wales. Shortly afterwards they set off together around Europe, visiting the South of France, Monte Carlo and many locations in Italy, travelling as far south as Naples and Capri. The two men also crossed the Atlantic and spent time together in Miami Beach and Hollywood.

Richard and Beatrice de Bourbon

Richard and boyfriend

Richard and boyfriend

Richard and boyfriend

Richard and boyfriend

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