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The Art of Photography Has Changed Through The Centuries

Created on Feb 01, 2016 by Daniel Pinna

Taking photos wasn’t as easy in the past as it is today. People couldn’t just take selfies on a whim, and not just anybody could take a photo. Expensive heavy machinery and slow technology required professional photographers to capture special moments in time.

Creating a photo was a time intensive event that relied entirely on the abilities of the photographer. Photography was considered a mix of science and art, and photographers made magic.

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Professional History Photos

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Impressive image of Dreamland - an amusement park at Coney Island

Dreamland - Coney Island, N.Y.

AncientFaces 350k+ followers 399 favorites

shared on 01/11/2012

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You can almost tell her personality from this photo taken in 1916

Elizabeth Nerina Shute

Sue Aitchison-windeler 5 followers 583 favorites

shared on 10/01/2014

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Enjoying the beach at the turn of the century

Marjorie Lillian Keswick, 1908

Marsha Adams 2 followers 251 favorites

shared on 03/25/2012

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Photos like this would often show social status: well educated at a young age

Unknown Young Girl

Courtney B 11 favorites

shared on 07/03/2013

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It was popular to frame images with advertisements for the photographer

Maude Malinda Middleton

David Jones 21 favorites

shared on 07/19/2014

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Now this is a professional portrait

Zoe Nerina Ernestine Bell

Sue Aitchison-windeler 5 followers 583 favorites

shared on 10/05/2014

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Like mother, like daughters

Marjorie Holmes

Amy Wright 5 favorites

shared on 12/08/2013

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Touching photo taken in 1902 New York

Lydia Daga Hover/ Hoover

Kimberlee Dyer 1 follower 43 favorites

shared on 02/01/2015

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Moments in Time

AncientFaces 350k+ followers 399 favorites

05/07/2023

What AncientFaces Does

AncientFaces is a 100% free and family-friendly community where we share memories and connect with others to remember and discover more about the people from our past. By sharing our memories, family stories, and information we uncover while digging for our roots, we unlock meaningful connections with others today, and the possibilities of new discoveries tomorrow. See first hand the power of sharing and what you can discover about a sibling, spouse, grandparent, friend, coworker, or ancestor...

AncientFaces 350k+ followers 399 favorites

05/09/2023

Community Standards

Welcome to AncientFaces! A 100% free community where we remember people from our past. At AncientFaces, we believe in the power of remembering together. Through Collaborative Biographies we connect with others who know the person, and discover more together. As you participate in the AncientFaces community, we invite you to familiarize yourself with our Community Standards. These guidelines are in place to ensure that AncientFaces remains a safe and respectful place for everyone, worthy of preserving the memories of the people we remember.

AncientFaces 350k+ followers 399 favorites

04/27/2023

We All Deserve to be Remembered: AncientFaces - 20 years in 2020

How in the world is it that when our loved ones die we have only their social media accounts to remember them by? Why is it all that’s left online is a memorial page consisting of a tombstone and an obituary, and if you’re fortunate enough to have a writer in the family, MAYBE there is an obituary consisting of three paragraphs about who the person was? People are important in life and in death. How our loved ones and ancestors lived their lives, what they did with their time, and who they impacted - is important.
We all Deserve to be Remembered, and it is up to us, the people that knew them, to show & tell their stories before our memories get lost in history. AncientFaces is Where We Remember Over the last 20 years we've seen tens of millions of people show that they agree that Everyone Deserves to be Remembered (EDtbR). It is up to each and every one of us to share our memories & family stories of those people important to us. Through storytelling & sharing who these people really were, we unlock meaningful connections with people today, and the potential of new discoveries tomorrow. In 2020, to celebrate our 20 year milestone & to share this mission with the world we've released our first video. If you live in our neighborhood in Silicon Valley you might have noticed the spot on your favorite television channels ;) Thank you - each and every one of you - for your role in making AncientFaces a family-friendly community and the place to remember & celebrate the lives of people who matter to us.

AncientFaces 350k+ followers 399 favorites

05/03/2023

Lost & Found Family Photos

These Lost & Found photos may have been found in dumpsters, in the walls or attic when remodeling old homes, inherited from a distant family member, or sold at flea markets or antique stores. They may have been in treasured family albums, with or without names, but no one knows who they are and how they fit into the family. The one thing that all of these photos have in common is this: They all are orphan photos that have lost their families. The AncientFaces Community is full of people who invest their time to reunite these photos with family members. These photos below are just a few of the thousands of Lost & Found photos waiting to be re-united.

AncientFaces 350k+ followers 399 favorites

05/03/2023

Success Stories - Making Connections

"Thank you for helping me find my family & friends again so many years after I lost them. I get the chance to remember them all this time later." Highlights of just a few of the many successes of sharing memories within the AncientFaces Community. From reuniting Lost & Found or 'orphan' photos with their families, seeing faces of relatives for the first time, to the many connections made with family & friends, and the profound discoveries about our loved ones and ancestors. Special moments like these are why it's important we share.

AncientFaces 350k+ followers 399 favorites

05/03/2023

D-Day World War II: June 6th 1944

With Germany's invasion of Poland on September 1st, 1939 World War 2 began. The United States didn't enter the war until 1941 when Germany's ally Japan bombed Pearl Harbor. The war was challenging not only on the military, but also for civilians. Incessant bombing of cities like The Blitz on London and other cities in Great Britain lasted around 8 months, every night, all night long. Rationing of foodstuffs and other goods needed for the war effort, victory gardens, nights spent in the Tube, blackouts, and sending your children to the countryside for safety. By 1944, the need to end the many years' long war became desperate. And so came D-day in 1944 - a plan to reclaim occupied ally France from the Nazis and to gain a platform from which to invade, and destroy, Nazism in Germany.