Man in a cloth cap outside a terrace of small cottages
Monochrome Madness,  Photographic techniques,  Themed galleries

Gallery: recreating the past

June 6, 2024 / 59 Comments

I once heard a funny (and true) story. A mother told me that until she was about seven years old her daughter firmly believed that the world used to be black and white, because all the photos, films and TV show she saw from the time of her mother’s childhood and before looked like that. When you think about it, that’s a logical conclusion to reach. How would a small child know that it was changes in technology that enabled us to capture the world in all its glorious colours?!

There was a time, however, when most photos weren’t black and white but sepia. And today if we want to give our images that ‘antique’ look, sepia is the way to go. So for this week’s Monochrome Madness, and inspired by Brian’s sepia shots, I thought it would be fun to play around with some appropriately old-looking images.

Do also check out Leanne’s Monochrome Madness page to learn more about this fun challenge. Maybe you’d like to host a theme from time to time? If so, do contact Leanne via her page.

All these images were shot originally in colour and edited with Nik Sliver Efex Pro using sepia or ambrotype toning and, for many, a white vignette.

Room with old furniture and office equipment

The Commander’s office at Bletchley Park, the top-secret base for WWII codebreakers north of London

(now an excellent museum)

Row of thatched cottages

Cottages in Minster Lovell in the Cotswolds, England

Old bus outside a brick building with old signs

At Beamish, a living history museum in North East England

(another excellent museum, where my feature photo was also taken)

Old tram running on a track between trees

Tram at Beamish, still working and taking tourists around the museum

In South Ealing Cemetery, west London

Stone angel
Metal figure of a cherub holding an old-fashioned telephone

Ornament outside Two Temple Place, the London pied-à-terre of William Waldorf Astor

A corner of Arpino, Italy

Stone archway leading to a courtyard with houses
Sign above a saloon

In Pinos Altos, New Mexico

Old wooden shop with sign, General Store

In Cashmere Pioneer Village, Washington State

Room in a log cabin with an old fashioned piano and gramophone

At the Shafer Museum in Winthrop, Washington State

Oriental style building with tiled roof

At the Koryo History Museum in Kaesong, North Korea

(one of very few original old buildings in the country, after most were destroyed during the Korean War)

Old fashioned kettle on an open fire

In Phou Taen Khamu, a minority village in northern Laos

59 Comments

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