Photo Enthusiasts

The camera enthusiast can have a “field day” when visiting the Majestic Tahqamenon River.

I took the title of this post “Camera Enthusiasts” from the caption on the postcard of  Lower Tahquamenon Falls in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. One of the main attractions of postcard collecting is that collectors can collect any topic that they wish and categorize their collections in any way desired. Other collectors might file a postcard like this under Michigan, waterfalls, or families. I file it under the topic of “People with Cameras.” This is a rather narrow topic, but enough examples exist to make it fun .

I think that postcard views that include people as observers or participants are more interesting than plain views, and the “People with Cameras” category is a subcategory of that. Seeing people in the scene invites my vicarious viewing and participation.

One can’t really search for this topic, so collecting it is mainly a matter of recognizing it when one sees it. Sometimes the photographer is obvious, and sometimes it is just a tiny figure among many in the scene. Some variations show the camera person shooting a group of people, a scenic attraction, an unusual natural phenomenon, posed in front of a man made attraction, or at a spot designed for  tourist picture taking.

Here are a couple of views of what I assume are families posing in a wide angle view:

White House Sightseeing Tours of Washington, D. C.

El Capitan, Yosemite National Park, California-.

an sutumn scene at Peacham, Vermont

The inclusion of people can help establish the scale of the main subject of the postcard, as in the following examples.

The world’s largest and most photographed cacti are the Giant Saguaro of Arizona.

Old Faithful, one of the larger petrified logs in the Rainbow Forest of Petrified Forest National Monument is a popular backdrop for snapshots.

Balanced Rock in Texas

Entrance to world famous Silver Springs in Florida

The Pioneer Woman Statue, the “most photographed statue in the Southwest” at Ponca City, Oklahoma, symbolizes the spirit of frontier women whose energy and faith helped turn the wilderness into wonderland.

Next I have two postcard views that I can especially relate to, because they are from places that I have visited and photographed myself.

The Public Gaol at Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia,  a restoration and re-creation of an 18th-century colonial American city.

Glacier Park railroad station at Glacier National Park in Montana.

I never went on a road trip to a National Park back when feeding the bears was a common practice among tourists. If I had done so about 50-60 years ago, I might have had an opportunity to photograph some traffic stopping begging bears like the ones on the next postcards.

Bear Beggars in Yellowstone National Park. These bears have become so tame they waylay the motorists begging for handouts.

Mother and bear cubs on Logan Pass Highway, in Glacier National Park, Montana.

My final card is one of my favorites. I think it is the most fun, and it also features the type of roadside attraction that I like to collect.

Hansel and Gretel,
The Gingerbread Castle
Hamburg, New Jersey

I hope you have enjoyed this Photo Enthusiasts tour. To see more camera related posts, visit Sepia Saturday 393.

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