The Photographer's Cat

Gjon Mili is one of my favourite photographers, and I've shared photographs of his on many occasions (A general selection, stroboscopic photographs, filming of West Side Story, and 1940s nightlife in Paris). He did a lot of shooting in his own studio where he could control the lighting, of which he was a master. 

Also at his studio was his gorgeous black cat, Blackie. Blackie, it seems, never hesitated to make friends with Mili's sitters, and Mili in turn didn't hesitate to use Blackie in his shots. He also used Blackie as a sitter himself, resulting in the kind of gorgeously lit black-on-black shots only Mili could create. 

Gjon Mili, LIFE © Time Inc.

Blackie and nightclub entertainer Maune de Revel, 1946. Source

Gjon Mili, LIFE © Time Inc.

Blackie joining a model in a bridal fashion shoot, 1945. Source

Gjon Mili, LIFE © Time Inc.

Blackie sitting on a piano as opera star Jennie Tourel plays and sings, 1952. Source

A Taste of Lobster

The people working at the Nova Scotia Archives are wonderful-- not only do they have in their collection a scrapbook of labels from canned lobsters (1880-1938), they recognized the quirky, colourful appeal of these labels, digitized them, and shared them on the Flickr Commons. You are awesome, folks of the Nova Scotia Archives. 

As, I would say, are these lobster labels:

Nova Scotia Archives

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Nova Scotia Archives

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Nova Scotia Archives

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Shore Leave in Central Park

A couple of young sailors making the most of their time on leave-- with girls, of course. New York City, 1943, shot by Peter Stackpole for LIFE (though apparently unpublished). 

Peter Stackpole, LIFE © Time Inc.

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Peter Stackpole, LIFE © Time Inc.

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Peter Stackpole, LIFE © Time Inc.

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The Cat Show

Photographs from a cat show in Los Angeles, 1952, shot by George Silk, some of which appeared in the December 1952 issue of LIFE. 

George Silk, LIFE © Time Inc.

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George Silk, LIFE © Time Inc.

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George Silk, LIFE © Time Inc.

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The Paris Exposition, Tinted

As we've seen, hand-tinting was a common practice through the 19th and early 20th centuries, when colour photography was non-existent or difficult to access. Tinting can vary from subtle to intense, elegant to garish-- and, honestly, the latter of both pairs are my favourites. The colours of this set are certainly intense, though expertly applied, and certainly sometimes border on the garish. This effect is magnified by the fact many have experienced significant fading of the photograph, affecting the gelatin silver image but not the bright dyes, leading to an often surreal appearance. 

The photographs are lantern slides, precursors to film slides, positive photographs on glass meant to be projected. This set was made at the Paris Exposition of 1900, by the fine arts curator of the Brooklyn museum, William Henry Goodyear, and the photographer Joseph Hawes. The Brooklyn Museum has 271 of this set on the Flickr Commons; I've picked a few that appeal to me, but I recommend a further look! 

Brooklyn Museum

An unidentified outdoor view. Source

Brooklyn Museum

The Palace of Decorative Arts. Source