I love old group portraits. I love to look at the various expressions, the variety of character captured in that fraction of a second.
I'm not a sports person, but I have to admit to taking special pleasure in old team portraits, especially from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Why? Because so many of them are just so awkward. The poses are usually directed and usually strained. Most of the people clearly feel uncomfortable and don't want to be there. Some of them look away from the camera or simply glare at it. A couple usually look about to doze off. There's usually one person genuinely smiling, and/or someone trying out their "sexy" look . I don't know why you see this more in team portraits than others, but gee I enjoy it (especially when paired with the old uniforms!)
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| Musee McCord Museum |
The Shamrock hockey team, Montreal, 1899 (hockey players just don't wear skintight shirts anymore!). Source
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| Library of Congress |
The New York Metropolitans, 1882 (that 'lying on the floor' pose is a common one in old team portraits, and practically guarentees awkwardness). Source
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| Miami University Library |
Women tend to be better with non-awkward facial expressions... but they sometimes get posed even more awkwardly than the men. Miami women's basketball team, 1911. Source
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| Musee McCord Museum |
The Bank of Montreal hockey team, 1895. Source
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| Galt Museum |
Lethbridge District soccer team, Canada, 1927. Source
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| State Library and Archives Florida |
A baseball team at the Florida Capitol, Tallahassee, ca. 1910. Source
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| Library of Congress |
Leitrim football team, 1914. Source
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| National Library of Ireland |
The winning oarsman of the Waterford Boat Club, Ireland, ca. 1885. Source
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| Library of Congress |
Cavan football team, 1914. Source
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| Miami University Library |
Miami University basketball team, 1908 (I love how their socks match their shirts). Source
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| Miami University Library |
This just looks like a poster for a horror movie. Miami women's basketball team, ca. 1906. Source
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| Miami University Library |
Seriously, the women got the worst poses (especially in Miami). Western College women's basketball team [Miami?], 1915. Source
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| National Library of Ireland |
The Waterford boat club, Ireland, ca. 1915. Source
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| State Library of Queensland |
The Queensland Rugby team, 1931. Source
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| National Library of Ireland |
The Waterford Bicycle Club, Ireland, 1909. Source
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| Galt Museum |
More bicycle club awkwardness. Lethbridge bicycle club, Canada, 1899. Source
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