Time travel in the photo archive

The picture shows the telegraphist in Porsgrunn in the early 1900s. It took care of both local and national calls. Gender equality was still a foreign word at this time, so to save money were mostly women, employed as a telegraphist. This picture is from TA`s (Local newpaper) photo archive.

As a photographer, and an employee in reputable photo shop, I get easy access to a huge number of photos from the old days. And it suits me very well, i like to see old photos from my own country and my own town. I like to see how the places I know today has changed over the years, how people dressed 100 years ago, how people lived and how life in general was long before I was born.

Skien, the largest city in Telemark county, experienced the city's worst flooding in 1927. The docks in the picture, neither before or since been under water. Much of the city was under water and you had to use boats to get from house to house.

Many of the places in the pictures are easily recognizable. Take this photo above, taken nearly a century ago. I know where the photo was taken, I recognize the point of view and is able to recreate the picture pretty quickly.

The main road in Porsgrunn city.

I want to recreate the photos, at least some of them. Some images are too difficult to replicate, because of the location and renovations. But I’ll try something cool, maybe “melt” the old and new pictures in one picture.

Q: Do you have old pictures from where you live?

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• Day 120 – New Vs Old (ianspagnolo.com)

The lost wheelchair

There are a large abandoned factory in my hometown. But it’s not an exciting place, unfortunately. The place is full of vandalism and graffiti. And all the content that was abandoned when the factory closed, are either removed or destroyed completely.

All the vandalism annoys me very much.

 

No more flowers

There is a large abandoned garden center not too far from where i live. I’ve driven past it many times, but never visited it. But one day, while I had nothing else to do, I went for a walk to check out the site. And I do not regret that I went there. The place was very exciting, very large and full of interesting things to photograph.

There were countless shopping carts at the entrance, various garden products abandoned and destroyed, a cash register, a whole bunch of billboards scattered around, a truck standing in a corner and a whole lot of other interesting things there.

My first trip to this garden center was a short one, unfortunately. I did not have the right equipment with me, the weather did not allow prolonged shooting and I did not know if I would be chased away or not. But I plan on taking a trip there in the near future, stay a little longer and fill a couple of memory cards.