The obsession with the self photo is nothing new. People love to look at themselves and, while many profess that the selfie has gotten out of control, we only need to look into the past to see that this is far from true.
Take, for instance, a young Philadelphian man who, in 1904, was the subject of an article about the “photograph fad.” He had over 700 pictures taken of himself over the previous ten years. The photographs included tin type photos, a life sized photo, and photos of himself in every pose imaginable.
Was he obsessed with images of himself? Sure. Was he alone in his obsession? Absolutely not. [1]
Silhouette Portrait
The silhouette portrait was a new fad back in 1901. According to one report, the fad was a revival from George Washington’s time when he and others would sit for silhouette portraits to be painted by hand.
The photograph silhouettes were made by taking a photograph “in the usual way and a dark print made. Then the portrait is cut out carefully, with due respect to outlines, and the bust is cut out with the orthodox silhouette curve. The portrait is smoothly mounted on cardboard – and there you are. I fancy the dead-black for mounting, but it is also practical to use white as the background.” [2]
Photo Etchings
The photo etching fad of 1902 was a bit like a bad A-Ha video. Photographers would develop a picture, take a pen, and scribble on the image to produce the etchings.
According to one newspaper report, the fad began in New York City and quickly caught on to the west. [3]
Bare Shoulders and Back
Bare shoulders and back in 1901? Yes! Let’s make America super-duper again and bring back this photography trend. It certainly would be a nice change from all the busts and butts we see on a daily basis. [4]
Eyes Closed
As a general rule, we tend to delete photos that show our eyes closed, but the opposite was true in 1911 when it was the fad to deliberately close the eyes for a picture. This trend apparently began in London where the artists wondered whether a woman was more beautiful asleep or awake. [5]
The Small Picture Epidemic
“The small picture epidemic reached Topeka about two weeks ago [in February of 1898] and in 48 hours from the time it started it had spread over the entire town; it spreads faster than the endless chain scheme for raising money and it will hardly stop until everybody has tried it and it has run itself out.”
The article went on to complain that the fad was almost as bad as the flu and that making so many poses at once would cause face wrinkles. [6]
Sleeping Pose
The sleeping pose became popular in 1911, especially after the royalty of Europe took to the fad. Children were often photographed in the sleeping pose because it was easy to get them to be still while they were in a relaxed position. [7]
Selfie + Pet
People loved their pets in the past just as much as we do today, and that is why people began getting photographed with their pets back in 1914. The only difference between then and now is that in the past people would get dressed up for their photographs instead of kicking it back in ripped jeans or yoga pants. [8]
Showing Off Hat
Getting photographed wearing a hat was rather common, but in 1912 a new fad developed. Instead of just wearing a hat for a photograph, women would face a mirror so that the photograph would show off more of her hat. [9]
Madonna Pose
The Madonna pose became a popular trend among the young mothers of Oakland, California back in 1901.
An interesting fact about this trend is that it was started by a woman, Mrs. Peter C. Allen, who was born on Christmas Day. Mrs. Allen’s baby, on the other hand, was born on Easter Sunday. [10]
