Two interests collided the other day: continuing photographic experimentation and postcard collecting. I recently bought a mini-magnetic-macro lens for my iPhone (nowadays the only camera I carry with me) and have been rediscovering the worlds revealed by extreme close up. Buying the postcard shown below, of Selfridges department store in Oxford Street, London circa 1970, and taking close up photos with the macro lens, revealed some nice aesthetic effects along with reflections on suddenly examined life.
The postcard is of Oxford Street I’m guessing circa 1970 and shows a classic red bus / black cab shot of London outside the famous Selfridges department store.
The first macro photo is from the bottom left of the Postcard.
The second macro photo is from the bottom right of the Postcard.
The image samples remind me of a sophisticated computer-generated model for a new piece of urban design (see past posts on representation); not quite real, not quite not-real; unreal realism you might call it.
The narrow depth of field of the lens introduces a realistic motion that isn’t there in the postcard, while the people caught in focus move centre-stage. What is that old man thinking as he crosses the road? He looks so… sad, reflective and calm amongst the bustle of traffic and people. Perhaps he has just lost his job, or wife? or maybe he is just walking to work. Perhaps he knows the women in the second image, just about to cross the road, with her bags? Perhaps she is his wife, or daughter, or the women next door that he often catches himself thinking about.
Peter Lloyd 
Reblogged this on amyhouseblog and commented:
Fantastic read!
Really interesting take on how an effect (depth of field) can take take an archival item and bring new meaning. Also a really great meeting of analogue and digital technologies and time-frames (1970’s to now – feels oddly current).
Reblogged this on Moorezart.
these are really cool.
Very interesting.
The only reason I would ever buy an IPhone, is that new camera (for the IPhone) that DxO has released. Else, I am against these super expensive phones
I love old city postcards!
Fascinating. Who would have thought a fairly ordinary old postcard could be so interesting.