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Have a Good Cry... DOWN NOSTALGIA LANE A good test to see if your stock photos have any endearing value is to flip through one of the "vintage photo catalogs" that major commercial stock photo agencies are currently producing. They feature solely stock photos of the 30's, 40's and 50's. You'll see the standard set-up for the classic commercial stock photo: mom and dad studying this month's family budget; close-up of the businessman on the telephone; a child blowing out candles on a birthday cake; and yes, the "handshake" shot. "...They are a road map to show you where your commercial stock photos will end up once their shelf life is over." If you think the commercial stock photograph today is stilted, artificial and contrived-looking, you'll have a good laugh looking at what was professionally acceptable as commercial stock photos in the 30's, 40's and 50's. The telltale signs are there: no overweight people, pictures of coins and currency that are in mint condition, hospitals with no blood, sweat, or tears. (The myth continues on into the 90's.) If you've been investing your talents in commercial stock photography, get one of these vintage catalogs. Most art directors have four or five of them on their desk. Like hearing an old radio commercial, or seeing "flavor of the month" fashion shots from those decades, you'll laugh 'til you cry. How could we have been so naive? These stiff-and-stuffy photos are a road map to show you where your commercial stock photos will end up once their shelf life (usually five years) is over. On the other hand, editorial stock photo catalogs produced by stock agencies that deal in photojournalistic photos, are a history experience. They show us the delights and the disasters of real people, living, loving, and working out the obstacles in their life experiences. Stock agencies that deal in the area of vintage editorial stock photography (some have produced catalogs and CD's) are: Corbis-Bettmann, 902 Broadway, New York NY 10010; Hulton Collection/Getty Communications, 101 Bayham St, London NW1 OAG England; Visual Image Presentations, 4321 Baltimore Ave, Bladensburg MD 20710; Culver Photos, 150 West 22nd St, #300 New York NY 10011; The Image Works, 367 B Glasco Turnpike, Woodstock, NY 12498; TIME Picture Collection, 1271 Sixth Ave, New York NY 10020-1393; Photo Researchers, 60 E 56th St, New York NY 10022; and Archive Photos, 530 W. 25th St, New York, NY 10001. Stock agencies that deal in the area of vintage commercial stock photography (most have produced printed catalogs and CD's) are: The Image Bank, 111 5th Ave, New York NY 10010; Visual Communications Group, 32 Union Sq E, New York 10003; Armstrong-Roberts, 4203 Locust St, Philadelphia PA 19104; SuperStock, 7660 Centurion Pky, Jacksonville FL 32256-0519; Digital Getty, 222 Dexter Ave N, Seattle WA 98109; and CORBIS IMAGES, 15395 SE 30th Pl Ste 300, Bellevue WA 98007. -RE |
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