Old. Great, great, great, Grandpa old.

A couple of years ago I was tagged by a friend to post one black and white photo each day for a week and then tag another friend to post one per day and so on and so on. You know, email chain mail. Partly because this chain mail challenge didn't require that I tell people that their left earlobe would fall off or their nose hairs would grow to a foot long or some other vile thing would happen if they didn't follow through, but mostly because I love old things and a B&W photo challenge sounded like fun, I took the dare.

As I said, I love old things and, as luck would have it, my husband does too so when we got the chance about three and a half years ago to buy a 225 year old farmhouse we grabbed it. We’ve been here now for long enough to settle in to the quirks and foibles always associated with old houses. We love the character and nuance that surrounds and comforts us and we’re still in that OMG, this is Our House! phase. What a perfect place to capture great B&W photos I thought, completely unaware that working to capture a good antique-looking image with up to date technology is harder than it seems.

First; mindset. I wanted to sift through the layers of time that have passed since this house was first desired, conceived of and built, trying to place myself into a time before electricity, piped water, automated transportation and so many of the things that we rely on now. -Just spend a few cold days without power and the change of perspective that can be gained from that inconvenience is eye opening.- My imagination and I (plus my Samsung Galaxy S9) wandered around the house immersing ourselves in the soft edges and browned shades modern folks tend to cast over life from centuries ago. I wanted to get to a place in my mind where the sense of the house and time was real, not just seen through blurred sepia toned photos or Hollywood’s idea of what things were like then. It took some concentration. My husband thinks I spend most of my time in a world of my own making so it wasn't that hard.

Next; Lighting. Again, I wanted to feel the antique-ness of the house so I watched the sunlight streaming through the windows as it slid across walls, furniture, artwork and modern additions. Our window panes are blown glass and give a wavy, wobbly sense to the light making it look like I’m seeing reflections off water though I know it’s just the glass. The walls too give the sense of another time. The people who owned the house before we did also loved antiques and in their renovations and upkeep they decided to use real milk paint on the walls giving another added layer of “old” to press up against the veil between then and now.

Finally; subject. The first day of the challenge I wanted to include an actual B&W portrait of the men of my mother's family leading back from my great grandfather when he was a child with his father, his father's father and his father's grandfather. I've had this photo since I was little and just beginning to form a curiosity about relationships and family, and the fact that I have an image of my family that goes back through 6 generations has been intriguing to me for a long time.

I also spent some time outside looking at the structure and farm aspects of the place but found myself drawn back in repeatedly. (Probably by the ghosts, but that’s a story for another challenge.) I spent time out in the chicken coop communing with the hens and wandered through the barn with the stall for a horse, or maybe a cow, and looking at the huge, rough beams all connected with either notches, wooden pegs or old, square, iron nails. Though beautiful and fascinating, there weren’t enough windows for light to show the work that went into its construction. So the ghosts won, and I went back inside.

I have a few old brass candlesticks that my mother gave me and I thought they would be a good subject in keeping with the whole antique vibe and while I was setting one of them up on a fireplace mantle the sun came from behind a cloud and lit up the brass. It just looked “right” to me so I clicked a few shots and got one that I loved. I was a bit disappointed that the version with my ancestors didn't work out but I liked the simplicity of the single candle and the questions it raised as much as the composition of the photo I chose.

I posted it dutifully and didn't break the chain for the week so I guess I'll never know if my left earlobe would have fallen off. Dodged a bullet.

Original image made with Motorola Droid and cropped using Google Photo on my Chromebook.