The Fine Art of Posing to be Photographed



There was a time when dressing well was an art form that did not adhere to fitting into the latest fads and fashions. Rather, proper etiquette was part of society and young ladies were trained in proper social behavior and dress in prep schools. Manners were crucial to families of the upper middle and upper class of the social fabric of their time.

The proper term for "prep schools" was "finishing school" and they were very popular in the Victorian era. Fashion, proper way to walk or "carry oneself", dining etiquette, speech, writing, prose and poetry, cooking and the needle arts were all part of the finishing school curriculum. You can see how different times were in the 1200's or 1500's compared to today!

Ladies today compete in active contact sports dressed like men and they fight along side the men in the military. But is this really so different from the women in the same era of a different class? There were warrior women as far back as history is told and beyond the time that it is written.

When was the earliest that social training for ladies was practiced?

Now back to the photo and the title of this blog post, the art of posing to be photographed. Exactly how did posing come into practice and when did it begin? I guess a better question would be how long photography has been in existence? When was the first photo taken?

Let's find out

The first actual photographs were taken in the 1820's. Before then, attempts were made to capture images using various techniques such as obscura boxes.

Photo Credit: Wikipedia /"First known photograph, taken by Joseph Nicéphore Niépce in 1825 by the heliograph process. The image is of a 17th Century Flemish engraving showing a man leading a horse."


The Midnight Writer

Mystery Hides Behind the Veil of Shadows

Her form is beauty, hidden yet remotely revealed
As the shadows seek to cover her beautiful form
In silhouette she taunts me, luring me closer
I turn my head slowly wanting to catch a glimpse.
The shadows beckon, then halt my footsteps as I near
Tis only beauty formed by the mystery of night
A mirage playing tricks in the darkness on my eyes.
I canter a bit, and wave as if the shadow sees me
Retreating beyond the reach of unseen eyes.

Copyright The Midnight Writer

Gone Fishing so you Won't Find the Cat Under the Bed


Does this evoke memories about times when you felt like the cat who has been caught in the fishbowl?

Life is not always simple and things are not always as they seem. People don't always do what you expect them to do. I'm guilty of surprising people by jumping out of character a few times in my life.

I think about these kinds of things late at night as I lay in bed, just pondering. This past couple of years, I've pondered life and my life in particular, a lot. My mind travels in retrospect to the years past with all the people who I've interacted with on one level or another. I found out I have some regrets so I'm trying to figure how to live all my todays so I won't have more regrets in my tomorrows.

Take this cat fishing in the family fishbowl, for instance. He'll probably snag a fish without getting caught. If the cat is hungry, he'll definitely enjoy it and no one will see him eat the goldfish. But tomorrow or next week or next year, the cat might think about that goldfish when his master gives him a treat. Do you suppose the cat has a conscience about what he did?