Vintage Male Photographs, Book 1

For more than 100 years the camera has given us the ability to record and preserve images of our everyday lives. Maybe it's this everyday quality that gives them power, that lets them speak to us across the years, bringing into our moment of time real memories of real people just like us. These photographic memories should not be lost, which is why I'm motivated to collect and share them.

This book is a direct result of the success of the vintage male photography site that I began on Flickr in July 2005. I've been truly amazed at the response these images have generated. While the number of views (over 1.5 million) has been fun to track, it's been more gratifying to see people interact with the past through these photos. I am struck by the comments and dialogues attached to many of the photos, running from the serious to the humorous to the risque. And there are the artists, touched by an image, who have taken photos and made them their own in unique and wonderful ways. Then there are the messages from members telling me how much they appreciate having the chance to experience these photos. Each of these responses has added to my enjoyment of not only collecting these wonderful photos but also sharing them.

The images included in this book are scans of original vintage photographs from my personal collection. Most of them come from searching antique shops and from successful bidding on eBay.