Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1885-08-27
HAVING A PICTURE TAKEN.
How Some People Sit Before q Photo
grapher's Camera.


grapher's Camera.
"Queer sitters? Hundreds of them )
said o. B. de Morat, the photographer
recently, repeating q question and an
swering it. MY greatest trouble with
sitters is that they will almost invari>
ably sit as if they had swallowed q
ramrod. A man will come in, sit
down as stiff as a poker, and say: i
want my picture taken this way ]
take it that way, and as a matter OF
course he is dissatisfied. Had he said
to me, Take it the way you think
best, he would have been sure of a
good picture. Very few people know
how to assume a proper expression
aad really they have no business to
assume any expression but natural
one. / like to see q business man
come in, for they give me very little
trouble, having no desire TO look bet
ter than they are.
1t is very funny to see some people
trying to look pleasant. One day a
philanthropist, whose countenance is
as mild as a Woman's, and beams with
gentleness, wanted to be ph9t0gra PHI
ed. His face had q strained look as he
sat in the chair, and [ told him to as
sumo more cheerful expression. The
poor man screwed up his face IN such
a manner that he looked like a red
handed murderer. worked with
him for half an hour, and during that
time he managed to make himself
look ridiculous Ia a hundred different
ways. One moment he looked like
an imbecile, the next. like a stage viii
liam. [ finally got q negative, but no
body would have taken it for the pic,
ture of philanthropist. Now, if he
had only looked natural there would
have been 40 trouble at ALL
II don't want to be thought ungal>
liant, but am forced to acknowledge
that tho ladies are far more troubles
some than men. Nearly all of them
want to look sweet and smiling, and
ia their efforts to do so, some of them
simper IN a way that is almost
enough to break the camera; and
they all want to look young That's
woman's weakness. An old lady
about so called on me one day and
selecting the photograph of young
and voluptuous' actress, said she
wanted her picture taken like that.
The actress in the picture had on a
loW~necked dress, and looked charm
ing. Do you want it exactly like
that2 I asked. Yes, sir, replied the
lady with determination. [ photo
graphed her and exhibited q proof.
That's not the kind of picture |
want, she cried. It doesn't look a
bit like the one showed you. But,
madam [ expostulated, I can moi
make q lady of your age look like a
young woman of 25.' MY agep she
screamed; my age? and flounced out,
boiling with Indignation.
The ladies have got q neat little
dodge now that bothers us a good
deal. Say, for instance, that Mrs. K.
wants to be photographed. Of two of
her favorable dresses she does not
know which would look best in the
picture. How does she overcome the
difficulty? Very nicely. She has
her picture taken in one of the dress
es. She subsequently calls to look at
the proof, and after cursory glance
says it does not suit her, Of course e
she must sit again. This time she is
attired in the other dress. Then she
selects whichever picture suits her,
and frequently takes the first, after
all. The photographer who can get
ahead of woman deserves a monu-
ment.
''Ah, the ladies are a queer set. AS
a rule, a lady does not bring her
friends with her when she comes to
be photographed. But when she
comes to examine the proof she is ac~
companied by dozen. Eleven of
them will look at the proof and pros
nounce it charming, but the twelfth
-ah, there is the Stumbling block
She looks at it very carefully, gazes
at me as if had robbed her. and then
says, Ia a voice that warns me not to
contradict her, that the picture is mis-
cradle and does not look like her
friend. The others take another look
while the twelfth lady points out the
imaginary defects and finally all agree
that the picture must be taken over
again.
Country people are frequently
amusing. Two very green country
girls came to be photographed. While
l was taking the negative of one of
them, the other got very curious and
wanted to look into the camera.
told her to 60 on, and she poked her
head under the cloth. One peep was
enough. She looked Mortified. The
lens, you know, reverses the picture
on the focusing plate, and she saw her
sister upside down. Host customer
She said she wouldn't have her pic
ture taken that way, and all my ex-
plantations were in vain"
CEINNENH IN n,ITrr nI.rArEDc