Loretta, folks were much more formal in the olden days, that being the Victorian era. It was considered quite unlady like for a woman to give a "toothy" smile. Although I imagine many did not smile for the reason you suggest. Having one's photo taken was a very somber and serious event and there wasn't fast cameras in those times, sometimes the subject had to remain very still for several minutes. My mother had beautiful teeth right up to her death at age 93 and in all her early photos she is not seen smiling with her teeth exposed. Shirley in TX ----- Original Message ----- From: "LORETTA CARAWAY" <gypsygirl111@msn.com> To: "La Darla" <txwise@rootsweb.com> Sent: Monday, April 13, 2009 1:40 AM Subject: Re: [TXWISE] Long faces in photos--FYI To the List; People didn't smile back then because they had bad teeth and didn't want to show this. Also they didn't have a lot to smile about. I guess they couldn't afford to go to the dentist, or maybe there wasn't a dentist within reach. Now this is my take on this and I have thought about the long ,sad faces in the early photos and wondered the same thing. If anyone has a better explanation, let's hear it. Loretta Caraway Longview, Texas gypsygirl111@msn.com > To: TXWISE@rootsweb.com > Date: Fri, 10 Apr 2009 09:54:29 -0400 > From: ladarlak@aol.com > Subject: [TXWISE] Long faces in photos--FYI > > Why the Long Faces in Old Photos? > Posted by Maureen > > > > > Every so often I bump into a 19th century photo in which the subjects are > grinning. It's a rare event. Occasionally, you see a Mona Lisa smile, but > it's difficult to locate an image from the 19th century where folks > actually showed teeth the way we do today. So, you're probably > wondering—why the long face in most pictures? > > In the beginning, I imagine that sitters were nervous in front of the > camera. It was new, and having your picture taken was an uncomfortable > procedure. > > Look closely at your early photographs and see if you can spot a posing > device such as a wooden stand behind the subjects' feet. This device > sometimes extended as far up as the head and had clamps around a person's > waist or head to keep him still for the long exposure time. Would you feel > like smiling? > > In this 1870s tintype, you can see a chair with the adjustable back. This > man holds the the chair back, but if you look closely at his feet, you can > see a wooden brace stand. > > > > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > TXWISE-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes > in the subject and the body of the message ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to TXWISE-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message