Images that shape us

Today, I was at one of our local antique stores and found this great magazine. $3.50. I couldn't pass it up. It's fabulous! I posted some of my favorite images out of it here, with a little note about each. enjoy. be sure to read my story below. The cover of my great find.

The gorgeous Elizabeth Taylor. Age 15. 1947 seascape shot. She had a $1,200 a week contract with MGM. Photo by Bob Landry.

And below, is Meryl Streep. Absolutely love this shot!1981. Photo credit: Snowdon
What a fantastic image (below). A young Teddy Kennedy, 6, with his little box camera. 1938, getting ready to take a photo of the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace. Now that's historic imagery! Sadly, just an AP credit on this one.

And this is one of the images that really shaped me into wanting to become a photojournalist/news reporter. I look back now and think, thank heavens I didn't have to see such suffering up close and personal. Vietnam. 1966. Marines. Photo by Larry Burrows. I believe this image was not published until 1971.

And how is this one for capturing the MOMENT! George Balanchine, choreographer of classical ballet. 1963, pet Mourka. Photo by Martha Swope.

Margaret Bourke-White. Classic.

Images have a profound effect on who we are. Especially if you are a photographer. I spent hours and hours looking at photos of long-ago ancestors when I was a little girl. The stories behind them were, to me, fascinating, even if just simple. My mother had this huge box under her bed and whenever I was bored, I'd pull it out and just go through the images again and again. Those were the most fascinating, more so than the ones in albums. Imagine being nostalgic in your childhood/teenage years!

I loved fashion, celebrity images. After I had my sons, that didn't seem to appeal to me so much. I felt like it was kind of unrealistic to view life in that manner.
Another form of imagery that appealed to me was photojournalism. I used to dream of being a photographer in some faraway, exotic locale....or war torn country. Ireland and Cuba were at the top of my young dreams. Then there was the Vietnam War. Those pictures are deeply embedded in my mind. Now though, I know that is not a romantic job and the pain and anguish of those images still bear deep scars for many.
As I got a little older, I realized though that even though I loved all these types of photos depicting life. I really had a passion for political images. In college I used to daydream about being a White House photographer. I still think it would be awesome to do that - for a week or so. Having family and just enjoying my children and grandchildren, I don't think working in the nation's big house would fit so well with my lifestyle these days.

I'm happy to be doing what I'm doing these days, though I wouldn't pass up a chance to photograph a day in the White House, or maybe serve as second shooter at a celebrity wedding.