How Once We Were… Entering the 1960s

 

The past and the present are closer than we often realize,so I’m going back into the archives to see what I saw long ago. First up is this sampling of my documentary photography, a nostalgic collection of How Once We Looked. I’ve selected images that seem memorable, from the perspective of a life spent pursuing my passion.

 

When Nixon And Kennedy Competed For The Presidency

Nixon rally at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia in 1960

All images Copyright ©1960 Michael Philip Manheim. All Rights Reserved.

Vice President (For 8 years under Dwight D. Eisenhower) Richard M. Nixon ran against Senator John F. Kennedy in the closest election since 1916.

Kennedy became the country’s the youngest President at age 43 and the first Catholic.  His win came from an Electoral College vote.

Kennedy proved a media master.  Theirs was the first televised presidential debate, and image played a role. Three of these photographs seem to telegraph a feeling for the times and for that would-be urbane college crowd.

 

In The Moment

boys in the street

When you’re seeking spontaneity in street photography, you want to keep moving and to keep alert.

My camera was preset for exposure, back in the days when color slide film demanded more precision than digital today. But that’s not the point. What I’m stressing is that this magic moment was just that—a moment—that would have gone by had I not been alert and responsive.

Point being: You can’t stand back and hope something will happen.

Alma Mater

crowd cheering at football game

University of Pennsylvania boosters hailed the alma mater at a football game. I used a telephoto lens to compress the crowd, and picked the decisive moment to capture the enthusiasm.

“The historian will tell you what happened. The novelist will tell you what it felt like.” —-E. L. Doctorow

Such a pleasure, to capture feelings and not only the competition.  The play is over, but not the photography.  What a wonderful show of sportsmanship after a hard fought high school football game.

Feelings

“The historian will tell you what happened. The novelist will tell you what it felt like.” —-E. L. Doctorow

Such a pleasure, to capture feelings and not only the competition. The play is over, but not the photography. What a wonderful show of sportsmanship after a hard fought high school football game.

Was the game over?  Sure was, but staying alert as a photographer never ends.

Traffic Toreador

C.J. Everett was the “Traffic Toreador” in Alliance. Ohio in the 1960s. My coverages of him appeared in many magazines before Candid Camera got the bright idea to feature him. As I go into the archives for my new book series, I’m posting some of my nostalgic images to contests. Here’s an update:

— in Alliance, Ohio.