I'm busy working on a tutorial, so
here is a post I have been working
on for some time.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I've taken lots of photos from my
small collection of books by
Harry Whittier Frees for this post.
Although some folks today
may find these photos a bit disturbing,
choosing my favorites has given me a
great deal of trouble as I find each
one captivating and endearing.
Harry Whittier Frees
1879-1953
Harry's photographs and the simple sweet
stories he wrote took children into an imaginary
world where kittens baked pies, puppies wore
dresses and bunnies flipped flapjacks.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
An introductory note in The Little Folks of
Animal Land, published in 1915, Harry writes,
"The series of animal pictures reproduced on the
following pages have all been photographed from
living animals. The difficulties encountered in posing
kittens and puppies for pictures of this kind have
been overcome only by the exercise of great
patience and invariable kindness. My little models
receive no especial training, and after their daily
performance before the camera they enjoy nothing
better than a frolic about the studio. I sincerely
hope that others will derive as much pleasure from
the antics of these "Little Folks of Animal Land,"
as I experienced in picturing and telling
about them."
Mrs. Barker was busy in the kitchen.
Mrs. Bufkins finds plenty of eggs.
Mrs. Bufkins takes Barker's place.
Barker takes a stitch in time.
(Of course this is my absolute favorite!)
Mrs. Bufkins had a busy day.
Rosie Bufkins gave Jennie an airing.
Lily Bufkins cuts a wisdom tooth.
Fluff, Puff, Muff and Algernon.
Buzz, Fuzz, Suzz and Agamemnon.
Wags, Tags, Rags and Obadiah.
here is a post I have been working
on for some time.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I've taken lots of photos from my
small collection of books by
Harry Whittier Frees for this post.
Although some folks today
may find these photos a bit disturbing,
choosing my favorites has given me a
great deal of trouble as I find each
one captivating and endearing.
Harry Whittier Frees
1879-1953
Harry's photographs and the simple sweet
stories he wrote took children into an imaginary
world where kittens baked pies, puppies wore
dresses and bunnies flipped flapjacks.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
An introductory note in The Little Folks of
Animal Land, published in 1915, Harry writes,
"The series of animal pictures reproduced on the
following pages have all been photographed from
living animals. The difficulties encountered in posing
kittens and puppies for pictures of this kind have
been overcome only by the exercise of great
patience and invariable kindness. My little models
receive no especial training, and after their daily
performance before the camera they enjoy nothing
better than a frolic about the studio. I sincerely
hope that others will derive as much pleasure from
the antics of these "Little Folks of Animal Land,"
as I experienced in picturing and telling
about them."
Barker takes a stitch in time.
(Of course this is my absolute favorite!)
Rosie Bufkins gave Jennie an airing.
Cats, Dogs & Other Rabbits, his only biography
and collection of his photos, was printed in France.
Harry was quite popular in Europe and had
a large following.
Special costumes made by Harry's mother
allowed the animals to stand. They were
secured with pins so the animals could be
dressed and undressed quickly.
Only about 30 plates out of 100 were
usable. Some of his earliest photos required
a second and 1/2 of exposure time.
Harry relied on intuition to take his photos
at just the right moment.
His photos graced postcards, calenders, and
were even used in advertisements.
All highly collectible today.
Harry took photos for only 3 months out of
the year and spent the rest of the time
writing and making props.
Original books were published in the
early 1900's then colorized and reprinted
in the 1950's. I vividly remember
those brightly colored photos from my
childhood, but I prefer the original black
and white photos.
Buzz, Fuzz, Suzz and Agamemnon.
Wags, Tags, Rags and Obadiah.
In our modern world full of computer digital images,
I am utterly fascinated by Harry's work. I can't help
but think he had a special love of animals to have
made this type of photograph his life's work. I can
still recall the many times my daughter and
nieces wrapped Ace, the rag doll cat, in a
blanket and adorned him with a dolly's bonnet
for a ride in the stroller. They were kind and
gentle with him and he certainly seemed to
relish the special attention. No wonder Harry's
books were so popular with little children.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I wanted to purchase some reproduction books
for my great niece's Easter basket. Antique
and vintage books are rare, expensive and fragile.
I searched long and hard for reprints of his
original works. Little black and white 6 by 5 books
I am utterly fascinated by Harry's work. I can't help
but think he had a special love of animals to have
made this type of photograph his life's work. I can
still recall the many times my daughter and
nieces wrapped Ace, the rag doll cat, in a
blanket and adorned him with a dolly's bonnet
for a ride in the stroller. They were kind and
gentle with him and he certainly seemed to
relish the special attention. No wonder Harry's
books were so popular with little children.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I wanted to purchase some reproduction books
for my great niece's Easter basket. Antique
and vintage books are rare, expensive and fragile.
I searched long and hard for reprints of his
original works. Little black and white 6 by 5 books
are available at The Shackman Store, as well
as lots of other interesting things.
as lots of other interesting things.
Learn more about Harry Frees
