Old Photos from yardsale.

[Phineas Lamour]

I bought these old photos from a yardsale. Are they tin type? Anyone have any idea how old they are? There are three of them. I think I paid $5 for them.

They are about 2" in diameter.

 

[martinsantos]

Are these photos made in porcelain? I saw some very similar in this absolutely obsolete system from 20s and 30s.

 

[Phineas Lamour]

They are on metal. Looks like brass around the edges and maybe tin where the photo is.

 

[Kahuna]

I don't think these are what is usually called tin-types. The tin-type era usually dates from around the civil war and these look 20s or 30s by the clothes. They look more to me like something that might have been taken in a photo booth at an amusement park, sort of the predecessor to the film strip booths that used to be ubiquitous at those places. Just a theory.

 

[Phineas Lamour]

The lady looks like she's from the 20s to me with the hat she is wearing. The two men look 20s or 30s. I have never seen anything like them before. I like the photo booth theory.

 

[martinsantos]

Maybe this can be the result of one of those systems to give a direct positive from the camera. Something that used to be done in parks, etc. The photographer must to work quickly to give the results - and of course less material is wasted. When you get a flat negative over a black, reflecting surface you will see a positive image. (you can try this with a thin, flat black and white negative, with a strong light with you and putting the negative over a dark place. You will see a positive image. The silver in negative, usually black, will reflete the light, and looks white. And you will see throw the transparent parts of the negative, and that parts will be black).

I found some formulas and procedures about this in a Photo Formulary from 30s, explaining what I put here. Because the clothes, I think these photos are from this period.