Sepia Saturday 789 : 23 August 2025

 

There was a period at the beginning of the twentieth century when family photography moved out of the confines of the studio and into the open air. This was the age of amateur photography: cameras and film had developed to such an extent that ordinary people - enthusiasts, at least, could afford to buy cameras and start taking photographs. Cameras and films had not progressed far enough, however, to enable such photographs to be taken without a plentiful supply of natural light - and so garden photographs suddenly became popular. This week on Sepia Saturday you can share your photographs taken in the garden, of the garden, outside the garden .... or nowhere near the garden. Simply share an old photograph on or around Saturday 23 August 2025 and add a link to the list below. And then you can pop out into the garden and see what is coming in the next few weeks on Sepia Saturday.

Sepia Saturday 788 : 16th August 2025

 

It's the middle of summer (well, it is in the Northern Hemisphere) and here on Sepia Saturday we are paddling in the seas of nostalgia. To protect our bodies from the sun we are hiding in the shade of countless memories, represented by a host of old photographs. Join us by sharing an old photograph or two either on themes (bathing suits, beaches, sand) or off theme (giant vegetables, top hats, or whatever you want) on or around Saturday 16th August 2025 and add a link to the list below.

And whilst the salty waves wash over your sun-tanned toes, take a look at what is around the next corner here on Sepia Saturday (and the one after that and the four after that!)

Sepia Saturday 787 : 9th August 2025

 

It's a sad state of affairs when you are so old you become a Sepia Saturday prompt. Nevertheless, that is me in the centre of the picture - not the one with the long ears, but the little cute chap taking his first ride on a seaside donkey. I don't look too thrilled at the prospect, and, if truth be told, neither does the donkey. However, like the brave little soldier I was, I posed for the photograph in the knowledge that it would come in useful over three quarters of a century later as a Sepia Saturday prompt. Find in it what you will - cute little chaps, donkeys with big ears, seaside sands ... or whatever. Whatever old photograph of your own it brings to mind, share it on or around Saturday 9th August 2025 and add a link to the list below. And here is a reminder of what is to come for the rest of the month.

Sepia Saturday 786 : 2nd August 2025

 

It is summer. We are sat on the pier. We have our overcoats on because it is Britain and it is cold. Everything is all right and everything is as it should be .... except the world seems to be tilting to the left. For those who like to look for themes for their Sepia Saturday offerings, there are themes a plenty here - from flat caps to straw baskets. For those who just like sharing old photographs why not get yourself off your seat and share your photos on or around Saturday 2nd August 2025 and add a link to the list below. 

Sepia Saturday 785 : 26 July 2025

 

According to my computer's Artificial Intelligence, "Berries, particularly blueberries, are often cited for their memory-boosting properties due to their high antioxidant content. Other fruits like oranges, strawberries, and grapes are also beneficial for brain health and memory". It6 is just a pity that the same Artificial Intelligence couldn't manage to remind me to put up the Sepia Saturday call this week. My eternal thanks to my friend and fellow Sepian, Barbara Rogers, for reminding me. Perhaps I could find the memory-enhancing fruit I need on this week's Sepia Saturday prompt image: there's oranges, grapes and pineapples there. Even if it doesn't provide you with a good memory, perhaps the image will provide you with a prompt for this week's Sepia Saturday. Post your post on or around Saturday 26th July and then add a link to the list below. And, whilst I remember, here is a preview of the August Sepia Saturday prompts.

Sepia Saturday 784 : Saturday 19th July 2025

 

Lovers of old photographs often suffer from a severe occupational hazard - an obsession with cataloguing. I have to confess that I am totally addicted to endless experiments with catalogues, filing systems, and indexing experiments. As soon as I look at one of my old photographs my mind immediately goes in search of a subject grouping, closely followed by a detailed inspection in order to identify potential key words. Most of my filing systems last a week or two, after which they are replaced by a new, better, improved approach. I could have been a great photographer/blogger/writer/philosopher/friend or whatever if it hadn't been for my addiction to cataloguing. This week on Sepia Saturday we celebrate our photographic filing systems and catalogues. All you need to do is to share an old photograph on or around Saturday 19th July and add a link to the list below. And so that you can see what is around the corner I have just done a search in my filing system for "Sepia Saturday" and come up with the following results!

Sepia Saturday 783 : 12 July 2025

 

Ella Jane and her cousin have a Coke in a Soda Fountain before they go to the movies - what scene could be more redolent of the 1950s than that? That is the beauty of old photographs - they are time machines that can transport us through time more efficiently than any H G Wellsian time mechanical contraption. Sepia Saturday provides you with an opportunity to fly your Time Machine and share the view with other enthusiasts. Just post your old photographs on or around Saturday 12th July 2025 and add a link to the list below. And, whilst you are up there in your flying Time Machine, have a look down to see what is in store for the rest of July on Sepia Saturday.

Sepia Saturday 782 : 5 July 2025

 

Our theme image this week is entitled "Saturday Afternoon Street Scene" or perhaps it should be "Sepia Saturday Afternoon Street Scene"! Of course, it doesn't need to be Saturday nor does it need to be a street scene. Just share any old photograph and tell us a little bit about it on or around Saturday 5th July 2025 and add a link to the list below. And when you have done that, take a look at what is to come here on Sepia Saturday.

Sepia Saturday 781 : 28 June 2025

 

Sometimes all you need is a name. You can be sorting through a pile of old family photographs, desperately trying to work out if the subject is your Great Uncle Joe or Cousin Mabel's young nephew, when you suddenly find a name pencilled on the reverse of the photograph and all your questions are answered. Of course, it is Harold Elk! And then you suddenly realise that you haven't the slightest idea who on earth Harold Elk is, and you have never come across that name before. And then you are back at square one: sat on one end of a plaster bench, lost and alone. Share your old photographs - whether you know who they are or you don't - here on Sepia Saturday. Just post your post on or around Saturday 28th June 2025 and add a link to the list below.

The prompt photographs for July all come from the collection of the US National Archives on Flickr Commons. Here is a preview of the month ahead.

Sepia Saturday 780 : 21 June 2025

 

Sorry, late again. Car broke down on a mountain road. Memo to self - buy a new car!

Sepia Saturday 779 : 14th June 2025

 

"Man With A Chair" is a familiar caption for all collectors of old photographs. If old photographs are anything to go by, the average man - and indeed woman - of the first part of the twentieth century did little else but stand next to a chair and have their photograph taken. There are reasons, of course, for the use of chairs as props in early photographs: shutter speeds were slow and subjects had to keep still for a long time. So this week get out your men standing, your women standing and even your chairs standing. Whatever is standing, post you post on or around Saturday 14th June 2025 and add a link to the list below. And whilst you are standing about, take a look at what is next on Sepia Saturday.

Sepia Saturday 778 : Saturday 7th June 2025

 

For those who like themes, there are plenty of themes in this week's Sepia Saturday image. There are swans, rivers, boats and food. Whatever olkf photograph you are wanting to share this week will probably fit into one of those categories. So share your old images on or around Saturday 7th June 2025 and add a link to the list below. And we have themes a-plenty this week because we not only have the future themes for the rest of June, there is the July collection as well.

Sepia Saturday 777 : Saturday 31 May 2025

 

Railways, photography, the motor car, film and radio: some of the key inventions of the last two hundred years that have done so much to shape the world we live in now. This week, on Sepia Saturday, we celebrate two of these - photography and radio. Our theme image shows a photograph from eighty years ago of a man using a radio transmitter. All you need to do is to imagine that he is inviting you to share your hold photographs on Sepia Saturday by posting a post on or around Saturday 31 May 2025 and add a link to the list below. After which you can look forward rather than looking back - and see what is to come on Sepia Saturday over the next few weeks.

Sepia Saturday 776 : 24 May 2025

 

Families and photographs go together like ... well like family photographs! Whilst the very first photographs may have been of grainy castle walls or faded chateau gardens, it didn't take the humble camera long to focus in on its natural subject matter - the family. This Edwardian couple with their young child - I neither know who they are or why I happen to have their photograph in my collection - is just one of hundreds of millions of family photographs that have been taken over the last 175 years. This week on Sepia Saturday is your opportunity to share your favourite family photographs by posting a post and then adding a link to the list below. And whilst you are waiting for the family to gather, you might want to take a look at what is next on Sepia Saturday.

Sepia Saturday 775 - Saturday 17th May 2025

 

By the time you read this I will be strolling down the promenade of a classic English seaside resort. It is therefore quite apt that this week's Sepia Saturday Call image is a group of people strolling down the promenade of a classic English seaside resort. You can join them, and you can join us, by sharing your old photographs this weekend - either your holiday snaps or your studio portraits, your family groups or your Aunty Bessie's pet cat. Just post your post on or around Saturday 17th May 2025 and add a link to the list below. And take a moment or two to see what lies ahead here on Sepia Saturday.

Sepia Saturday 774 : Saturday 10th May 2025

 

For the seven hundredth and seventy-fourth week of Sepia Saturday we have a look, and it is the look of the actress Arline Judge in a still from the 1936 film "Valiant Is The Word For Carrie". You probably don't remember the film and the plot is far too complicated to explain here, but all we are interested in at the moment is that look. It is what makes the photograph memorable, and that is the case with so many of the old photographs we treasure. We invite you to share your look - or indeed any of your old photographs - on or around Saturday 10th May 2025 and add a link to the list below. Once you have done that, you can take a look at what is to come on Sepia Saturday over the next couple of months.

Sepia Saturday 773 : Saturday 3rd May 2025

 

Our Sepia Saturday theme image this week looks at that most familiar item of household furnishing - the desk. Whether covered with books or papers, photographs or paintings, typewriters or computers; the desk is always with us. I know that these days people are enticed by laptops and palmtops and tablets you can curl up on an easy chair with, but for me you can't beat the sensible solidity of a desk. My image for Sepia Saturday 773 - post your posts on or around Saturday 3rd May 2025 and add a link to the list below - is a photograph of my desk from more than fifty years ago. For younger readers I should point out that the strange machine is in fact a typewriter! If you want to follow the theme you can feature desks or typewriters, books or papers - or you can ignore the theme all together. Just share an old image and what it means to you. 

Sepia Saturday 772 : Saturday 26th April 2025

 

Here we are again - at the seaside. Old photographs and the seaside seem to go together like .... bread and butter or fish and chips or sand and shingle or sea salt and sunburn. We invite you to share your old photographs here on Sepia Saturday by sharing a photo and the adding a link to the list below on or around Saturday 26th April 2025. And here is what lies ahead for the next couple of months on Sepia Saturday.