Pictures like that were excruciatingly boring when I saw them on postcards as a kid. Now I treasure them because it helps me visualize what life was like for real people back then
I wonder about the mental economy of "supply and demand". Common household goods of other cultures/eras become novel items of a bygone era. 'Rare' items eeks excitement like broken bulb tulips, beanie babies but so do common household goods from Rome.
> Fifty years from now, to viewers of photos your backyard is going to seem incredibly exotic.
I don't know if I agree. I think part of the allure of these old photographs is partly based on how rare and special (for lack of a better word) photography was back then. Each photograph was planned or thought out for the most part and very few people had cameras to take photographs. There isn't a treasure trove of images available and that is what makes these old images interesting.
Fifth years from now, there will be billions of pictures of people's backyards online, with most people thinking theirs are special.
There's a particular value in seeing how things were in day to day life in the 70s or the 30s or whenever. I love looking at old family photos not just because I can see myself as a baby, but I can see what furniture and televisions and clothes we all had back then.
