20 More Historic Black and White Pictures Restored in Colour
When we look at black and white photographs, we can’t help but feel that irrational sense that, in the past, the world was actually black and white. It has recently become quite trendy to colorize old black and white photos, though, which inevitably brings us closer to the past, unveiling the mysticism and romance of those colourless frames.
There are different ways to colorize black and white photography depending on how dedicated you are. Many of the colours of the past can be restored by researching fashion trends and the fabrics that were available then and there. Others can be found by visiting the locations in the photos. But a big part of the colour restoration process involves basic guesswork based on shades of grey and on a basic understanding of naturally-occurring colours.
One of reddit’s subreddits, r/ColorizedHistory, hosts a community that shares a passion for colorizing black and white photography. Here’s a compilation of some of their wonderful work, which gives us a chance to glimpse at the colours of a world long gone.
See other colourized photos that we wrote about here and here .
1. Women Delivering Ice, 1918
Original photo by War Department/National Archives
Colourized by Dana Keller
2. Times Square, 1947
Original photo by William Gottlieb
Colourized by Jordan J. Lloyd
3. Easter Eggs for Hitler, c 1944-1945
Original photo by US Army/National Archives
Colourized by Zuzzah
4. Newspaper boy Ned Parfett sells copies of the evening paper bearing news of Titanic’s sinking the night before. (April 16, 1912)
Original photo by Hulton-Deutsch Collection
Colourized by Dana Keller
5. Portrait Used to Design the Penny. President Lincoln Meets General McClellan – Antietam, Maryland ca September 1862
Original photo Alexander Gardner
Colourized by Zuzzah
6. Sergeant George Camblair practicing with a gas mask in a smokescreen – Fort Belvoir, Virginia, 1942
Update: As some readers pointed out, the B&W picture we used initially was a different shot from the same photoshoot, so we replaced the previous photo with the one that was actually colourized. (Original photo by Jack Delano )
Colourized by Ryan Urban
7. Painting WWII Propaganda Posters, Port Washington, New York – 8 July 1942
Original photo by Marty Zimmerman
Colourized by Patty Allison
8.Louis Armstrong practicing in his dressing room, ca 1946
Original photo by William Gottlieb
Colourized by Dana Keller
9. Construction of the Golden Gate Bridge ca 1935
Original photo source unknown
Colourized by Dana Keller
10. Marilyn Monroe, 1957
Original photo by Richard Avedon ; Colourized by Zuzzah
11. Broadway at the United States Hotel Saratoga Springs, N.Y. ca 1900-1915
Original photo by Detroit Publishing Co.
Colourized photo by Sanna Dullaway
12. “The Tall Cowboy”, Ralph E. Madsen with Senator Morris Sheppard, 1919
Original photo Harris & Ewing
Colourized by Photo Retrofit
13. Dancers of the National American Ballet, 20 August 1924
Original photo by National American Ballet
Colourized by Photo Retrofit
14. Theoretical physicist Albert Einstein, 1921
Original photo by Ferdinand Schmutzer
Colourized by Klassixx
15. Helen Keller meeting Charlie Chaplin in 1919
Original photo by Roy Export Company / Cineteca di Bologna
Colourized photo by Zuzahin
16. Otto Frank, Anne Frank’s father and the only surviving member of the Frank family revisiting the attic they spent the war in, 3 May 1960
Original photo by Arnold Newman
Colourized by Laiz Kuczynski
17. Young Woman with Umbrella – Louisiana, 1937
Original photo by Dorothea Lange
Colourized by Manuel De Leonardo
18. Crowded Bunks in the Prison Camp at Buchenwald, April 16, 1945
Original photo by Private H. Miller
Colourized by Manuel De Leonardo
19. Peatwy Tuck of the Meskwahki, 1898
Original photo by Frank A. Rheinhart
Colourized by Photocopshop
20. Boys after buying Easter flowers in Union Square, New York, April 1908
Original photo by Bain News Service .
Colourized by Dana Keller
