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One Man's Face, 12.5 Years

Photographer Noah Kalina has been taking a picture of himself every day since January 11, 2000. He's so dedicated to his "Everyday" project that he made an app for it. Today he released a video compiling all the photographs so far -- 4,514 photos in sequence, showing his unsmiling face staring into a camera. If you pause it at various points, you can spot Kalina in kitchens, airplanes, and what I take to be his apartment in various stages of disorder. The 7-minute video is interesting partly because... READ ON

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10 Photos of Celebrities Jumping for History's Most Persuasive Photographer

You may be familiar with the iconic Philippe Halsman image of Salvador Dali in mid-air with flying cats, disembodied arms, and floating furniture. But did you know that the Latvian-born photographer created an immense portfolio of jumping celebrities and public figures? At 22, Halsman was sentenced to four years imprisonment after his father died of severe head injuries when the two men were on a hiking trip in the Austrian Alps. The evidence against Halsman was circumstantial, and his imprisonment... READ ON

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The View From the End of the Great Wall of China

Everyone has seen pictures of China's Great Wall before, but most of those images come from a handful of viewpoints just outside of Beijing, where all the tourists tend to visit. Given that the wall stretches for over 5,500 miles, there's quite a bit more that you almost never see. While the tourist areas are well-maintained and often renovated, much of the wall has been left to rot and is now being reclaimed by nature. In these images gathered by Kuriositas, it's striking to see just how... READ ON

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18 Vintage Photos From Prohibition

Americans are fascinated by prohibition, as evidenced by the success of shows like Boardwalk Empire and the many movies based on Al Capone. But for all the discussions and reenactments of the period, it’s still rare to actually look back on photos from the period. Here are a few scenes from the fight against alcohol, courtesy of the Library of Congress. The Road to a Dry America The American Temperance Society started all the way back in 1826—almost 100 years before national prohibition. Within the... READ ON

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The Tallest Building in Kraków is "Szkieletor," He-Man's Nemesis

Photo circa 2008 courtesy of Joanna J., used by Creative Commons license. In 1975, construction began on a high-rise building in the center of Kraków, Poland. The massive structure (planned to be 24 stories high) was to be the headquarters for the Polish Federation of Engineering Associations (aka Naczelna Organizacja Techniczna, or "NOT"). After the skeleton of the building was completed, political and economic unrest hit Poland and the project was halted. 37 years later, the unfinished shell still... READ ON

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The Earliest LOLCats and Other 19th-Century Animal Photography

LOLcats and other funny animal pics weren't born with the Internet; they've been around since the end of the 19th century. Here are some of the early photographs that inspired... READ ON

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Burning Matches in Slo-Mo

In this five-minute video, photographer Nick Moore shows us how to build and photograph your own micro-forest fire, using strike-anywhere matches in a workshop setting. While the building-the-rig portion may seem slow at first, it becomes fascinating when the camera shifts into slow-motion and fast-motion, as appropriate for the length of each task. By the 3-minute mark, we're eagerly anticipating the lighting of the matchstick forest, and it does not disappoint -- just before the 4-minute mark, we see... READ ON

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26 Vintage Photos of Cowboys & Cowgirls

Ever since the idea of the cowboy entered the public consciousness, people have been fascinated with them. Whether it’s the idea of getting to work with animals, the rough & tough image, or the concept of freedom they represent, cowboys have become an integral part of American history and culture. Here are some vintage photos of cowboys that show what day-to-day life really was like for these horse-wrangling icons. Once again, all photos courtesy of the Library of Congress. At The... READ ON

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Photos of Yesterday's Solar Eclipse That Won't Damage Your Eyes

© Katsuro Okazawa/AFLO/Nippon News/Corbis Ethan warned you yesterday about staring at a solar eclipse. If you weren't able to find a pair of welding goggles or don't live where the eclipse was visible, BuzzFeed's Matt Stopera rounded up 50 eclipse photos from Asia and the western... READ ON

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29 Vintage Police Photos for Peace Officers Memorial Day

Did you know that today is Peace Officers Memorial Day? In honor of those who put their lives on the line to protect and serve their communities, here are some great vintage photos of law enforcement officers from the past 125 years. As always, you can find these police photos and more over on the Library of Congress’ Website. Training Just like today, officers need to know the law and the basic operating standards of the job before they hit the... READ ON