School Life Page 1
Let's start in homeroom. "Nostalgia mist" will be required to make some of these old prints tolerable. It is not required here to enhance the photograph; the next frame will need it, though. This negative was not the best but the combination of a better exposure, superior latitude in the original emulsion and less deterioration of the grain structure over the years combined with the magic of variable curve gamma corrections and manual selection of area of the print to alter have produced a print with "snap".
Gerry Hagberg makes the following identifications, some tentative: beginning at the left in the foreground; Ethel Bonner, Leanne Elliot, Myra Hall. (Derek Hamlet's unoccupied seat is behind Myra and Gerry's is in front of her). Seated at the rear is Alan Blackwell and leaning on the table, chin on hand, is Colvin McAllister. The chap with hand to face at the left rear could be Don Peden, Greg Bowden or Brooke George.
Is this the Dutchman's Chemistry class? No, Gerry Hagberg believes this to be Ernie Costain's home room, the physics lab., of Div.3. Ernie had declared that his students must sit in alphabetical order and the arrangement here fits.
Is that Leanne Elliott looking to her left? Bob Lawrie is standing at the back at the right edge of the print. The figure seated at the table looks like Mike Bishop but is, in fact, Alan Blackwell. There is something familiar about that nerd standing in the middle. Wasn't he the guy who was always walking around the school with a binder jammed full of books under his arm? Books: Murray Farmer and Rick Todd remember the books and the bridge.