When I was growing up, my family would sometimes go over to another family’s house for dinner or a low-key party that was soon followed by their getting the projector and screen out, along with a brace of Kodak slides, to show us their summer travels.
In those days, we were somewhat awed. These were our friends who could afford the equipment and film and also manage to travel in some kind of style. In other words, it was an occasion, however boring.
These days, of course, photography is, oh, so much easier, and thanks to digital advances, oh, so much cheaper. And the slide show, as I’ve been finding as I blog, is both easier and, well, more intimate – you can watch it when and where you want. You don’t even have to yell out, “Can we back up two?” or “Who was that in the lower right-hand corner?”
Many families now have to figure out what to do with those increasingly fragile slips of film in their cardboard frames – especially the ones that now smell of mildew. They’re history, of course.
As is, it appears as I look around, the custom of families coming together with others.
Jnana's Red Barn 
Loved the family slide shows from my childhood. Thanks for reminding me!
I love your pictures. Look forward to seeing/reading more. Thank you for liking my blog
I fell asleep during many a slide show, which was nearly always the culminating activity of family gatherings. I came to think of it as a grown-up plot to make us kids all so drowsy we couldn’t protest when it was time to leave, but I loved those slide shows nevertheless. There was something profoundly communal about sitting around the living room in the dark, identifying people and places on the wall or bed sheet (no screens for us) as dust motes danced in the projector beam. Today’s computer slide shows offer no chance to hone one’s shadow hand puppet techniques…
Ah, I forgot all about the shadow hand play!
A few minutes ago I glanced at a stack of National Geographics and realized they’ve suffered a similar fate, now that color photography is so easy and so universal.
It usually seemed that the same families that did the slide shows were Geographic subscribers.
Thanks for the reminder about the dust motes. I suspect they’re in that layer on top of the magazines these days.
Oh, the passing time …