Leah 008

These "Toxy" glasses were made by Rodenstock in late 1963 or early 1964, just after the end of the cat eye era. Their first owner was a blonde lady with a fine taste for eyewear although she always hated her glasses. When I first met her and she found out about my glasses collection, she kindly gave me all her old glasses and this Toxy pair was the earliest. Later she showed me her old photo albums and I was able to make a chronology and put a year on the first time she appeared on photo in the eight pairs she gave me.

After seeing the results of her photo shoot, Leah declared this portrait one of her favourites and quite justifiably so. The weather was overcast and the morning light at the beach was a bit diffuse but the slight lack of definition adds to the nostalgic mood of this and many other portraits taken. However, what stands out throughout the entire photo shoot is Leah's highly expressive style of posing.