1905 – The racing yachts of cruiser class 2 during a race near Kiel in Germany. © Mark Zanzig/zanzig.com/Photo: Neue Photographische Gesellschaft, Berlin-Steglitz
The story behind the image
You know it by now: I am from Kiel in Germany, a city with a long maritime history. Sailing has always been an essential activity here, for centuries. For several years, the city of Kiel has been successfully using the marketing claim Kiel Sailing City. So I was really glad to acquire a set of historic postcards of a sailing race near Kiel. It is likely that it was shot during Kiel Week in 1905, but there is no caption to confirm this guess.
The picture shows the racing field of cruiser yachts (class 2) as they speed across the Kieler Förde. The decent wind has tilted the ships significantly. A beautiful view, even more so if you are into sailing. (If you want to dive into the exciting times of early modern yachting, take a look at this website.)
The photographer is unknown, but the image has been published by Neue Photographische Gesellschaft in Berlin-Steglitz in 1905 (often abbreviated as NPG). This widely unknown company had serious impact on streamlining photo processing by providing a way to print images on rolls of paper instead of single sheets, enabling mass printing of postcards and photos. There’s a good website covering the history of the company (in German.)
Design ideas
The high resolution image
| Capture Date | 1905 |
| Photographer | unknown |
| Publisher | Neue Photographische Gesellschaft, Berlin-Steglitz |
| Publisher ID | 502/5 |
| Location | Kiel, Germany |
| Image Source | 13.6 x 8.5 cm postcard image |
| Digital Image Source | EPSON Perfection 4870 Photo |
| Digital Image Source Format | TIFF, 48 bits/pixel, sRGB |
| Edited Image Format | JPEG, 24 bits/pixel, sRGB |
| Edited Image Dimensions | 6421 x 4029 Pixels |
| Copyright | © Mark Zanzig/zanzig.com/Photo: Neue Photographische Gesellschaft, Berlin-Steglitz |
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