The following is a visual tribute to three generations of Legos. It features bricks from the collection of my uncle, purchased in the 1960s; from my husband's, purchased in the 1980s; and those we have purchased for our daughter, Z, in the past few years. The older Legos all still function as well or nearly as well as when they were passionately used by two generations of children now grown, and have been incorporated - literally, mixed into - the Legos we buy today.

All photos were taken with my iPhone and an accessory macro lens. (Notes on that are at the end of this post.) Some of the design details that showcase these bricks' history will only be apparent to Lego-lovers, but I think the visuals speak for themselves as well. The way the battle-scarred ABS plastic and dented rubber age, the fraying and lint-collecting silhouettes of old Lego stickers, even the way painting methods have changed over time (look at the spray patterns on those computer terminals!) - all are fertile visual subjects for me and fascinating toy history for Jeremiah.

I have about thirty of these shots (edited down from many more) so I'll break them into a three installments. Stay tuned, though, because I'm saving some of the loveliest for last!



















About the lens: I use Dobi Design's iPhone macro/wide-angle lens set, which sells for $20 and works great with the iPhone 3G/3GS but can interfere with the flash in the iPhone 4, despite this item's "iPhone 4" title in its Amazon listing. (If you're an iPhone 4 user who doesn't like to take no for an answer, some iPhone 4 useres have reported success with cutting a small notch in the magnetic ring that adheres to the iPhone 4 or its case, to let the flash do its thing.)

Stay tuned for the second of three installments of Lego photos, which we'll alternate with reviews and commentary on entirely unrelated topics.