From gentlemen cross-dressing as fair ladies of the times, to probably the first awkward family photos in history, the few Victorians, who managed to have some fun, are all here. But as you can see from the vintage photography exemplars below, some still found something to smile about. Poor dental hygiene made people reluctant to show their teeth (or whatever teeth they had left), and let's not forget that many Victorians simply had it too rough a life to take funny pictures. The video, by lesbian couple Bria and Chrissy, also seeks to comment on the lack of space men have to be sexually fluid in society. Ever tried smiling for several hours? It hurts) and the high cost of portraits gave people very little to smile about. James Michael Nichols Sep 10, 2016, 11:15 AM EDT Updated Four straight men French kissed four gay men on camera to experiment with their sexuality and challenge societal notions of masculinity. Nischay met his ‘bro with benefits’ at the gym. I mean, yeah, the first time is always weird but after a while, you’re like fuck it, you know Nischay Patil (name changed) said. Long exposure times made smiling difficult (and by long we mean several hours. According to a few straight men interviewed for this piece, it’s just easy and clean no strings attached. There are many theories as to why Victorians always look so dour in pictures. But as these rare vintage photos prove, that wasn't always the case. Everybody looks so severe that it seems as if people in the 1800s just didn't have the time, or strength to have fun. With life this pleasant, it's no wonder that nobody was smiling in the creepy pictures taken in the Victorian era.
