Hobby becomes testament to local history

Wednesday 17 August 2022

A Guernseyman who has been recreating historic photos around the island will be releasing a book after being approached by a publisher.

Marco Tersigni has spent the last five years taking photos “in the exact same spot” as old photographs he finds. The book will show the old and new images side by side. He said his hobby was sparked by his interest in local history.

“I’ve been interested in history for many years, and I enjoyed looking at old photos of the island. I decided it would be interesting to take photos from the exact same spot, but it has proven quite treacherous at times,” said Mr Tersigni.  

Pictured: Marco Tersigni has spent the last five years retaking old photos of Guernsey "from the exact same spot". 

Mr Tersigni continued: “Recreating the cliff photos can be quite dangerous as I often have to go off-piste to get the same exact spot. It was also a challenge to take a photo from the bottom of the Grange because I needed to be stood in the road to get the exact spot so had to keep waiting for traffic to clear.

“I could have taken that very early in the morning to avoid traffic, but I wanted there to be enough light for the image. There was also a horse and cart in the historic photo in the same place, so it was nice to have some cars this time. It shows that Guernsey is a living place; it’s not a ghost town.”

Pictured: Mr Tesigni said it can be "treacherous" trying to teach the same spot from where original photos were taken from. 

Mr Tersigni has taken “several hundred” photos over the last five years to recreate old images. He said that there will be over 100 images in the published book.

“I decided to post some of my photos alongside the old images in a Facebook group called “Guernsey Days Gone By” because I thought it would be of interest to other people who have an interest in local history,” he said.

“I couldn’t believe the number of messages I then got saying I should make a book out of the images. I just didn’t know when I would find the time to do it. I was then approached by Steve Foote of Blue Ormer publishing who asked if I’d be interested in making a book; Steve was the right man for the job.”

Pictured: Mr Tesigni said he wanted to show that Guernsey is a "living place not a ghost town". 

Mr Tersigni and Mr Foote have spent “several weeks” choosing images for the book.

“Steve has been trying to track down the original images of the old photos, which has taken a lot of effort. The ones which are in books don’t come out almost pixilated and we wanted the book to be the best photo quality possible,” said Mr Tersigni.

“I can’t believe that what was simply a hobby for me as an 'average joe' has turned into a beautifully presented, hardback book; it’s very exciting. Steve has arranged for me to do a book signing when it’s released, I was nervous about that but I think people love the story of the book."

Pictured: Mr Tersigni's images will be published in a new book titled "Guernsey Past & Present - from the exact spot". 

Mr Tersigni continued: “This wasn’t a paid photographer who was commissioned for a project, I’m a local through and through who simply created a hobby because of my interest in the history of our island. I hope that people will like it.”

Mr Tersigni’s book, “Guernsey Past & Present – from the exact spot”, will soon be available to pre-order.

Pictured top: Marco Tersigni.