Miss Peregrine's pictures

I will be first to admit that Ransom Riggs is only a mediocre writer.  Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children is only a mediocre novel.  So what really attracts me to this text are the pictures and the role they played in the book's origins.  I love the idea of taking "real" photographs and crafting a story around/about them.  The visual image communicates so much, but we don't always take the time to "hear" it, nor do we take the time to consider the impact the image has on us. 

The image that I love best is probably the least peculiar photo, that of Abe and Emma lying on the blanket.  It is such a real moment. You can see the adoration Emma feels, and the disconnectedness of Abe. The photo could tell a thousand stories, but the fact that the woman loves the man more than he loves her is unmistakeable. 

I like all the other photos and I wonder about the photographer who spent so much time in a dark room manipulating them.  What was their original purpose? audience?  How did they find their way into flea markets and the hands of collectors?  What other his/stories could they tell?