Books by British nineteenth or early twentieth century photographers

[Ian Leake]

I'm looking for interesting books to read. There are lots of sources from early American photographers. I would like to find some written by (not about) early British photographers, either technique or aesthetics. Any suggestions?

 

[Gato Diablo]

I have this one that dates to around 1905.

 

[Ian Leake]

I have this one that dates to around 1905.

That looks fun. Now I know what to wear to my next portrait shoot

 

[Alan Johnson]

Search for:
Photography Wiveleslie Abney
Pictorial Horsley Hinton
Both of them were well known in their time.

 

[Ian Leake]

Search for:
Photography Wiveleslie Abney
Pictorial Horsley Hinton
Both of them were well known in their time.

Good suggestions, yes.

I have Abney's 'Platinotype' which is very good. He had the best name of any photographer, ever: Captain Sir William de Wiveleslie Abney, K.C.B., D.C.L., D.Sc., F.R.S., Hon. F.R.P.S., etc. (I think the 'etc' is important). If I remember correctly he ran the Royal Photographic Society for a while.

Horsley's 'Platinotype Printing' is OK, but not as good as Abney & Clark. I had forgotten about him, so will look for more of his writing. Thanks.

 

[snusmumriken]

This doesn’t exactly fit your brief, but you might consider Michael Hines’ [correction, Michael Hiley’s] biography of Frank Meadow Sutcliffe, because it quotes Sutcliffe verbatim and at some length about both technique (and difficulties) and aesthetics of the time.

 

[cowanw]

Pictorial Photography 1905-1940
by J. Dudley Johnston | Jan 1, 1952

The Principles of Photographic Pictorialism
J. DUDLEY JOHNSTON F. C. Tilney. Pp. x + 218 + 80 plates. (London: Chapman and Hall, Ltd., 1930.)

The Art of Retouching Photographic Negatives: and
Practical Directions how to finish and colour Photographic Enlargements, etc. By Robert Johnson.
Twelfth edition, revised and rewritten by T. S.
Bruce and Alfred Braithwaite. Revised and enlarged by Arthur Hammond. Pp. x + 154 + 16
plates. (London: Chapman and Hall, Ltd., 1930.)

 

[AnselMortensen]

"Photograms of the Year", published annually from the 1890's - 1950's are fun to peruse.
Unfortunately, many of the 'tipped-in' gravures get removed & sold separately on a certain online auction site.

 

[MarkS]

Helmut Gernsheim's 'The History of Photography'.
Gernsheim was a naturalized British citizen (having escaped Nazi Germany) and one of the first historians of photography (along with his friend Beaumont Newhall).
I find his writing "more English than the English" and quite informative.
And he's quite good on early British photography, which is why I recommend his work here.

 

[snusmumriken]

A lot of the discussion between photographers happened in the periodicals of the time. For instance, Hiley (referred to above) drew (extensively) on Amateur Photographer, The Practical Photographer, The British Journal of Photography, The Photographic News, Photography, Camera Notes, The Journal of the Camera Club, The Studio and The Photographic Journal.

… and made just two references to these books:

Lake Price, A Manual of Photographic Manipulation Treating of the Practice of the Art and its various applications to Nature (second edition, London, 1868).

H. P. Robinson, Picture Making By Photography (second edition, London,
1889)

 

[Ian Leake]

Thank you – lots of wonderful suggestions here. I appreciate it

 

[Rod Klukas]

Helmut Gernsheim's History was out in 1937. The same year the First Edition of' The History of Photography' by Beaumont Newhall, also came out that year.

I got to speak with Newhall at an Ansel Adams workshop.

Gernsheim came here to the US in the late 1980's, and visited Bill Jay, my Professor at Arizona State University. I got to meet him and we did speak about a few things.

After he sold his collection to the University of Texas, he went back to Lausanne in Switzerland and opened one of the first Art Schools for Photography in Europe.

You should also look into the British Journal of Photography which is still in Print. They have great articles in the mid to late 19th century issues, by great photographers such as Roger Fenton, Francis Frith, Francis Johnston, Peter Henry Emerson, and many others.

Bill Jay is who rediscovered Frith's early Egyptian work. He went tot he family estate to get stories about Frith in the late 1970's/Early 1980s. While there he asked if they had any of Friths old equipment around. He was directed to a basement where he discovers the glass plates of the Egyptian work.

In the Mid 19th Century, Frith's work was formed into one of the first, if not the first 'coffee table books'. It was all albumen prints tipped into a lovely album/book.

There is a facsimile of this book out there published after 1990, I believe.

Hope this helps.

Rod

 

[BrianShaw]

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Before photoshop there was fake photographs!

 

[jeffreyg]

Ian
While this is not exactly what you are looking for it might be of interest. Some thirty plus years ago a patient brought fifty Francis Frith albumen prints that she received as a gift for me to see. I happened to have a Frith albumen print and a book of comparative photographs that were made by Jane Reese Williams. Long story short, I was able to contact Ms Williams who was quite interested since she had fifty different Frith prints. I somehow managed to put together an exhibition of the one hundred prints. A requirement was that since it was in a county facility I had to get speakers so it would be an educational event. I was able to have Ms Williams and Dr. Zahi Hawass come and speak and had the pleasure of entertaining them. When all was said and done the county said during the stay of the exhibition 5000 people had visited it. The book may be available. I think he is asking $15 for it.
https://www.vincentborrelli.com › pages › books › untitl...

ABOUT | JEFFREY GLASSER

https:www.sculptureandphotography.com/

 

[nikos79]

Haven't read all the thread but I guess Julia Margaret Cameron was sure mentioned

 

[jeffreyg]

Small correction Ms Williams didn't make the print it was a Frith print.

 

[Rod Klukas]

Ian,

One more person you should look at is Peter Henry Emerson. He first wrote that Photography was a fine Art, but later tried to recant this assertion.

He took some nice Pictorial images of the Norfolk Broads. Wrote a book on Naturalistic Photography.

Rod

 

[Michael Howard]

There are several books of Lewis Carroll's photography out there. His photography is controversial today, but not during his time, it was quite common.

 

[snusmumriken]

I have this one that dates to around 1905.

View attachment 387520

Is that ‘our’ @cliveh ?