Figure 1.-- The photographic industry took off in America after a commercial process was invented in France (1839). There was a huge resulting photographic record in America. Rarely do we get to see what a studio looked like. Here we have a rare view of an actual studio, in this case a CDV of the the Shreves & Corwin's Gallery in Bushnell, Illinois. It is not dated, but looks like the 1870s. Click on theimage for some interestung infirmation about the stydio.

Photograophy was invented in Europe. The firsr commercual process was invented by Louis Daguerre (1839). American aridsts and inventir Samuel F. B. Morse happened to be in Paris at the time promote his telegraph ivntion. He met Daguerre and returns and was fascunated by his process. This was a few months before Daguerre and scientist Francois Arago and with Daguerre announces the details of the first commercially practical photographic process--the Daguerreotype. By this time Morse had alreasy returned to New York and had begun teach the process. One of his pupils was Matthew Brady, the first famous American photographer. For a decade, Dags were the only commercial process (1840s) and would continues to be important for another decade (1850s). Photography was a technological miracle at the time. The process was not all that complicated. It mean that a person with only limited capital could start up a profitble business. And more studios wereopened in America than any other country, many more. And by this time the rail roads were appearing faclitting commerrce. Photographic studios first appeared in the growing northeastern cities and very rapidly spread out around the country expanding on the riverboat system that already existed. Bulky equipment and jars of chemicals needed to be transported and railroads facilitated this. Thids meant that photography was almost entirely limited to photographic studios. Photography was perfectly suited to America. It was the democrtizatiom of portraiture. Before the Dag only well to do people could afford portraits because they had to be painted. The Dag was not cheap, but it brought down the cost significantly. And entrepreneurs with limited money could open a studio, perhaps after working for a short time in a studio. Historians estimate that Americans purchased some 3 million Dags in 1853--its peak of popularity. [Sandweiss] That was more than all the rest of the world combined. That reflected the fact that the American population and economy were growing along with roaring capitalist economy. America by the 1870s had out paced all European countries. (Russia had a larger population, but a smaller economy.) Photographs were taken in far greater numbers in America than any other country. Not only was the American population growing, but the American worker was the best paid and most prosperous in the world and the middle class was the world's largest. There were constant technological advances. Ambrotypes and tintypes appeared (1850s). And albumen prints meaning the CDV and cabinent card began appearing in enormous numbers (1860s). They would be the primary output of 19th century studios. This is also when stereo-view cards appeared--bringing a wide range of photographic images to the public for the first time. The albumen process significantly reduced the cost, further expnading the number of studios. The studios if course varies greatly, from ritzy 5th Avenue New York studios to small town main street studios. The various studios had a variety of sets. There were also a small number of traveling studios. The most basic studios were those in carnavals and state fairs. The vast majority of photographs during the 19th century were portraits in these studios. Photographers began moving outside the studuo, mostly notably in the Califorina Gold Rush (1848) and the Crimean War (1850s). But it was the Civil War that brought photograohy to the attention og mny Americans (1860s). We begin to see some amnateur snapashots, but very few until the 1890s. YThe really major change outside the studio occurred at the turn of the 20th century. It is at this time that George Eastman released the Kodak Brownie (1900) making the snapshot. The other major developmnt was the perfection of lithiography making in possible for photographs to be published. .

Created: 8:46 PM 11/17/2023
Last updated: 8:47 PM 11/17/2023