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We do not know a great deal about Daguerreotype studios. They no dobnt varied greatly. The facilities a studio might have would be: 1) a reception/waiting area, 2) the shoot area (here light was critical), 3) dark room/chemistry area, and workshop area. Some studios were more basic than others and some of these areas might be mixed purpose areas. Customers or example might wait in the shooting area, but of course not the darkroom/chemistry area. An established studio might have an attractive display of the finished produt, especially if they had photographed some notable individuals. The the sophistication of the studio. would depend on the success of the Daguerreotypist and the clientel he attracted. A successful Paris, London, and New York studio would be much more likely to be a sophisticated estabkishment than say a studio in a fronteir American studio. The studio would not have been sitiated just anywhere. They were commonly located at top of a building, which would have a glass roof to let in light. The more light, the shorter the exposure time. Of course long exposures increased the chances the subject would spoil the image by noving. This was a special problem with children. Most Daguerreotype studios were opened in the 1840s or early 50s. Thus there were not as many multiple-story buildings than would be the case by the late-19th century. Thus finding a top story location would not have been a great problem. The employees at the studio would be likely almost men and boys. The Daugerreotypist might have an assistant, nore in a big city studio to help with the posing and chemical processing. Other employees would be needed to fill other requirements such as preparing the right sized polished plates. Others were needed to prepare the decorated, prolished cases.
We do not know a great deal about Daguerreotype studios. They no dobnt varied greatly. The facilities a studio might have would be: 1) a reception/waiting area, 2) the shoot area (here light was critical), 3) dark room/chemistry area, and workshop area. Some studios were more basic than others and some of these areas might be mixed purpose areas. Customers or example might wait in the shooting area, but of course not the darkroom/chemistry area. An established studio might have an attractive display of the finished produt, especially if they had photographed some notable individuals. The the sophistication of the studio. would depend on the success of the Daguerreotypist and the clientel he attracted. A successful Paris, London, and New York studio would be much more likely to be a sophisticated estabkishment than say a studio in a fronteir American studio. The studio would not have been sitiated just anywhere. They were commonly located at top of a building, which would have a glass roof to let in light. The more light, the shorter the exposure time. Of course long exposures increased the chances the subject would spoil the image by noving. This was a special problem with children. Most Daguerreotype studios were opened in the 1840s or early 50s. Thus there were not as many multiple-story buildings than would be the case by the late-19th century. Thus finding a top story location would not have been a great problem. The posing chair would have been position where it got the most light. I may have been moved or adjusted. Some well equipped studios might be able to rotate the chair. Some studios had raised platforms. We have even noted platforms that could be rotated to get the most light on the face. There may be chairs with supports or clamps to hold the head steady. Many Daguerreotypes have the subject or subjects in chaies, primarily because a seated operson is better able to hold steady. Some studios might do all the work in the studio, including making the cases. Other might contract out work like making the cases.
The employees at the studio would be likely almost men and boys. There may have been some female Daguerreotists, but my guess is that this was extremely rare. The Daugerreotypist might have an assistant, nore in a big city studio to help with the posing and chemical processing. Other employees would be needed to fill other requirements such as preparing the right sized polished plates. Others were needed to prepare the decorated, prolished cases. Some Daguerreotist may have employed family members. This probably often included sons, nut rarely daughters. Boys may have been employed as aprentices, but formal contracts were less common by the mid-19th century as had been the case in the 18th century. Boys would have been employed to sweep up, help build and decorates the cases, and polish plates. As they got older they might have been entrusted with the chemical processing as part of their education learning the trade.
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