Photography over the years – snippets handout
Useful websites:
1. Victorian & Edwardian photos – www.rogerco.freeserve.co.uk.
Includes a useful section on dating old photographs and an online database of
thousands of cartes de visite and the larger cabinet card images as well as early
20th century portrait postcards. Each has a copy of both sides and so they
might be matched to professional portraits in your own collection, or linked to
further information on a particular photographer or studio.
The collection can be explored by theme or subject, photographer’s name. The
site also offers links to other resources. You can also a section dedicated to
Victorian mounts and frames with free examples to download and print to give
your own images the authentic look.
If you begin by clicking the ‘Date an Old Photo’ tab on the right-hand menu, you’ll find useful information
on sizes, types and descriptions of photographs, when they were used etc, which may help to date items
from your own collection.
2. London Photographers –
www.photolondon.org.uk.
A gateway to the image collections of the Guildhall Library,
Museum of London, London Metropolitan Archives,
Westminster City archives and the National Monuments Board.
There is a database of 19th century photographers and allied
trades in London, 1841-1901, which contains over 9,000
biographical entries of photographic companies and those
working there in London, large and small.
3. Dating aids – www.earlyphotographers.org.uk/welcome.html.
A commercial website but worth exploring. One interest is the migration of photographers and dating
photographs during their own researches. Easy to use there is a ‘date-calculator’ for cartes de visite and
postcards. You fill in the attributes of your photo and it will give an approximate date plus links to other
sites offering advice.
The core of the website is a searchable index of photographers and studios arranged geographically. The
site can be searched for free but access to addresses of the results you must pay £1.00 via PayPal.
4. Military Forum – http://1914-1918.invasionzone.com/forums.
Uniforms speak loudly in photographs, whether schools or occupations. Military is a
major area for investigation via cap badges, medals, insignia and more that reveal rank,
position, role or regiment. On this site simply upload your image and wait for responses
from the online forum community.
5. Dating old photos – www.datingoldphotos.com/carte-de-visite.
Nicely designed American site with a great deal of technical information about early
photographs and cartes de visite. It also offers useful general tips for sanning and editing
your old family photos.
Other websites:
www.maryevans.com
www.gettyimages.com
www.francisfrith.com
www.glasgow.gov.uk/en/Visitors/MuseumsGalleries/photolibrary.htm
www.images.manchester.gov.uk
www.llgc.org.uk
www.museumoflondonprints.com
www.norfolkroots24.co.uk
www.ayreshirehistory.org.uk/Photographers/photographers1.htm
www.edinphoto.org.uk/index
www.genuki.org.uk/big/wal/VicPhoto1.html
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/liverpoolphotographers
http://qvictoria.wordpress.com/victorian-photographers-ad-av
www.military-medal.co.uk
www.militarybadges.org.uk
www.kellybadge.co.uk
www.flickr.com
www.nationsmemorybank.com
www.photoark.co.uk
www.rootschat.com
www.costumes.org
www.costumegallery.com
www.fashion-era.com/Dating_Costume_History_Pictures
www.photosintime.co.uk
www.dainter.com/photofix
www.rleggat.com/photohistory
www.vam.ac.uk/collections/photography/index.html
www.nationalmediamuseum.org.uk
Magazine resources on photography:
Who Do You think You are Magazine
Dating family photographs – 33 (p. 61), 66 (p. 56),
Weddings 47 (p. 22),
Fashions 65 (p. 51)
Restoring – 38 (p. 56) ordering 70 (p. 17),
Your Family tree Magazine
Fashions 117 (p. 57)
Photographers – 128 (p. 64)
Restoring – 116 (p. 59)
Scanning 97 (p. 58)
Improve 88 (p. 61),
Preserve 87 (p. 56)