Picturing the family

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	Time: 12 hours Level: Introductory

	Introduction Introduction Resource Most of us today take photographs for our family albums. The lucky ones among us have also inherited family photographs from the past. These photographs provide another type of record that can offer insights...

	1 How to avoid damage when handling photographs 1 How to avoid damage when handling photographs Resource Remember to treat your photographs with the consideration demanded by their age and fragility. Careless handling and storage will cause damage.

	2 Background history 2.1 Styles of photograph Resource Let's briefly examine the various styles of photograph that are commonly found in family albums. 2.2 Photographs as primary sources Resource As a primary source of historical evidence the still photograph remains largely unexamined and unexplored. Many academic historians remain wedded to the written word and are often mistrustful or dismissive... 2.3 Photographs as artefacts Resource Bear in mind that photographs are artefacts. This means that they are more than just images. The photographer, the process and the packaging all add something to our understanding of the role of the photograph.... 2.4 National variation Resource Relatively little research has been undertaken by photohistorians in the field of domestic photography. However, we should be aware that photography developed in different ways in different countries....

	3 The portrait tradition: ideology Introducing ideology in portraiture Resource Portraiture emerged as the first major commercial application of photography because the camera could mechanize an established and profitable market in hand-crafted likenesses. By the early 19th century,... 3.1 Idealization Resource There were fundamental principles of painted portraiture that affected every element of the portrait, from expression and pose to background and lighting. The first imperative was the need to idealize... 3.2 Limited positive characterization Resource The painted portrait was, however, perceived to be more than a mere ‘map of the face’. It was also meant to reveal aspects of the inner as well as the outer being. 3.3 Characterization and sexual stereotyping Resource In attempting to characterize their sitters, 19th-century commercial photographers did not intend or attempt any serious psychoanalytical exploration of individual character such as we perceive it today...

	4 The portrait tradition: methodology 4.1 Facial expression Resource Facial expression was considered the most crucial element to success in painted portraiture. It was the vehicle through which intangible qualities of mind and soul were conveyed. In painting the idea was... 4.2 Pose Resource Pose followed expression on the list of the portrait photographer's priorities. A sitter's pose was intended to assist idealization by highlighting physical beauty. Photographers were required to select... 4.3 Characterization and sexual stereotyping Resource The choice of pose was also intended to echo the limited positive characterization of the expression. Distinctions were inevitably drawn between poses regarded as suitable for males and those considered... 4.4 Groups Resource If we agree that the posing of individuals carried messages for the viewer it makes sense that the posing of family groups can similarly be made to convey suggestions about the family and its character.... 4.5 Touch Resource Let's consider more closely the nature of touch and physical contact normally displayed in Victorian studio portraits. 4.6 Touch and feeling Resource Images 27 and 28 represent the conventional pose of the newly-wedded couple who would visit the studio sometime after marriage to commemorate the event with a portrait. (We shall look at wedding portraits... 4.7 Exceptions Resource Do you think the contact between the people in Image 29 is different from that in Images 27 and 28? Can you describe the nature of the contact? 4.8 Backgrounds and accessories Resource By now you have sufficient familiarity with early portraits to know that photographers regularly used painted backdrops and accessories to create a sort of stage set within the studio. These backgrounds... 4.9 Lighting Resource Can you identify the source of light used to create this portrait? 4.10 Retouching Resource In addition to the efforts made before exposure to show sitters at their best, portrait photographers regularly retouched the negative to remove or improve any perceived defects or blemishes. Before the... 4.11 Colouring Resource The photographic print could also be ‘improved’ by the application of colour on the surface of the finished print. In the 1840s painters of miniature portraits, who faced redundancy after the introduction... 4.12 Key concepts Resource We can conclude that the ideas relating to idealization, positive characterization and sexual stereotyping had a significant influence on the treatment of all 4 components of the portrait: expression,...

	5 Camera culture Capturing commemorative events Resource This section explores the events commemorated in photographs. 5.1 Records of achievement Resource The Victorian family album validated success. In keeping with the theme of idealization, our ancestors courted the camera to commemorate events and achievements that brought credit to the individual and... 5.2 Prized possessions Resource Prized possessions also feature in the family album. Family pets, cats and dogs were frequently taken to be photographed in the studio and often appear in portraits taken outside the home. Some photographers... 5.3 Special occasions Resource Special occasions could include events of family, local or national significance. Those wealthy enough to attend important balls and dances would often visit the studio and change into their ball gown... 5.4 Rites of passage Resource Most portraits, however, were taken to celebrate rites of passage, such as christenings, comings of age, engagements, weddings and anniversaries. The photographs bore witness to a successful progression... 5.4 Rites of passage (continued) Resource Look closely at Images 54 and 55. Can you identify the two features which distinguished a girl from a young woman in the Victorian and Edwardian period? 5.4 Rites of passage (continued) Resource The final rite of passage, death itself, permeates the Victorian family album. Throughout the 19th century it was common practice, following the death of a relative, to commission memorial photographs....

	6 Portraits in the open air 6.1 The rise of the itinerant photographer Resource Happily, not all early family photographs were taken inside conventional studios. Sitters were frequently photographed in the open air or in temporary, makeshift studios. Portraits were taken in the street,... 6.2 Street photography Resource Many portraits were taken outside the home and in the garden or, in the case of urban dwellers, in the street or back yard. Local studio proprietors could be commissioned to attend at the customer's house,... 6.3 Seaside photography Resource Photography appeared in British fairgrounds in the late 1850s. At this time inland fairground operators were expanding into new venues on the foreshores of the developing seaside resorts. Penny profile...

	7 Writing 7 Writing Resource You have now almost reached the end of this unit. You should now be aware:

	Bibliography Bibliography Resource Anon. (1861) ‘Carte de visite portraits’, The Photographic News, vol.5, no. 150, pp.341–2.

	References and Acknowledgements Acknowledgements Resource