Hello, I am looking for information about this 1859 photo of a soldier, It's an albumen print, 20.5 x 15.5 cm, ink inscription under the print; Harvey Bruce, LT, 1859.
Any information, even about the uniform or sword would be appreciated.
Thanks, David
It is always interesting to see how a photographic genre persists over time. I recently had the opportunity to see how one genre - ‘The important overseas visitor tours a factory’ remained constant over about 85 years. The first photograph shows a Western man in business suit being shown around a railway factory in China. It was one of a group of images found in an old suitcase in a junk shop. Papers in the collection identify the man as British and the date late 1920s – early 30s. When I sold the collection the helpful and knowledgeable Chinese buyer identified the factory as the Tangshan Railway Vehicle Company. And there on their website I found a modern day equivalent – a group of Western visitors being given a guided tour of the modern factory. Interesting to play spot the difference. In 1920 they brought in a local studio photographer to the factory and the images were presented on his embossed mounts. For the modern photograph someone probably just used their mobile phone.
and now:
We at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts have been investigating the early London career of British photographer Florence Vandamm, who worked in NYC from 1924 to her retirement in 1962. We discovered that she opened her first studio in London in 1908. This site has been very helpful at providing resources and links.
The exhibition (Pioneering Poet of Light: Florence Vandamm & the Vandamm Studio) will open in mid-September and runs through the end of February. Please visit. Click here: http://www.nypl.org/events/exhibitions/poet-light-florence-vandamm-vandamm-studio
We are blogging about Vandamm's work on the Library's www.nypl.org. You can find them in he Vandamm channel or under my name.
Image: Re-discovered image from a glass negative of the Theatre Guild's 1928 production of Faust, NYPL.
With crimes ranging from theft to child cruelty and rape, these photographs capture Victorian criminals immediately after arrest, and provide fascinating detail of their wretched existence – with charge sheets going as far as listing missing fingers or hands and any diseases the delinquents suffered from.
Previously unseen by the general public, the images were all captured between 1877 and 1930, and published in the Police Gazette trade magazine. They are believed to be among the first mug shots collected in Britain.
The Prevention of Crime Act 1871 made it a legal requirement that all people arrested for a crime must have their photographs taken.
Temporary Exhibition at The Prison & Police Museum,St Marygate, Ripon
until 30th November 2013. Details can be found here.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York will host an exhibition of Cameron's work starting 19 August 2013 until 5 January 2014.
This will be the first New York City museum exhibition devoted to Cameron's work in nearly a generation, and the first ever at the Met. The showing of thirty-five works is drawn entirely from the Metropolitan's rich collection, including major works from the Rubel Collection acquired in 1997 and the Gilman Collection acquired in 2005.
Info here: http://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/listings/2013/julia-margaret-cameron
LOS ANGELES—The Getty announced today that it was lifting restrictions on the use of images to which the Getty holds all the rights or are in the public domain. Getty President and CEO Jim Cuno made the announcement in a post on The Iris, the Getty’s blog.
"As of today, the Getty makes available, without charge, all available digital images to which the Getty holds all the rights or that are in the public domain to be used for any purpose," wrote Cuno, citing the new program.
As a result, there are roughly 4,600 images from the J. Paul Getty Museum available in high resolution on the Getty's website for use without restriction—representing 4,689objects (some images show more than one object), including paintings, drawings, manuscripts, photographs, antiquities and sculpture and decorative arts. The Getty plans to add other images, until eventually all applicable Getty-owned or public domain images are available, without restrictions, online.
The Getty Research Institute is currently determining which images from its special collections can be made available under this program, and the Getty Conservation Institute is working to make available images from its projects worldwide.
"The Museum is delighted to make these images available as the first step in a Getty-wide move toward open content," said J. Paul Getty Museum Director Timothy Potts. "The Getty’s collections are greatly in demand for publications, research and a variety of personal uses, and I am pleased that with this initiative they will be readily available on a global basis to anyone with Internet access."
Previously, the Getty Museum made images available upon request, for a fee, and granted specific use permissions with terms and conditions. Now, while the Getty requests information about the intended use, it will not restrict use of available images, and no fees apply for any use of images made available for direct download on the website.
"The Getty was founded to promote 'the diffusion of artistic and general knowledge' of the visual arts, and this new program arises directly from that mission," said Cuno. "In a world where, increasingly, the trend is toward freer access to more and more information and resources, it only makes sense to reduce barriers to the public to fully experience our collections."
"This is part of an ongoing effort to make the work of the Getty freely and universally available," said Cuno.
I am astounded by the generosity and knowledge of members here. Thank You. So here is a puzzle: a photograph of the interior of the Guernsey Court House, 1859. On the back is a typewritten description listing the names of all present, titled "Figure 9" with an ink inscription: "photograph kindly lent by Wm. Ingham" I am assuming this was lent to be published, but can find no record of it.
Would anyone know who the photographer might be?
This post is based in Collections Group within the team that is responsible for the National Collection of Aerial Photography (NCAP) at the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland.
With financial support from Creative Scotland, RCAHMS is making a film in partnership with the Scottish Documentary Institute – http://aerial.rcahms.gov.uk/news/news130626.php - that will be screened at major events around Scotland leading to and during the Commonwealth Games.
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As Manager of Design and Exhibition Services at the National Media Museum in Bradford you will lead exhibition design and production at the museum ensuring all galleries meet our high standards of design and interactivity. Providing strategic direction for the planning and scheduling of gallery replacement and life-span, you will have a direct impact on the quality of our visitor experience.
Demonstrable experience of delivering effective and innovative 2D and 3D design solutions across multi-media and AV displays is essential, preferably gained in a museum or gallery environment. We're looking for a talented, creative individual who can lead and manage Gallery Media Developers, Designers and Photographers.
You need proven project management skills and the vision to understand museum audiences and contribute to world-class exhibition experiences. You'll have the intellectual capability to analyse data, negotiate contracts and manage resources, delivering outstanding results across multiple projects.
The National Media Museum is part of the Science Museum Group (SMG) which is devoted to the history and contemporary practice of science, medicine, technology, industry and media. Incorporating the Science Museum, the National Railway Museum, the National Media Museum and the Museum of Science and Industry, we are a unique family of museums offering truly unique career opportunities.
To find out more, please visit: https://vacancies.nmsi.ac.uk/Vacancy.aspx?MenuID=6Dqy3cKIDOg=
Job ref: 36071; Closing date: 16/09/2013; Salary: £26,627
In the 1840s and 1850s, "Brady of Broadway" was one of the most successful and acclaimed Manhattan portrait galleries. Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, Dolley Madison, Henry James as a boy with his father, Horace Greeley, Edgar Allan Poe, the Prince of Wales, and Jenny Lind were among the dignitaries photographed in Mathew Brady's studio. But it was during the Civil War that he became the founding father of what is now called photojournalism and his photography became an enduring part of American history.
The Civil War was the first war in history to leave a detailed photographic record, and Mathew Brady was the war's chief visual historian. Previously, the general public had never seen in such detail the bloody particulars of war--the strewn bodies of the dead, the bloated carcasses of horses, the splintered remains of trees and fortifications, the chaos and suffering on the battlefield. Brady knew better than anyone of his era the dual power of the camera to record and to excite, to stop a moment in time and to draw the viewer vividly into that moment.
He was not, in the strictest sense, a Civil War photographer. As the director of a photographic service, he assigned Alexander Gardner, James F. Gibson, and others to take photographs, often under his personal supervision; he also distributed Civil War photographs taken by others not employed by him. Ironically, Brady had accompanied the Union army to the first major battle at Bull Run, but was so shaken by the experience that throughout the rest of the war he rarely visited battlefields, except well before or after a major battle. The famous Brady photographs at Antietam were shot by Gardner and Gibson.
Few books about Brady have gone beyond being collections of the photographs attributed to him, accompanied by a biographical sketch. MATHEW BRADY will be the biography of an American legend--a businessman, an accomplished and innovative technician, a suave promoter, a celebrated portrait artist, and, perhaps most important, a historian who chronicled America during its finest and gravest moments of the 19th century.
You can pick up a copy using the Amazon link on the right.
I am looking for any information on this British photograph. I believe it to be an albumen print, 22 x 12.5 cm. The only identification is a pencil inscription on the reverse which I can't quite make out "Tower, Mold ? Jan.7, 1856
I love the interplay of light on the fence lower right.
Does anyone recognize this location?
Thanks in advance, David
This Thursday the 8th August see the inaugural meeting in what hopes to be a regular event exploring the history of photography and the application of alternative photographic processes, taking place at Double Negative Dark Rooms, 178A Glyn Road, Hackney, E5 0JE.
At 7pm, there will be informal talks from;
The event is organised by Melanie K, visual artist experimenting with photographic processes. Melanie recently graduated from an MA in Art and Science at Central Saint Martins. http://www.melaniek.co.uk/ Process explored: Cyanotype, Silver Gelatin, Daguerreotype
Following the controversy generated by the news that Barnardos was looking to divest itself or destroy its photography archive following digitisation the charity has issued a press release setting out its own position and intentions. BPH reproduces it below without comment and welcomes the level of interest shown in ensuring that the archived is preserved. BPH looks forward to a successful conclusion of those discussions.
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Barnardo’s is digitising more than 200,000 images from its unique photographic collection - dating back to the 19th Century - in a move to make it more accessible and protect its historical value.
This forms part of a bigger preservation project through which the charity ultimately intends to bring the entire archive, which has around 500,000 original images, together in one location.
The children’s charity is currently working with the National Archives to determine how best to do this and is also exploring where the archive might be housed in future.
The move is part of a regeneration scheme to modernise the charity’s headquarters in Barkingside, Essex. Until a decision is made on the permanent new home for the whole archive, Barnardo’s is seeking an arrangement with the company which is digitising its oldest images, that need to be kept in a climate controlled environment, to look after them in the short term. The remainder of the archive, which does not need special storage, will stay with Barnardo’s archive team for the moment.
Senior assistant director of children’s services Sara Clarke said:“Barnardo’s has a proud heritage of transforming the lives of some of the most vulnerable children in the UK which reaches back nearly 150 years.
“Our photographic archive is an important piece of social history which we want to make more accessible whilst protecting its historical value.
“We are excited to be making use of 21st Century technology and we have been inundated with offers to host the precious originals following the digitisation process, the most promising of which we are now exploring with interest.”
The prints are thought to represent the largest private collection of images in the country and is unique as it concentrates on one subject matter; children in Barnardo’s care. It includes a very rare ambrotype image of Dr Barnardo with children.
Barnardo’s will be having discussions with some prestigious organisations which have expressed interest in hosting its archive; a decision on its final destination will be announced next year.
Notes to editors
The earlier albumen prints were, according to records, likely to be the photographer’s own reference files as many were annotated with a number and in many cases, the child’s name. The prints were pasted chronologically in a ledger, the binding of which disintegrated. In addition Barnardo had his own narrow albums with three images per page. He kept these for personal use to show visitors, parents and police.
The archive is currently available to researchers, academics, descendants of people in the photos and Barnardo’s children who are featured in the pictures. The archive is not available to the general public and some images are subject to privacy restrictions.
Ambrotype photographs are typically shiny in appearance and are created as negatives on a piece of glass and then transferred to a black background.
For more information on the history of Barnardo’s and the work we do today click here.
Anne M Lyden has been appointed International Photography Curator at the National Galleries of Scotland, based at the Scottish National Portrait Gallery, Edinburgh. The job was advertised earlier this year (see: http://britishphotohistory.ning.com/profiles/blogs/job-international-photography-curator-national-galleries-of) and interviews were held in May.
Lyden's last day at the Getty Museum was on Thursday and she thanked colleagues for '18 wonderful years' on her Facebook page which was quickly liked by over 60 people. An official announcement from the NGS is due after the Edinburgh Festival. BPH has known of the move since late June but had been asked to refrain from publishing by the NGS. As the news is now in the public domain and widely known BPH has taken the decision to publish.Those who know Lyden have widely welcomed the move with one person calling it 'awesome' and have commended the NGS for the appointment.
The SNG photography collection consists of 863 images and the Photography Gallery, refurbished in 2012, is named The Robert Mapplethorpe Photography Gallery in recognition of a $300,000 donation from the Mapplethorpe Foundation. The funding will, over the next three years, be used to support innovative displays, exhibitions, research and related publications in the new space.
Lyden is currently an Associate Curator at the J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles. She is one of seven curators in the Museum's Department of Photographs, which was established in 1984 and has a collection of approximately 100,000 objects emphasizing the first 150 years of the medium. Contemporary photography has become increasingly relevant to the Museum's mission and all staff participate in portfolio reviews to inform themselves about current practices while critiquing work and offering insights into the manner in which large institutions like the Getty may spend several years following the career of an artist before committing to acquisitions or an exhibition. Lyden has been a reviewer for Atlanta Celebrates Photography; Review LA, Los Angeles; Palm Springs Photo Festival; and PhotoNOLA in New Orleans.Her final exhibition A Royal Passion. Queen Victoria and Photography will open at the Getty in 2014.
A native of Scotland, Lyden received her Master of Arts degree in the history of art from the University of Glasgow and her Master of Arts in museum studies from the University of Leicester, England. Since joining the Getty in 1996, she has curated numerous exhibitions drawn from the Museum's permanent collection, including the work of Hill and Adamson, P.H. Emerson, Frederick H. Evans, John Humble, and Paul Strand. She is the author of several books including,Railroad Vision: Photography, Travel and Perception (2003), The Photographs of Frederick H. Evans (2010) and A Royal Passion. Queen Victoria and Photography (forthcoming, 2014).
Purpose of the Job: To research, develop and deliver content for an innovative programme of exhibitions, displays, multimedia and events. This will include internationally significant, innovative exhibitions delivered for Media Space, working with colleagues at the Science Museum.
To ensure all processes & documentation is adhered to, liaising with colleagues across museum including Collections, Conservation and CCI.
See:https://vacancies.nmsi.ac.uk/VacancyDetails.aspx?FromSearch=True&MenuID=6Dqy3cKIDOg%3D&VacancyID=439
Key Deliverables/Accountabilities
1. Research, develop and deliver authoritative and innovative content for permanent and temporary exhibitions, displays, on-line content, and events that provide inspiring experiences for visitors and build the Museum’s reputation for trialling bold, novel communication techniques including multi-media and interactive exhibits, to time and on budget
2. Work with colleagues at the ScienceMuseum to research and develop internationally significant exhibitions for Media Space, and support the redisplay within theMediaMuseum
3. Source and collect objects for exhibitions and associated events to aid visitors’ interpretation of agreed messages
4. Manage placement students and volunteers as required
5. Develop the use of web platforms to increase reach of the Museum and engage new audiences through on-line channels
6. Write content proposals and exhibit briefs for exhibitions, on-line and interactive media to ensure agreed exhibition messages are successfully conveyed
7. Manage relationships with external consultants and contractors to ensure delivery of agreed outcomes on time and to budget
8. Co-ordinate the delivery of projects on time and to budget with effective management of resources
9. Produce and deliver high quality events for a variety of audiences, including families and independent adults and enable the content to be leveraged through different media where possible
10. Develop proposal documents and work with the Development team to deliver high quality funding proposals
11. Work with the Press and Marketing team to increase media profile of exhibitions and events where possible and appropriate
12. Take care of your personal health and safety and that of others and report any health and safety concerns. Ensure proactive compliance with SMG H&S Policies, including risk assessments and implementing safe systems of work
Working Relationships and Contacts
Line Management and Budget Responsibility
Directly line manages: interns and volunteers as required
Budget Holder: Budgets of up to £20,000
May manage project budgets of up to £100,000
Candidate Profile
Experience
Skills, Knowledge and Relevant Qualifications
Behaviours
Scope for Impact
The Bodleian Libraries' public appeal to secure the Talbot archive has led to forty-two previously unknown photogenic drawings being discovered. They have been given to the Bodleian Library.
After hearing about the Bodleian’s campaign, Noel Chanan, biographer of John Dillwyn Llewelyn, was approached by Sir John Venables-Llewelyn, great-great grandson of the photographer, with a view to offering to place a previously unknown collection of forty-two early photogenic drawings by Talbot on deposit at the Bodleian, to supplement the Talbot Archive. These precious and fragile photographs, most of which are annotated by Talbot, depict mostly botanical specimens, as well as places including the cloister and the gothic gateway at Lacock Abbey (right), Oxford’s Botanical Gardens, and the Tower of Magdalen College.
Other subjects include fragments of lace, a breakfast table, a tiger from a Bewick engraving (above, right), the Great Seal of England, and a facsimile of an old printed page.
Gifts to support the appeal to secure the Talbot archive for the Bodleian can be made here: https://www.giving.ox.ac.uk/page.aspx?pid=3427
Oxford, 31 July 2013 -- The Bodleian’s appeal was launched in December 2012 with an initial deadline of the end of February 2013 to raise £2.2 million pounds needed for purchasing the Archive. A significant grant of £1.2 million from the National Heritage Memorial Fund (NHMF) late last year gave the appeal a vital boost. Thanks to the most recent gift from the Art Fund along with donations from numerous other private individuals and charitable trusts, the Bodleian has managed to secure almost £1.9 million towards the purchase of the Archive.
The Bodleian has successfully negotiated an extension to the fundraising deadline and must raise the remaining £375,000 needed to fully fund the acquisition by August 2014. The Bodleian continues to seek and welcomes any further contributions to help acquire the only significant Talbot collection remaining in private hands.
Gifts to support the appeal can be made at: https://www.giving.ox.ac.uk/page.aspx?pid=3427
Stephen Deuchar, Director of the Art Fund, said: ‘We are delighted to be supporting the Bodleian Libraries’ aim to acquire a major archive of works by British inventor and photographer William Henry Fox Talbot. This collection of material is of unparalleled importance in shedding light on both his life and his pioneering work. I urge everyone to support the final stage of the Bodleian's appeal.’
Richard Ovenden, Deputy to Bodley’s Librarian said: ‘We are extremely grateful for all donations which we have received so far, from the grants awarded by the Art Fund and the NHMF to all the individual donations. Every single one of them brings us closer to reaching our target of £2.25 million needed to acquire the Talbot archive which is an essential resource for scholars on the history of photography, the history of science, and a range of other disciplines.’
William Henry Fox Talbot (1800-1877) was one of the greatest polymaths of the Victorian age, and is most famous today for being the British ‘founder of photography’. The archive contains great potential for fuller understanding of the breadth of Talbot’s scholarly activities, and of the influences exerted by the women in his family, in particular their educative roles, their shared interests in botany, languages, art, travel and history that are so central to Talbot’s work, and their roles as practitioners, supporters, and collectors of the new art.
Amongst the recipients of examples of Talbot’s earliest photographs were his aunt, Lady Mary Cole and his cousins, who lived at Penrice, near Swansea. Emma, the youngest of the cousins, was married to another of the South Wales gentry, John Dillwyn Llewelyn, and Talbot’s photographs quickly made their way to Penllergare, the home of the Dillwyn Llewelyns. Inspired by Talbot’s invention, Llewelyn became an early practitioner of the art of photography.
The Talbot Archive also includes artefacts such as glassware and artworks that Talbot photographed for the ground-breaking publication The Pencil of Nature, the first book illustrated with photographs. There is a strong connection to Oxford, as the archive includes some of the first pictures of the city.
Alongside items related to his pioneering work in photography, the archive also sheds valuable light on his family life, his role managing his estate at Lacock, his life as a Member of Parliament, and his range of intellectual interests from science to ancient languages.
The significance of the collection for various academic fields is reflected by the variety of well-known names who have lent their support to the Bodleian’s fundraising efforts to acquire the Fox Talbot archive:
The Bodleian Libraries have now until August 2014 to raise the remaining funds. A series of public events is planned to support access to the Archive, including a major exhibition in 2017. Highlights from the Archive will also feature in the opening exhibition for the Weston Library, and in a number of smaller displays.
About William Henry Fox Talbot
William Henry Fox Talbot (1800 – 1877) was a British humanist, scientist and inventor, best known for his invention of photography. His 1839 announcement of the negative, which could produce multiple prints on paper, defined the central path for photography right down to the digital age. He became the first artist to be trained by photography. Talbot also made significant contributions to fields as diverse as Assyriology, astronomy, botany, electricity, etymology, mathematics, optics and politics. As a scientist, Talbot blended 18th century traditions of the amateur with 19th century concepts of progress and professionalisation. He was a Fellow of the Astronomical, Linnaean, and Royal societies; the latter gave him two gold medals, one for the invention of photography and one for mathematics. Talbot came from a family with strong diplomatic, social and royal connections and sat briefly as a Whig (reform) Member of Parliament. He sensitively guided his estate of Lacock Abbey in Wiltshire through the perils of the social uprisings in the 1830s and the expansion of the railways in the 1840s. Talbot published eight books and more than a hundred journal articles and was granted twelve patents. He was awarded an honorary Doctorate from Edinburgh University. Although personally shy, Henry Talbot was a brilliant figure who lived within a sphere of substantial influence.
About the Personal Archive of William Henry Fox Talbot
The Fox Talbot archive includes:
About the Art Fund
The Art Fund is the national fundraising charity for art, helping museums to buy and show great art for everyone. Over the past 5 years we’ve given over £26m to help museums and galleries acquire works of art for their collections and placed hundreds of gifts and bequests, from ancient sculpture and treasure hoards to Old Master paintings and contemporary commissions. We also help museums share their collections with wider audiences through supporting a range of tours and exhibitions, including the national tour of the Artist Rooms collection and the 2013-2014 tours of Grayson Perry’s tapestries The Vanity of Small Differences and Jeremy Deller’s English Magic, the British Council commission for the 2013 Venice Biennale. Our support for museums extends to the Art Guide app – the comprehensive guide to seeing art across the UK, promoting a network of over 650 museums and galleries throughout the country, and the £100,000 Art Fund Prize for Museum of the Year – an annual celebration of the best of UK museums, won in 2013 by William Morris Gallery in Walthamstow. We are independently funded, the majority of our income coming from over 100,000 members who, through the National Art Pass, enjoy free entry to over 220 museums, galleries and historic houses across the UK, as well as 50% off entry to major exhibitions.
Find out more about the Art Fund and the National Art Pass at www.artfund.org.
In July 2013, the Musée Maison Nicéphore Niépce in St Loup de Varennes - founded and exclusively financed by the Speos International Photography School since 1999 -- was nominated Maisons des illustres by the French Ministry of Culture in the presence of high-ranked French government representatives. The house where the world's first photo was taken has finally received national recognition as a museum.
Visit the house website at: http://www.niepce.com/
20 July: One of the oldest, extant, dedicated photographic archives in the world, the Barnardo's photographic archive, currently housed in Barkingside, East London is under threat. Following its digitisation the archive will be transferred to another organisation or will be destroyed.
Over the next few months, Barnardo's will be having its entire photographic archive digitised in Manchester. Due to space issues at Barnardo's, the organisation will then destroy the original images unless an archive or museum can be persuaded to save these important historic documents. The material consists of about of shelving around fifteen feet in length holding archival boxes about 8 inches deep and about 20 inches high. The pages from the original admissions ledgers have been cut out and placed in archival plastic sheets.
Dr. Thomas Barnardo began photographing the 'waifs and strays' that came into his care at his first childrens home in Stepney causeway as early as 1875, employing two photographers, Barnardo preceded most prisons and asylums by seeing the benifits of photography for institutional record keeping. He soon came into legal trouble for faking the condition of the children for the purposes of publicity.
The importance of these beautiful images - not just to photographic history but to the study of archive practices and British social history - cannot be overstated. It is imperative that their material importance is upheld and that they do not simply become yet another archive solely made up of a smattering of zeroes and ones.
There are certain stipulations regarding the public use of images of children within their care and the images would be subject to a 100 year privacy rule but would still be accessible for private and/or scholarly work.
If you might know of an institution, archive, museum, group of people or persons that would be willing to help save this archive of historical importance please contact the head archivist at Barnardos.
Read more about the Barnardo archive here: http://www.barnardos.org.uk/what_we_do/who_we_are/history/family_history_service/family_history_service_our_service/photo_archive.htm
Update 1: A petition has been launched to 'save' the archive. Click here to view and sign. The petition addressed to Culture Minister Maria Miller has been signed by over 1000 people.
Update 2: Barnardos has commented publicly for the first time. http://www.thirdsector.co.uk/news/1192660/fears-circulate-barnardos-photo-archive-destroyed/ It says it is 'confident it will find a destination for 500,000 historic photos'.
Update 3: According to Amateur Photographer magazine over forty offers to house the archive have been received.
An oil portrait of Benjamin Brecknell Turner is being offered by a British seller on eBay. The auction closes on 28 July. According to the auction entry Turner was was one of Britain's first photographers and a founding member in 1853 of the Photographic Society of London.
See the auction entry here: http://www.ebay.com/itm/400535415777
UPDATE: The painting sold for £310.
Born in London, Turner was the eldest son in a family of eight children. The family lived above the family tallow-chandlers business where candles and saddle-soaps were made and sold. At sixteen Benjamin became an apprentice to his father, he joined the Worshipful Company of Tallow Chandlers in 1837 and became a Freeman of the City of London in 1838. On 17 August 1847, he married Agnes Chamberlain, a member of the Worcester China family.
In 1849 Turner took out a licence to practice paper negative (Calotype or Talbotype) photography from its inventor, William Henry Fox Talbot. He quickly mastered this form of photography and went on to produce many images during the 1850s, taking part in many photographic exhibitions during this time. He joined the Photographic Society, later the Royal Photographic Society, and was recorded as a member from 1854, although it is likely he joined in 1853 and remained a member until at least 1893, albeit with a break in membership between c.1871, rejoining in 1883. Brecknell's personal album from The Photographic Club, a grouping of members of the Photographic Society is held in the Royal Photographic Society Collection at the National Media Museum
