Blogs

Marcus Adams' travelling studio camera is to be offered at auction on 4 May. The camera was designed and custom-built for Adams to make half-plate negatives, and is with a  Carl Zeiss Jena, Tessar 25cm f/4.5 lens no. 451181 and a Dallmeyer pneumatic shutter. It was originally from the estate of Adams' widow. The camera is estimated at £400-600. 

Adams was a Fellow of both the Royal Photographic Society and Institute of British Photographers and a specialist in child studies, as well as a photographer of royalty. 

The camera is shown in pictures of Adams' studio now held in the National Portrait Gallery collection: 

https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait/mw280916/Photomontage-of-Marcus-Adams-with-his-travelling-camera

https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait/mw280914/Marcus-Adams-with-his-travelling-camera-designed-and-built-by-himself

Auction: Happy & Glorious: God Save The King
4 May 2023
Chiswick Auctions, London, lot 54
See: https://www.chiswickauctions.co.uk/auction/lot/lot-54---marcus-adams-1875-1959--travelling-half-plate-camera/?lot=218910&so=0&st=camera&sto=0&au=922&ef=&et=&ic=False&sd=0&pp=48&pn=1&g=1

A series of photographs by Lewis Carroll vastly exceeded their estimates at auction recently. In a timed auction running from 13-23 April 2023 held by Sworders eight single images by Carroll sold for prices from £9,450 to £16,550, against estimates starting from £800-1000. Each showed  Alexandra 'Xie' Kitchin, a favourite Carroll subject. The highest price was achieved by a photograph of Alexandra 'Xie' Kitchin as a Chinaman, taken on 14th July 1873.

See: https://timed.sworder.co.uk/past-auctions/sworde1-10041?term=Carroll

The eight images are shown below: