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Godfrey W. Allen
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The reverse of this card, printed in pale lilac on
pale green, gives the address: Wolverhampton Studios, 53 Queen
Street. It also says "From Piccadilly and Regent Street
Street, London, W". But the quality of the card is far from
the West End.
From the style of dress and the meditative pose, one might
guess that this gentleman is a nonconformist minister. |
Anglo American Photographic Company
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This company was at 53 Queen Street (and in Birmingham
and London). They proudly offer "3 doz. Gem portraits
for 2s. 6d. taken and finished in a few minutes".
Presumably Gem portraits are these tiny prints. Scans of
this carte de visite (and several others on these pages)have
been kindly provided by Carl Green from his massive
collection. |
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A. Asprey
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A. Asprey had his studio in Bilston but exactly where in
that largish town he does not say. But its a good
quality photo - with a plump and healthy looking child,
sitting on a stool designed somewhat like a medieval throne.
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Arthur & Co.
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Their address is 49 Snow Hill.
Photographers normally advised against wearing white as the
photographic processes of the time resulted in white clothes
losing all detail or even turning out a sort of muddy grey.
The baby's dress has - in the original at least, if not in this
scan - almost come out successfully and so may not have been
white. |
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This must be Grandfather and Grandson - only a
grandfather looks that pleased with a small child. The
boy is dressed in lace-up calf length boots, a velvet suit
with a sailor collar and some sort of tie or cravat with
worn and frayed ends - what was that about? Grandfather is sitting on a typical studio chair for a
paterfamilias and the boy is standing on another bit of
furniture. Grandfather's right arm was probably
keeping the whole precarious arrangement in some sort of
stability. |
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By the end of the 19th century it seems to have been
quite common for photographers to be called out to the
wedding reception to take a group photo. These were
often in a back garden but here Arthur & Co have included
what looks like a factory gate at the back and some rags on
the floor at the front. These make a strange contrast
with the wedding finery where the hats must have stripped a
number of flower beds and denuded several ostriches.
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Ernest Bassett
for an account of Ernest Bassett and his career,
click here.
W. Bassett
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The reverse shows the address 29 Snow Hill.
The text says "enlargements life size coloured in oil &c".
Photographers were also sometimes painters too but the hand
colouring of photos was common, if expensive. No connection
between W. Bassett and Ernest Bassett has been found. |
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W. Beasant
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Not a photographer but a "photographic artist" with an
artistic back to the carte to prove the point. One of
many photographers who, from time to time, occupied 41
Darlington Street. Edith has signed her name in the top
right corner under an attempt at "yours affectionately"
which was frustrated by lack of space.
Note the pot plants on bamboo stands. |
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J. Caddick
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Caddick is a common local name and it is unlikely
that this gentleman was an American. At this time the USA
was becoming a great industrial power and most people in
Wolverhampton saw it as a commercial threat. But it seems
that others admired their technological prowess and Caddick was
one to try to cash in on it. The American flag was flying
at 166 Penn Road. |
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J. N. Cadwalender
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The photo shows two locations: Chapel Ash and
Henwood Road. The Henwood Road address may well be
Cadwalender's residence, with a studio in the front room. Note the
elaborate painted backcloth, suggesting an opulent sitting room.
Such backcloths were common studio props.
Where is the father in this group? Possibly he was abroad
and this photo was taken for him. Possibly he was dead but none
of the family is dressed in even half-mourning.
|
Note that in the photo above details of the ladies'
dresses have come out. Victorian photographers had a problem with
white, which tended to come out as a featureless white blob. How
you dressed was, of course, important. The Ladies Journal of 30th
October 1880 had this advice on how to dress when sitting for a
photographer:
"Very few ladies know how to dress so as to secure the most pleasing
photograph. The best materials to wear are such as are not too glossy,
and such as will fold or drape nicely, as reps., poplins, satins and
silks. A black silk dress looks well on almost everybody, and if not
bedecked with ribbons or lace, which will take whiter, will photograph
satisfactorily. So garnet, cherry, wine colour, sea or bottle green,
light and dark orange, and slate colours are all excellent colours to
photograph. But pure white is bad, and lavender, lilac, sky blue, purple
and French blue take very light, and dresses having bold patterns upon
them, should never be worn for a picture. Avoid anything that will look
streaky or spotty".
Bennett Clark
for an account of Bennett Clark and his firm,
click here
J. P. Crook
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The address is 91 Shaw Road - very much an out of
town address.
This photo - possibly of four generations of men - is unusual
in that it appears to have been taken outside, possibly at the
family home. Photographers did not often go out because of
technical problems with equipment and lighting. |
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W. A. Dodds
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Dodds' address was 53 Queen Street. All of these
scans of his work come from Carl Green, to whom many thanks.
This pater familias, surrounded by solid and
dignified furniture, is typical of the way in which middle
class men liked to be represented. |
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But this rustic, not to say bucolic, gentleman is not so
typical. Propping a small child against the furniture was
also typical but including more of the chair than the child
was not. |
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This old and toothless lady is finely bedecked and must
have insisted on her best, well laundered, white cap and
scarf despite all photographers of the time warning against
wearing white as it came out as a white splodge, lacking all
detail. In 1880 the Ladies Journal gave advice on "How
To Dress When Sitting For A Photographer". They said:
"Very few ladies know how to dress so as to secure the most
pleasing photograph. The best materials to wear are such as
are not too glossy, and such as will fold or drape nicely,
as reps., poplins, satins and silks. A black silk dress
looks well on almost everybody, and if not bedecked with
ribbons or lace, which will take whiter, will photograph
satisfactorily. So garnet, cherry, wine colour, sea or
bottle green, light and dark orange, and slate colours are
all excellent colours to photograph. But pure white is bad,
and lavender, lilac, sky blue, purple and French blue take
very light, and dresses having bold patterns upon them,
should never be worn for a picture. Avoid anything that will
look streaky or spotty". |
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| Dodds also produced this photo of a drawing
of what looks very much like St. Michael's, Tettenhall.
It would be interesting to know if this was a commission by
the painter or whether Dodds sold prints of local scenes as
a regular commercial practice. |
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