Their premises were at 20 Gladstone Terrace, North Road and they advertise themselves as portrait and landscape photographers and, on one card only, artists. The young lady to the left is almost smiling.  This was not usual in Victorian photographs.  It was not that the sitters had to pose stock still for a long time - by this time they did not.  It was that it was considered that smiling made one look idiotic.

The address is the same as on the photo above but the front has the photographer's name on it. The back, which drops the claim to be an artist, has a ludicrous picture of what seems to be a vestal virgin.  This contrasts with the fashionable, and then very modern, Japanese influenced "aesthetic" style of the other two cards.

A demonstration of suffering for the photographer's art. The boy stands on a furry thing, whence all but the chair have fled - and that is about to sink, taking him with it.  The sailor boy stares bravely into the studio distance.

Russell (of Wolverhampton)

Russell was at 41 Darlington Street and at 2 Mill Street, Crewe.  Note the back cloth; and the table, which would have been one of the studio props. The same table appears in both photos. Perhaps Russell thought it particularly suitable for young ladies.

Many photographers kept a wide range of props.  Ned Williams points out that many later photographs show young men standing by motorbikes.  The young men's family will now refer to this as "his motorbike".  It almost certainly was not.  Some photographers simply had a bike in the studio for daring young men to pose by.

G. Russell (of Bilston)

It is not known if there is any connection between G. Russell and the Russell above.  The backs of these photos are plain and there is no address other than Bilston. The name is badly printed on both photos, as if Russell was keen to save expense.  But the studio is elaborately tricked out.

On the left the clashing floor covering and curtains are complemented by a particularly gross form of rustic work in which bits of bark were stuck on to a wooden or metal structure.  On the right (which is a cabinet size photo) the three men (probably three generations of the same family) are incongruously placed on a large furry thing.  The middle aged man wears a straw hat; the young man wears a flat cap and what must have been some sort of white warehouse coat.  As usual with white clothes in a Victorian studio, it has almost disappeared, leaving a disembodied head floating in space.

W. J. Sadler

W J Sadler was at Ivy House, Penn Road.  The artists palette shown on the reverse of his card was a common symbol on photographer's card, emphasising that they were artists. What was "the new instantaneous process"?  It probably enabled exposure times to be reduced. This "artist" battles on even though his "stone" wall is peeling and showing the woodwork beneath.

This seems to be a later photo.  The design on the back of the  card has calmed down a lot.  But the backcloth seems a bit tatty and there is a furry thing draped over the table with the pot plant on it.  The young lady is dressed up almost beyond description and sports a feathery fan which must have denuded several peacocks.

C. Stallard

Stallard was at 52 Queen Street.  His card says "Late W. H. Dodds & Co". People always dressed in their Sunday best to have their likenesses taken.  This kid seems remarkably unembarrassed at being called upon to imitate little Lord Fauntleroy.

The young lady is small enough to need to stand on a chair but she looks very assured and casual with her legs crossed - but one hand grips the chair back.

I have lost my record of the kind person who sent us these scans.  Would they please get in touch via email?

---

Return to the beginning	Proceed to the next page