This site aims to collect information about the commercial photographers who were working from Glasgow in the Victorian and Edwardian eras, who produced the millions of Carte de Visite (cdv) and cabinet cards which fill photograph albums from the period. This information is intended to help indentify and date such photos, and where available the site presents examples of each photographer's work.
A review of the types and designs of PHOTOGRAPHIC PRODUCTS from the period is given HERE, and a list of some of the commercial CARD DESIGNS HERE.
The information has been largely gathered from the Glasgow trade
directories, and some LIMITATIONS of this approach are discussed
HERE.
Other aspects of INTEREST which have emerged from the study of the trade directories are discussed
HERE.
Some other SOURCES of information about Victorian photography and the sources referred
to in the tables, are detailed HERE.
This site is still under development, and will be augmented as more examples become available.
the author would appreciate any additions or corrections to the contents of the site, and any further
information about the photographers or their work which would help make the contents more
comprehensive. Any scans or examples of carte de visite or cabinet cards, particularly dated or numbered ones,
of a type not already included would be particularly welcome.
Contact can be made through the form at the bottom of the page.
Recent additions to the site can be found under - BARCLAY BROTHERS, and REDFERN, SONS & CO
The photographers are listed by surname, accessed from the intial letters below. The first page then encountered gives the address(es) and dates when they were active. Where there are examples of their cdv or cabinet cards the names are highlighted, and the examples can be seen by clicking on the name.
In most cases, hovering the cursor over a cdv image will produce all or part of a message of the form -
thk = 23 - 26 GM No. 13657
- where the first two figures are the thickness of the card backing and then the backing plus print in thousandths of an inch. 'G' or 'S' means the edge is gilded or silvered, 'M' means the edge is chamfered ('mitred'), and a number indicates that the card is numbered by hand, generally indicating a photographic negative number.