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Identifying Antique Photographs

Daguerreotype is a photograph made by an early photographic process; the image was produced on a silver plate sensitized to iodine and developed in mercury vapor. Unlike the modern photographs, it has no negative. The daguerreotype photographic process was one of the first to permanently record and affix an image, and became the first commercially used photographic process. The daguerreotype is named after its inventor, French artist and chemist Louis J.M. Daguerre, who announced its perfection (after years of experimentation) in 1839.

Ambrotype is an early type of photograph made by imaging a negative on glass backed by a dark surface. Ambrotypes were often hand-tinted. Untinted ambrotypes are grayish-white and have less contrast and brilliance than daguerreotypes. The ambrotype was Identifying antique photographsmuch less expensive to produce than the daguerreotype. By the late 1850s, the ambrotype was overtaking the daguerreotype in popularity; nevertheless, by the mid-1860s, the ambrotype itself was supplanted by the tintype and other processes.

Tintype or Ferrotype, a positive photograph made directly on an iron (thus ferro) plate varnished with a thin sensitized film, was developed in the United States in the mid-19th century. By the end of the Civil War, the tintype overtook the ambrotype in popularity to become the most common photographic process until the introduction of modern photography. Tintypes continued to be made until the 1950s. Like the ambrotype, the image is a negative, but appears to be a positive image when viewed against the black background. The tintype was a minor improvement to the ambrotype, replacing the glass plate of the original process with a thin piece of black tin. The new materials reduced the cost considerably. The image proved to be very durable because it was trapped between the metal and varnished surface.

Carte de Visite (CDV) was invented by photographer Adolphe Disd?i in 1854. The CDV was very popular from the 1860s to the 1880s. It was used as a photographic calling card, developed for the Victorian practice of using visiting or calling cards to communicate with acquaintances. Taken with a special camera that produced eight poses on one negative, the CDV created a market for trading and collecting celebrity photographs in France and England; they served to connect the rich and famous with commoners. Copies of cartes-de-visite of royal or famous figures were sold to the public at large. The CDVs were placed in carte albums which were the forerunners of photo albums.

In my first article on photographs, I discussed going over the snapshots from your life, labeling them and putting them into some kind of temporary and orderly storage. The next article, covered preservation of your negatives and slides. If you missed those two articles, you can find them at Preserving Photographic Memories and Preserving Negatives and Slides.

Now it is time to look at those antique family photographs that have in your possession. Labeling them is a bit more of a challenge because they are records of events before your memory. However, you will find clues hidden in the photographs. Dating the photographs is the first thing to do. Photography methods have changed over the years. Understanding this process will help you get a date range.

Next, a close examination of the image will give you clues. Look at the clothing, objects in the picture, buildings, and approximate age of the people. Use a magnifying glass to get a closer view. Don't forget the back of the photograph. Identifying the photographer or studio a formal picture was taken by can help you date them. Each picture is like a mystery waiting to be solved.

Older relatives can be a great resource for identification. But, hold on to your original copy. Make a copy at someplace like Kinko's or your office supply store, and send that to them. Also remember that their memories may be faulty and further proof of identification may be needed.

Here are a couple of sites that will give you further tips on this process:

Your Family Legacy-Researching Old Photos gives some tips on finding clues in the photograph.

Dating Old Photographs is a great site to find further links to solve the mysteries of the family pictures.

Once you have identified the photographs, you need to store them in a safe temporary place. I will write about long time storage in another article. For now, they are stored so I can work with them. I have put mine in a three ring binder, one photograph per archival plastic sleeve (the kind I have my documents and family sheets in). A label can be attached on the outside. This way they are safe for the moment.

Once all your photographs, old and new, are labeled, you will be ready for the next step. Restoring faded and damaged ones. That will be in my next photographic article, in a few weeks.