Early Colour Photography
Introduction
In my companion blog "Dry Plate to Colour" Link: https://dryplate2colour.home.blog/ I show, through the journey of the amateur photographer Ellis Kelsey from holiday snaps to specialising in creative images, in particular 'low-light' and finally taking up the early colour photographic mediums. He was very prolific and his work has survived in many collections held by organisations and private individuals.
I have included examples of EK's work, plus some others for comparison, but only where I have received permission from the collection administrator's or the private collectors who own the copyrights. I am also showing a number from my own collection. Most of these images have only recently been shown on the internet or never before been published despite being taken from 1907 to the 1930's.
As far as I am aware Ellis Kelsey's earliest colour images used the Lumiere Brother's Autochrome plates (1907 onwards). He showed eight examples at the RPS Exhibition in 1908.
Then he experimented with the Dufay Dioptichrome plates (from 1909). Unfortunately we do not have any examples although he exhibited (RPS) examples in 1911 and 1912.
We also have a number of his Paget Process images (introduced 1913). He also used other systems including those using flexible supports rather than glass.
I would have thought that he would also have tried the other colour processes if he could get hold of supplies. The Joly process was introduced in 1896, Jougla Omnicolore in 1907, Thames-Finlay in 1908 and Agfacolor in 1916.
Autochrome plates were not available in the UK in any numbers in 1907. Only 40,000 were produced in Lyon, France in the first year.
 |
| Copyright: Seaford Museum (First publication) |
The first photographs taken were to get to know the Autochrome system and tended towards simple flowers or garden scenes in the spring and summer of 1908. The early exposure times for colour were much longer than for black & white photography due to the reduced light levels that reached the light sensitive emulsion through the colour screens. The autochrome screen was of coloured grains of potato starch. A minute per exposure in good light was not unusual although improvements were made in later plates.
The rose image is from a stereograph taken by Ellis Kelsey in his home in Eastbourne (Upper Ave.) .
 |
| By Ellis Kelsey - Copyright: Seaford Museum |
Ellis Kelsey exhibited an Autochrome with the title "Roses" at the Royal Photographic Society Exhibition in London in 1908 the year after the Lumiere Brothers introduced the system. Of course he was already a well known photographer who exhibited regularly such was the quality of his work.
The image (right) is from a stereograph taken by Ellis Kelsey in the garden of his Eastbourne home.
This is the first time it has been published thanks to Seaford Museum the copyright owner.
 |
| By Ellis Kelsey - By Courtesy of Seaford Museum |
 |
| Ellis Kelsey's family home in Upper Ave. Eastbourne. By Courtesy of Seaford Museum. |
In addition to still life and images of flowers it would have been a priority to take colour images of his home, family members, the family dog, friends and himself.
 |
| Joseph Kelsey (EK's father) |
 |
| Martha Kelsey (EK's mother) |
 |
| EK's father and family dog |
 |
| EK's sister Edith? |
 |
| The iconic image of Ellis Kelsey from the Heather Buckley Collection Not for commercial use |
Ellis Kelsey also created images using Dufay Dioptichrome and Paget Process plates. He exhibited the former at RPS events. He once said that he preferred the Paget Process system, as compared with Autochrome, because many copies could be produced from the same exposure.
I do not know with any confidence the difference, under magnification, between Dioptichrome and Paget Process but I do not believe that we have any examples of 'Dioptichrome' images.
Seaford Museum has some 2,300 of EK's images but very few are colour. Other organisations are the owners of his printed works. A large number of his Lantern Slides are also in large collections and others are held by lanternists and private collectors.
Link: https://www.scienceandsociety.co.uk/index.asp (Then use search "Ellis Kelsey")
Link: http://www.vintageworks.net/common/detail.php/4096/0/2/62/16/0/11919
I was lucky to find some examples of his work including some Autochromes and Paget Process images. These were being sold individually and in small groups on Ebay. Having heard about my interest the owner, who had bought them at auction in England but then moved to France, sent the items to me. He described some of the lovely images that he had already sold. You may find some fine examples of EK's colour work on internet auction sites but these are now rising in price.
I am sure that there are many more held privately and maybe the owners do not know they are by Ellis Kelsey.
Ellis Kelsey's mother died in 1914 and she was buried in Ocklynge cemetery in Eastbourne. He took a number of images using Paget Process Plates which had been introduced the previous year.
 |
| Paget Process image of the Kelsey grave at Ocklynge cemetery in Eastbourne by Ellis Kelsey - 1914 By Courtesy of the Seaford Museum and Heritage Society (copyright) - first publication. |
Ellis Kelsey made several images of the Kelsey grave over the next few years. Two of the images raise a matter of some interest. There seem to be two images, on different sized plates, which appear to me to be from the same exposure but showing tulips with differently coloured blooms!
 |
| Paget Process image by Ellis Kelsey c.1915 (Copyright: Seaford Museum) |
 |
| Paget Process image by Ellis Kelsey c.1915 (Copyright: Seaford Museum) |
Ellis Kelsey was very creative and experimental. He manipulated images in every imaginable way and described in his published articles what he had done. So the bottom image appears more highly coloured (not Photoshop!). I think he may have re-photographed an image using a bright natural light or artificial light. I do not rule out some hand colouring but it could be that there was a colour loss in the second image when re-photographed. Any ideas?
So lets see some more examples of his Autochrome and Paget Process work that have not previously been published. These are from my own collection.
AUTOCHROMES:
 |
| Four Roses on a Single Plate by Ellis Kelsey (Copyright: Brendon Franks) |
 |
| Ellis Kelsey (aged about 70) by Ellis Kelsey c.1937 (Copyright: Brendon Franks) |
I don't know how EK was able to combine four Autochrome images in this way. He was a very able photographer and technician and I think few people of his time would have been able to produce such an image. I would imagine he has re-photographed four plates but I am not sure how he was able to achieve this without solid borders.
PAGET PROCESS:
 |
| Ellis Kelsey image c. 1913 (Copyright: Brendon Franks) |
 |
| Dicentra and Leaded Window (by Ellis Kelsey) (Copyright: Brendon Franks) |
Ellis Kelsey was able to produce very good colours from the Paget Process plates.
 |
| Ellis Kelsey Still Life |
I still wonder if some of the images that I label "Paget Process" are actually "Dufay Dioptichrome"!
 |
| Image showing a magnified section of a Paget Process Plate |
Ellis Kelsey specialised in low-light photography and even though it was even more difficult with colour photography this did not stop EK from getting excellent results. These can be seen on my blog "Dry Plate to Colour" courtesy of Daniel Blau, Munich. Please see a YouTube video relating to a 2008 exhibition in Paris showing 13 of EK's Autochromes owned by Daniel Blau. The presenter is Manuel Benguigui at Galerie-Meyer who spoke on the subject "The AutoChrome - Thanks, Lumiere Brothers!".
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WGkjNcHkvzY
Example:
 |
| This Autochrome is shown with the kind permission of Daniel Blau, Munich |
FLEXIBLE MEDIUMS:
In addition to the glass plate mediums we have seen above EK also produced a relatively few images using later flexible mediums, but again I can not be sure which photographic system was used. They would have been taken in the 1930's.
 |
| By Ellis Kelsey |
ARTHUR E. MORTON
Arthur E. Morton F.R.P.S, lived at 97 Chesterfield Gardens, Harringay. He was the Honorary Secretary of the Society of Colour Photographers. He stated, in an article in an American publication, that Ellis Kelsey was his friend and also described EK's contribution to low-light photography.
They also collaborated in a presentation introducing Colour Photography and showing many examples from their own work of the various colour systems. I include below a couple more examples of AEM's colour work. It should be noted that they are showing their age and some of the common reasons for deterioration of Autochrome plates.
See also Historic England Archive for many more of Morton's images. Link: https://historicengland.org.uk/images-books/photos/results/?searchType=HE+Archive+New&search=arthur+e.+morton&filteroption=images
 |
| Flower Beds at Birlingham By Arthur E. Morton c. 1911 (Copyright: Brendon Franks) |
 |
| Flower Beds at Finsbury Park by Arthur E. Morton c.1911 (Copyright: Brendon Franks) |
AUTOCHROME BY UNKNOWN FRENCH PHOTOGRAPHER:
I am keen to show Seaford Museum Members and other followers a wonderfully preserved Autochrome of an unknown location though probably in France. Also I am not sure from which side to view the image. Does anyone know the location?
 |
| Unknown Photographer (First time published) Copyright: Brendon Franks |
 |
| Flipped version of above (Copyright: Brendon Franks) |
SOME MORE EXAMPLES OF ELLIS KELSEY'S COLOUR WORK:
(First Time Published)
 |
| "Delphiniums" by Ellis Kelsey (Copyright: Brendon Franks) |
 |
| "Geraniums" by Ellis Kelsey (Copyright: Brendon Franks) |
 |
| Elizabeth Kelsey and Friend (Copyright: Brendon Franks) |
 |
| "Begonias" by Ellis Kelsey (Copyright: Brendon Franks) |
My original Vintage Photography blog which looks at the life and work of Eastbourne photographer Ellis Kelsey (1866-1939) can be found on this link: https://dryplate2colour.home.blog/
Addendum
Where did Ellis Kelsey's interest in photography begin? How did he become so technically proficient so quickly? and Who or what inspired his creative and artistic work?
Ellis Kelsey was born in Richmond in 1866. He lived above his father's haberdashery shop in George Street in 1889 at the time he took up photography.
We know that he was to visit his mother and father's family farms and relatives in 1890 and if he wanted to record the occasion and the Isle of Axholme area in Lincolnshire he would have wanted to be technically proficient by then. The result was a wonderful record of the area now held in E.K.'s albums at Doncaster Central Library. Many of the original glass plate negatives are housed in Seaford Museum.
We are able to compare the two images (the print version v's the glass negative) and in some cases unfortunately Ellis had not yet learned to varnish the plates after exposure so some are streaked. He did not make this mistake for the rest of his work in all the following years.
He would have started with pictures of his home and family and other locations that he found interesting in his own home town and indeed Richmond has benefitted from his early work which can be seen at Richmond History Centre although not now held in the original album's.
There were two photography studios in the town of Richmond in 1889 being 'Byrne & Co.' and 'Gunn & Stuart'.
The Byrne and Co. studio was at 19 Hill Street and Gunn & Stuart's premises were at 2 The Quadrant.
Both studio's were a very easy walk from E.K.'s home.
Byrne & Co.
Ellis' father, Joseph, provided the livery to Queen Victoria's household and William Byrne had a royal warrant as photographer to the royal family. The two men were of similar ages and would have been of the same standing and the families would have undoubtedly been well known to each other. It is plausible then that either William or one of his assistants could have helped Joseph's son, Ellis, then 23 years old, with the technical side of his new hobby.
 |
| Jessie at 9 months 10/7/1882 Copyright: Brendon Franks |
Above is an example of Byrne & Co.'s studio work. He advertised that he specialised in children's photo's which must have been especially challenging i.e. holding the child's attention, getting them to look charming and happy and avoiding movement which would have blurred the final result. To this end it is reported that he kept many toys in his studio. Jessie (above) looks to have been a good example of his expertise in 1882.
William Byrne originally acquired his own knowledge of photographic processes with 'Hills & Saunders' most probably in their Eton studio until, presumably, he felt ready to start out on his own.
 |
| Ginnie's Gig - Ascot 1891 by Byrne & Co. Richmond, Surrey (Copyright: Brendon Franks) |
Not all professional photographs were taken in the studio. The well-to-do customers that could afford studio photo's would have, in addition to portraits and family groups, also commissioned images of their houses and gardens and special occasions. The picture of 'Ginnie' (the horse?) and what appears to be a new gig (carriage) would have been more difficult than in the highly controlled conditions in a studio. In this case the light would have been more challenging as would the movement of an animal. The splendidly turned out groom holding Ginnie's head solves the latter problem. Note that the woman's hat was unsatisfactory, probably due its style or to lack of definition, and someone has made changes to its outline etc. with paint or ink.
Charles Nesbitt was the 'Principal Retoucher' for Messrs. Byrne & Co. at around this time (later a Canterbury photographer) but would not have been responsible for the crude hat outline!
Royal Photographic Society (RPS) Exhibits by W.J. Byrne &Co.
To give an idea of W.J Byrne's (Byrne & Co.) exhibition items I include a list of the titles of those at the Royal Photographic Society annual exhibition in London. He also exhibited photographs in many other towns and cities in the UK.
Year Exh. No. Exhibitor Title
1879 91 Cabinet Portraits of Children (wet process)
1881 328 Cabinet Portraits of Children (Gelatine plate)
1881 385 Panel Portraits (Gelatine plate)
1883 204 Photographs of Children (Printed on Red Carbon)
1884 452 Portraits of Children
1885 206 Group of Children (Enlargement)
1885 224 At Home - Direct Portraits of Ladies in Court Dress, taken in ordinary dwelling rooms MEDAL
1886 36 Group, T.S.H. Prince Adolphus, Prince Francis, and Prince Alexander Teck. (Platinotype by)
1886 38 Portrait of a Lady in Grecian Dress. (Taken direct and printed in Platinotype by) MEDAL
1886 78 Portraits taken Direct from Life
1886 318 Home Photographs (Platinotype by)
1887 144 At Home - Panel Photograph
1887 183 At Home - Photographs taken at Lady Hood's Town residences
1887 184 Princess Helene d'Orlean's Miss Adah Michell Pritt;
Miss Adah Michell Pritt ; The Hon. Fredk. Tollemache
1887 283 Portrait taken direct, Life Size :- The Hon. Fredk.
Tollemache ; Miss Robinson ; Miss Yorke MEDAL
1888 365 "At Home," taken in ordinary dwelling rooms
1888 390 Panel Portraits (Direct from Life)
1888 510 Her Majesty's Jubilee Procession ; Sandown Park
1889 301 At Home Portraits (taken in ordinary dwelling room)
1889 321 Portraits (direct from life)
1889 341 Dozing (Direct Photograph from Life)
1889 347 Direct Photographs
1889 374 The Town Artist - Experience (Genre group)
1889 375 The Village Artist - Youth (Genre group)
1889 602 At Home Photographs - H.I.M. the Emperor of Germany taken at Osborne, August 5, 1889
1890 230 Study of Girl's Head - Taken direct. (Silver)
1890 317 Children - taken direct (Silver)
1890 424 "At Home" Portraits, taken at Sitters' own Residences (Silver)
1890 441 Wilhelm Kristian Selle, Mus. Doc. - taken direct MEDAL
1890 620 A Composer at Home
1890 649 Portraits taken direct. (Silver ; Untouched)
1890 650 At Home Portraits - taken at Sitters' Own Residence. (Silver)
1890 654 Ambassadors at the Court of St. James's (Silver)
1891 144 The Alphabet Illustrated
1891 190 Studies (direct)
1891 191 Triptich: The Bather
1891 197 Portrait Study
1891 254 Portrait of a Lady (Direct)
1891 269 An Eastern Beauty
1891 374 "Buy a broom" (Direct)
1891 379 Panel Portraits of Children
1891 380 A Water Nymph (Direct)
1891 433 Studies of Children
1892 89 A Study (Taken Direct)
1892 151 J. G. Fleet, Esq. (Taken Direct)
1892 174 A Grecian Girl (Taken Direct)
1892 278 Cabinet Studies of Children
1892 314 Panel Studies of Children
1892 343 A Rehearsal (Taken Direct)
1892 356 Little Bo-Peep (Taken Direct)
1893 154 Studies in Red Carbon (Direct)
1893 280 The Carpenter's Alphabet (Silver)
1895 138 L'Amore Carbon) - For sale at £3. 3. 6.
1895 147 Miss E. Whiting (Carbon) - For sale at £3.13.6.
Note: Platinotype (Platinum) Prints verses Silver Prints = Platinum Prints, also called platinotypes, are photographic prints that provide the greatest tonal range of any printing method using chemical development. Dissimilar from the Silver Print process, platinum lies on the paper surface, while silver lies in a gelatin or albumen emulsion that coats the paper. As a result, since no gelatin emulsion is used, the final platinum image is absolutely matte with a deposit of platinum (and/or palladium, its sister element which is also used in most platinum photographs) absorbed slightly into the paper. Most platinum printing ended around 1914, as the platinum was needed to manufacture high explosives for World War I. (National Portrait Gallery Definition).
Also:
AUTOTYPE COMPANY EXHIBITS (Negatives by Byrne & Co.):
1889 159 Marchioness of Hastings and Miss Elwes (Negative by Byrne & Co.)
1889 200 Miss Elwes ("At Home" Negative by Byrne & Co.)
1889 332 Honourable Tracey (Negative by Byrne & Co.)
1889 455 Compte de Paris (Negative by Byrne & Co.)
1894 79 Geoffrey Sawyer (From a negative by WJ Byrne & Co.)
Note: Autotype Co. = Print publisher and printer, specialising in photomechanical prints (using the carbon process) and later in photogravure.
This link shows what appears to be an advertising leaflet which explains Byrne's services and provides information on the medals that he has won: https://www.flickr.com/photos/photohistorytimeline/29180443347/in/album-72157697331028772/
The March 1898 edition of the Harmsworth Magazine includes an an illustrated article: Its title is: "LITTLE DARLINGS. HALF A MILLION PHOTOGRAPHS OF CHILDREN." It describes how W.J. Byrne achieved such success with the difficult art of getting true to life photographs of children.
The Gutenberg Press has reproduced this article. See the link: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/50672/50672-h/50672-h.htm (Go to page 99)
The article was written by Somers J. Summers who interviewed W.J. Byrne's on how he captured "that moment of fleeting expression which he desired to preserve". But he does not reveal one "secret" and "wild interviewers can not drag it from him".
What he did reveal was achieved by painstaking experimentation and his experience having taken over "half a million photographs of little sitters".
There were three don'ts for mothers:-
Don't let the little one learn before-hand that it is going to a studio.
Don't dress it in a costume that it is not used to.
Don't endeavour to arrange its hair - it looks better if allowed to fall naturally.
When the child arrived it was allowed to wonder about. He needed the child to feel at home. Byrne provided "new" toys for them to play with and he would either take no notice or join in the game. Meanwhile his assistant would focus an almost concealed camera and as soon as the child was happy "then snap goes the shutter". "Never pose at all".
I include here some of the illustrations which accompany the article:-
 |
In the multiple images of the girl (below) he uses a child model for "some of her happiest poses".
Byrne conceived the idea of the, extra large, boot and asked a bootmaker to provide one. He was unable to do so or did not want to. Next he asked a carpenter but again to no avail. But finally he got the 'property' department at Drury Lane theatre to make him one as they would for a pantomime. The result is shown above. Byrne himself distressed the boot to get the effect he wanted.
Byrne did not divulge how he got the children above to be so unhappy!
Gunn & Stuart
Ellis could also have known Charles James Gunn and William Slade Stuart, nearer to his own age them both being in their late 20's. Gunn & Stuart were also later to receive a royal warrant. This is an alternative possibility for Ellis Kelsey's rapid assimilation of technical knowledge. Both men were individually credited with taking photographs of Kings, Queens and other royalty.
Gunn & Stuart provided a miniature painting service at their studio. I can't find any examples of this work and am intrigued to know what this meant. Was the resultant product an artists painting in its original meaning or was it an overpainted photograph or a tinted photograph or something else?
They also advertised that children's portraiture was their speciality.
They also took commissions for photographs to be used in book illustrations. On one occasion this meant travelling to Amsterdam to take photographs of the Royal Palaces (internal and external) which were later used for an article "The Queen of Holland and the Hague" by the well known author Mary Spencer-Warren which appeared in the January 1894 edition of the Strand Magazine (volume VII). According to the author this was the first time that the palaces had been photographed. Below I include examples of the 20 photographs used in the article:
and two more examples by Gun & Stuart from the Strand Magazine (same author) showing the inside of the British Embassy in Paris in 1893. There were a total of 18 photographs used in the article.
For more information about 'Gunn & Stuart' studio and business link to: http://www.antiquedogphotographs.co.uk/2012/12/
Gunn & Stuart also specialised in children's photographs and produced very fine images including those featured in the Harmsworth Magazine 'Gallery' (Vol. 1 pages 570 and 671) in 1898:-
Royal Photographic Society (RPS) Exhibits by Gunn & Stuart
1889 5 Baby (Platinum)
1889 46 Portrait of Gentleman (Platinum)
1889 404 Children
1889 547 Children
1889 624 Adult Portraits (Platinotype)
The 1911 edition included in the Section "LOAN COLLECTION OF PHOTOGRAPHS OF HIS MAJESTY KING EDWARD VII" :-
Taken and lent by W.S. Stuart [i.e. William Slade Stuart formerly of 'Gunn & Stuart"]
1911 55 King Edward as Colonel in Chief of the Grenadier Guards, July 1896
1911 71 King Edward as Colonel in Chief of the Grenadier Guards, July 1896
1911 76 King Edward, May 1909
1911 77 King Edward, November 1904
To see two of W.S. Stuart's 'royal' photographs link to: https://www.meisterdrucke.uk/artist/William-Slade-Stuart.html and The Royal Portrait Gallery (17 portraits at present): https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/person/mp86931/william-slade-stuart?search=sas&sText=william+slade+stuart
Francisco de Paula Cembrano Jr.
Another significant figure lived in Richmond (10 Cambridge Gardens) at the time Kelsey took up photography being an artist lately arrived from the Philippines. Francisco de Paula Cembrano Jr. took up photography in 1885 when he was 25 years old. He later became a judge for the Royal Photographic Society and was also a member of the circle of influential photographers known as the 'Linked Ring'. He and his wife would likely have been in the same social circle as the Kelsey's. He was best known for his images of architectural subjects but he also exhibited artistically composed scenes. Many were exhibited in the 1889 RPS exhibition. He became a member of the RPS and in 1895 a Fellow (F.R.P.S.).
He married Mary Kathleen Ligouri Hawksford (1876-1928) on the 12th of February 1896 in Richmond, Surrey.
After his death Mary returned to live in England (41 Upper Richmond Road. Putney) where she used her maiden name which she also used when travelling by ship between the Channel Islands (Jersey) and England during WW1. She died on the 12th of July 1928.
He was the first president (in 1890) of "The Richmond Amateur Photographic Society" and held this position when professional photographers were allowed to join in 1893 and it was renamed "The Richmond Camera Club". He held the position until 1912. He had by this time already retired due to ill health and moved to a villa in Cernobbio on Lake Como with his wife where he died aged 52 on the 2nd of April 1912.
 ' |
| "at evening time there shall be light" by F.P. Cembrano copyright: Brendon Franks |
I don't know the source of Cembrano's income but I feel that it must have been from family as he was not a well known artist and his work as a judge for the RPS and other societies and the possible sale of some of his photographs I would feel was insufficient for his living or hobby. Unfortunately I can not find a much about his life outside of photography.
'Cembrano' is a Spanish name but because the Philippines was a Spanish colony and in 1849 when any Filipino family without a surname were forced to take a Spanish surname from a list provided it is not possible to say if F.P. was of Spanish or Filipino origin. However at about the time he arrived in England (1870's) nationalist sentiment resulted in the deportation of Nationalists to Europe etc.
In the March of 1864 his father (same name) was the executor of a will and gave evidence to a Madrid Court proving his high level of education.
In an 1870 directory of merchants in Manila F.P. Cembrano Jr. is a clerk with Peele, Hubbell & Co., Merchants and he is also recorded as a foreign resident. So I assume that this is his father and that the family would have left Manila shortly afterwards.
This link is to an article about F.P. Cembrano in 'Historic Camera' :
http://historiccamera.com/cgi-bin/librarium2/pm.cgi?action=app_display&app=datasheet&app_id=2692
Here you will find, possibly, Cembrano's best known and award winning photograph i.e. "The Alhambra" Grenada, Spain c.1889 now held by the V&A and there it also includes a photograph of him with his wife.
 |
| "Durham Cathedral" by Francisco de Paula Cembrano Jr. Copyright: Brendon Franks |
 |
| Roman Bridge of Cordoba, Spain c.1889 by Francisco de Paula Cembrano Jr. Copyright: Brendon Franks |
Royal Photographic Society (RPS) Exhibits by F.P. Cembrano Jr.
1889 366 The Mosche, Cordova, Spain
1889 367 The Patio de les Doncellas
1889 368 Corner in the Alhambra, Granada
1889 369 The Hall of the Ambassadors, Royal Alcazar, Seville [image printed]
1889 370 Patio de les Munecas
1889 578 The Patio de los Doncellas (On the Screens)
1889 678 Lantern Transparencies MEDAL
1891 36 Twilight
1891 37 Dawn
1891 38 Rising Mist
1891 39 River Fog
1891 40 A Riverside Mist
1891 41 A Misty Morning
1891 47 A Sussex Farm
1891 49 Sunset - Winter MEDAL
1892 110 A Tidal River
1892 111 The Foot Bridge [Included in "Photographs of the Year " Book in 1892]
1892 112 The "Western Sky;" a fancy picture:-
"Till the western sky, the downward sun
Looks out, effulgent, from amid the flush
Of, broken clouds, gay shifting to his beam" Thompson's "Spring"
1892 113 An October Morning on the Thames
1893 126 The Old Lock (Platinum)
1893 167 A Moorland Mill (Carbon)
1893 168 Evening Glow (Gelatine-chloride)
1893 236 Rising Mist (Plain Salted, Silver)
1895 116 The Spanish Gipsy King
1895 117 A World of Smoke MEDAL
1895 118 Sunset on the Clyde
1895 119 Pensierosa
1895 120 Scotch Firs
1895 121 Low Tide
1896 83 A Rainy Winter Morning (4 guineas) (image printed plate XII) [12]
1896 135 At the Tavern (Photogravure) (1 guinea)
1897 Advert for Display by Optical Lantern By Mr. F.P Cembrano (Sat 23rd Oct)
1913 Slides by the late F.P. Cembrano Esq. F.R.P.S. "A Journey to the Alhambra"
on Tuesday 26th August being a Lantern Lecture given by James A. Sinclair
F.P. Cembrano Jr. was also a Judge for the RPS in the "Art" section in the following years: 1892, 1894, 1896 and 1897.
Sometimes RPS Journals included some of the most interesting images.
The following two Cembrano photographs i.e. "A Rainy Winter's Morning" (top) and below "Gallery in the Royal Alcazar, Seville" were considered suitable.
 |
| A Rainy Winter's Morning by F.P. Cembrano Jr. |
In 1888 Cembrano visited Branscombe in Devon and created some Lantern Slides as a result of his trip. The link provides some examples of his output in that year just 3 years after he took up the hobby of photography: https://magiclanternist.com/2017/06/26/magic-lantern-slides-of-branscombe/
In 1890 and 1891 he took sixty+ photographs in Sweden and Denmark where he records using Brooks' Collodion Emulsion. These vary in subject considerably and he used them later to produce a number of different lantern slide shows. His images are of local people working and gossiping on the quayside and in the markets including children, fishermen, flower sellers and tourists waiting for ferries also showing horses with various wagons and carriages. There is no indication that Cembrano has asked any of the subjects to pose for him. All scenes appear to be from life as he saw it and only one woman seems to be aware of his camera work.
Other images show buildings including a church, cathedral, university, palace, stock exchange, guildhall, museum, opera house, tower, library and castle. And of ships (rigged only or in sail), boats, steamboats, ferries, harbours, parks, lakes, waterfall, cityscapes, panoramas, rivers, canals, landscapes, fish and flower markets, a fountain and lots of statues. These are in Stockholm, Uppsala, Trollhattan and Copenhagen. To see the, as yet, unsold images for this trip type the word "cembrano" into the Ebay search box.
At the end of this section I have included an example of Cembrano's Lantern Slides created from glass negatives taken in Sweden in 1890 (original plus a cropped image).
Cembrano submitted photographs to exhibitions in the UK, Europe, America and elsewhere. and America. He won the British India Prize in 1892 which was awarded by the Photographic Society of India.
A report about The 1893 Edinburgh Photographic Society (EPS) Exhibition in the "Amateur Photographer" magazine said:- "Mr. F.P. Cembrano Jun. has sent four landscape studies, printed in platinum, on rough paper, which have landed first-class awards at exhibitions in London, New York, Amsterdam and Brussels."
In the Strand Magazine (Vol. 9 - 91, Feb. 1895) under the heading "Some Curiosities of Modern Photography. Part II. By William G. FitzGerald" an article discusses the use of photography in policing and as evidence in courts. Under point 29 the following example is given:- "The vagaries of the camera, too, are distinctly amusing. Mr. F. P. Cembrano, of the Royal Photographic Society, shows a photo. of a tiny burn, or brooklet, in Scotland on the banks of which is an equally small village. Yet up this little rill of water is steaming a colossal ironclad of the Royal Sovereign class, with all her mighty guns and fighting towers, and thousands of tons displacement. Another whimsical photo. depicted a castle in Edinburgh, out of the topmost windows of which a number of sheep were placidly gazing."
The British Journal of Photography Diary for 1898 records the following event;-
"Richmond Camera Club. — The winter session of 1898 was opened auspiciously on January 3 by a very successful exhibition of lantern slides by; members of the Club, Friends of members, ladies included, were present in good numbers, and an exceptionally good selection of slides was shown, comprising scenes from France, Spain, Switzerland, Italy, Norway, India, and Ceylon, besides various parts of the British Isles. Amongst the exhibitors were Messrs. Neville, Etherington, Hunter, Richardson, Gibson, Purcell, Ardaseer, Davis, Little, and Cembrano, though the last-named paid the penalty of occupying the place of honour at the close of the show, for scarcely had his slides been reached ere the oxygen gave out, much to the disappointment of the audience."
In the same year, the February of 1898, The Photographic Convention of Great Britain was held at Great Yarmouth under the presidency of F.P, Cembrano.
The Photogram Magazine for July 1898, under the heading "Convention Notes", includes the reproduction of one of Cembrano's photographs "ON THE CLYDE" (page 213):-
 |
| THE RIVER IN STOCKHOLM - Distant view of St. Katarina's Church Brooks Emulsion - 1890 - F.P. Cembrano Copyright: Brendon Franks |
 |
| Net Fishing on the River in Stockholm (crop) - 1890 by F.P. Cembrano Copyright: Brendon Franks |
Amateur versus Commercial Photographers (dry plate period)
Try this link which describes the differences between Amateur and Commercial photographers during the period 1839 thru 1914 i.e. "Who were the amateur photographers?" by Michael Pritchard:
Both Ellis Kelsey and F.P. Cembrano would have been considered "Gentlemen Amateurs" or serious hobbyists with independent means that did not rely on photography for their living. That is not to say that they did not receive some financial incentives for their photographs, lantern slide presentations, magazine articles, judging etc. These were unlikely to be material amounts.
William Byrne and Charles Gunn / William Stuart were Commercial photographers and as far as I am aware the profits from their studio businesses were very much their main source of income. This also did not preclude them from photography for the enjoyment of making artistic and creative images for exhibition in the hope of winning medals and trophies. Of course success at photography exhibitions could be used in business advertising to demonstrate their professional expertise. There are many examples of Byrne using his medals to this end. Note that the 1891 cabinet card photo of "Ginnie" (above) proclaims that he had medalled thirty three times at exhibitions.
Byrne, Gunn and Stuart would all have been at the top end of their profession and Kelsey and Cembrano were very much the exceptional committed and talented amateurs.
Information on how Victorian Studio Photographers operated, the differences between those in London and in the provinces, pricing, post production alterations and much much more can be found in the 2015 book "Victorians In Camera" by Robert Pols and published by Pen & Sword History.
The "Richmond Amateur Photographic Society", formed in 1890, admitted professionals in 1893 changing its name to "Richmond Camera Club". At the time there there was some disquiet when clubs allowed professionals / commercial photographers to join formerly amateur clubs. When it came to competition photography it could have been perceived that the professional would benefit from better equipment or even pre and post production help from employee/assistants.
The reality at Richmond Camera Club, and probably many others, was that the Amateur was generally speaking the more artistic and creative. The professionals would have benefitted from this. Cembrano remained the chairman and it is unlikely that too many professionals would have wanted to take on official club positions. The so-called Professionals who joined camera clubs effectively became 'Amateurs' and enjoyed the company of photographers on outdoor excursions, discussing new equipment and techniques and looking at subjects other than portraits and groups where the profit motive did not exist. The shared ambition instead became that one "special" photograph!
Roger Fenton's photographs in the Crimea show that as early as 1856 and in the most difficult of conditions what could be achieved without a studio. He used a covered carriage as a darkroom and would also have prepared plates prior to exposure.
The pioneering professional photographer B.J. Edwards (The Grove, Hackney) was able to produce images of the upper classes at their leisure in their own gardens. The following example (the Crook family at Warwick House, Stamford Hill) contains 17 individuals including their servants plus a goat. Only one person is blurred due to movement during exposure. The date was circa 1875. I'm sure that it must have been taken during the middle of a bright summer's day but still quite an achievement. There were five other photographs taken of the gardens at the same session. Edwards also produced the usual studio portraits at his business premises in Hackney.
 |
| The Crook Family, Warwick House, Stamford Hill c.1875 (Copyright: Seaford Museum) Photographer: B.J. Edwards The Grove, Hackney |
Studio photographers from all over Europe and the world produced varying quality photographs. It is shame that the date or the subject's name are generally not included. We are sometimes lucky to find some information on the back if sent to a friend or relative. CDV and Cabinet Cards have often been taken out of albums and sold separately thus losing the context and the ability to compare family likenesses. The Studio name is quite often the only remaining information.
I have provided some more examples of ones that have particular merit:
CABINET CARD
 |
| From Roubaix Album - no subject or photographer details |
CABINET CARD
 |
| From Roubaix Album |
CDV with message "To my dear Cousin Anna from Elisabeth with much love"
Below the CDV includes the date i.e. 1884 and a message:- To my dear cousins Memory of affection"
"Cesar De Pespaul son"
CDV
The sender has included his name and a message:- "I finally allow myself to send you my smile and my best memory"
"Raymond Fris"
Above:- My Great Aunt Mabel. Cook to Bowes-Lyons in Scotland.
Please see my blog ‘Charlie Bailey’s War’ which tells of a Welsh miner of West Indian origin plus some of his colleagues during WW1. The link is: https://greatwartales.home.blog/
And Finally some Studio Photographs from the box under the bed. I am not able to identify the majority of individuals portrayed in these or when they were taken. I would imagine that this is the case for many family 'collections'. Why didn't we ask earlier when there was still someone around who would have known and then written the information on the backs (in pencil).
 |
| Elizabeth Franks - Nee Griffin (Ran General Store, Hooley, Surrey) - My GGM |
 |
| George Franks (Wheelwright - Hooley, Surrey) - My GGF |
 |
| Hannah Waller - My GGM |
Other blogs published on behalf of Seaford Museum and Heritage Society:
You may also like to see my blog which records Mrs Lambe’s recipes and remedies from 1790 to the 1920’s. It contains over 200 recipes and remedies including ones for “Oppression of Heart” and “to make an old maid young”! Link: Mrs Lambe’s Recipes and Remedies
Or my blog on the subject of Sussex Ornithology mainly in Seaford by the Vicar of East Blatchington covering the period of 1846 to 1869. Link to: https://sussexbirds.blogspot.com/
Also a record of two trips made by road from London to Seaford in 1877 Link: https://crooksofseaford.blogspot.com/
Also to: https://blatchingtonbarracks.blogspot.com/ which includes the story of the 1795 riots and executions and also the forming of the Rifle Brigade.
See also: https://seafordcliffswreck.blogspot.com/ for an investigation into two 1860’s stereoscopic photographs of a shipwreck near to Seaford Head.
