The dawning of an age Chauncy Hare Townshend, eyewitness -- The daguerreotype : a new wonder -- The calotype era -- The circle of William Henry Fox Talbot -- Picturesque Britain and the industrial age -- Roger Fenton and the making of a photographic establishment -- The grand tour -- High art photography : in search of an ideal -- Exploring the empire -- Aristocratic amateurs -- Julia Margaret Cameron : Christian pictorialist -- Street life -- The art of photography : fulfilling the vision -- Peter Henry Emerson : art and solitude -- James Craig Annan : brave days in Glasgow -- Paul Martin and the modern era.

Introduced to the British public in 1839 by its inventor, William Henry Fox Talbot, photography quickly took its place-alongside explorations of new territories, discoveries in science, and expanding horizons in the arts-as an authentic wonder in an age of wonders. The Golden Age of British Photography presents photographs that represent the era, drawn from the extensive collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum and from other major museums and archives. The medium's early history unfolds in 199 images, from one of photography's first successes, Talbot's enchanting view of his breakfast table, to Paul Martin's turn-of-the-century beach scenes, the precursors of today's snapshots. Uninhibited by notions of what the new invention should be, early photographers depicted exotic faraway lands and the disappearing rural landscape, British cathedrals and London slums, the public and private faces of the time, and the newsworthy events that brought the times into view. These images, rarely seen and never before shown together, present photography at its most miraculous, its purest, and its most daring.

The Encyclopedia of Nineteenth-Century Photography is the first comprehensive encyclopedia of world photography up to the beginning of the twentieth century. It sets out to be the standard, definitive reference work on the subject for years to come. Its coverage is global – an important ‘first’ in that authorities from all over the world have contributed their expertise and scholarship towards making this a truly comprehensive publication. The Encyclopedia presents new and ground-breaking research alongside accounts of the major established figures in the nineteenth century arena. Coverage includes all the key people, processes, equipment, movements, styles, debates and groupings which helped photography develop from being ‘a solution in search of a problem’ when first invented, to the essential communication tool, creative medium, and recorder of everyday life which it had become by the dawn of the twentieth century. The sheer breadth of coverage in the 1200 essays makes the Encyclopedia of Nineteenth-Century Photography an essential reference source for academics, students, researchers and libraries worldwide.

In this rich and fascinating work, Clarke gives a clear and incisive account of the photograph's historical development, elucidating the insights of the most engaging thinkers on the subject, including Roland Barthes and Susan Sontag. "The Photograph" offers a series of discussions of major themes and genres, providing an up-to-date introduction to the history of photography. 130 illustrations, 16 in color.

The Photographic Experience deals with episodes and issues relating to the spread and practice of photography from its beginnings to World War I. Bridget and Heinz Henisch concern themselves with the reception accorded to the new art by professionals, amateurs, and the general public. They examine reactions to the new invention in the press, literature, poetry, music, and fashion; the response of intellectuals and painters; and the beliefs held by prominent photographers concerning the nature of the medium and its mission. With a wide array of images - many never before published - they illustrate the photograph's use as a record of public and private moments in life.