The little work now presented to the Public is the first attempt to publish a series of plates or pictures wholly executed by the new art of Photogenic Drawing, without any aid whatever from the artist's pencil. The term "Photography" is now so well known, that an explanation of it is perhaps superfluous; yet, as some persons may still be unacquainted with the art, even by name, its discovery being still of very recent date, a few words may be looked for of general explanation. It may suffice, then, to say, that the plates of this work have been obtained by the mere action of Light upon sensitive paper. They have been formed or depicted by optical and chemical means alone, and without the aid of any one acquainted with the art of drawing. It is needless, therefore, to say that they differ in all respects, and as widely us possible, in their origin, from plates of the ordinary kind, which owe their existence to the united skill of the Artist and the Engraver. They are impressed by Nature's hand; and what they want as yet of delicacy and finish of execution arises chiefly from our want of sufficient knowledge of her laws. When we have learnt more, by experience, respecting the formation of such pictures, they will doubtless be brought much nearer to perfection; and though we may not be able to conjecture with any certainty what rank they may hereafter attain to as pictorial productions, they will surely find their own sphere of utility, both for completeness of detail and correctness of perspective.

Differentiated book- It has a historical context with research of the time-The Pencil of Nature by William Henry Fox Talbot.Talbot's 'picture book' is a manifesto for photography, a controversy, an advertisement, a commitment to posterity, a chronicle of the past and a vision of the future. The Pencil of Nature, published between June 1844 and April 1846, was the first commercially published book to be illustrated with photographs. As such, it is a milestone not only in the history of photography but in the way we view our world. Its importance to the history of photography has been compared in print. In fact, until recently, surviving full copies were thought to be rarer. Fortunately, that has not been shown to be the case. However, although the exact number of copies produced is not known with certainty, surviving records indicate that the potential number of complete examples is probably less than 50, three of which are now in our collection. Nature's pencil is more than just a "picture book". It is a manifesto for photography, a controversy, an advertisement, a commitment to posterity, a chronicle of the past and a vision of the future. Above all, it is a testament to the creativity, imagination, and vision of a remarkable man: its author and illustrator, William Henry Fox Talbot, the "father of photography."

The Pencil of Nature, published in six installments between 1844 and 1846, was the "first photographically illustrated book to be commercially published" or "the first commercially published book illustrated with photographs". It was wholly executed by the new art of Photogenic Drawing, without any aid whatever from the artist's pencil and regarded as an important and influential work in the history of photography.Written by William Henry Fox Talbot and published by Longman, Brown, Green & Longmans in London, the book detailed Talbot's development of the calotype process and included 24 calotype prints, each one pasted in by hand, illustrating some of the possible applications of the new technology. Since photography was still very much a novelty and many people remained unfamiliar with the concept, Talbot felt compelled to insert the following notice into his book:

The Pencil of Nature, a classical book, has been considered important throughout the human history, and so that this work is never forgotten we at Alpha Editions have made efforts in its preservation by republishing this book in a modern format for present and future generations. This whole book has been reformatted, retyped and designed. These books are not made of scanned copies of their original work and hence the text is clear and readable.