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geogphotos

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12 minutes ago, KevinS said:

Interesting project! Looks like you're almost there with the technique. Slight refection showing on NaplesMarino, upper right. Having done lots of this type of work with window light, I know you will soon see these reflections instantly. I think Wim means to simply rotate the original and try again as the reflection may not show on a lighter part of the original. 

 

That makes sense, thanks for both the clarification and the encouragement. 

 

I'm pleased to have made a start even though I will need to do all these again ( and probably again and again).

 

I did notice softness in the corners including the Marino one - now I will know to look for reflections.

 

Thank you.

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1 hour ago, geogphotos said:

 

This is 1284 x 960 

 

My confusion over 100% might because on My newish Mac it doesn't give me 100%! Don't ask me....

 

I still see only 500 in width for all your pics, maybe is only me or is photoshelter reducing to 500px?

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7 hours ago, geogphotos said:

I've put some of my first efforts with various experiments here.

 

https://geographyphotos.photoshelter.com/gallery/Vintage1890s/G0000JTLfmWCaC_k/

 

The last one is certainly 'off' but that's it for today. The rain has arrived and I've had enough.

 

 

 

They're fascinating images. Hopefully well worth digitising....

 

Mark

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8 hours ago, geogphotos said:

 

 

Thanks Wim especially for identifying the reflections - I didn't even notice. 

 

My apologies but I don't understand what you mean by putting the picture upside down. So with the plastic you put that where the print is going to be positioned to check for reflections - is that correct?

 

Just experimenting today. They are great images so I want to do them justice.

 

Because the reflections are probably just from warped parts of the image, if you put the whole thing upside down the reflections are either somewhere else or gone, if you're lucky. It's also a quick test to see if it's the object or the place of the light source that's the problem.

I use the shiny sheet in the exact plane as the original, but if the artwork is uneven, I may angle it around somewhat like the planes in the object. Nowadays it's easy to do on your own: I have a tablet (connected to my Sony) in my hand while walking around. With the Canons it was back and forth all the time or enlisting somebody as an assistant. For smaller tabletop stuff, I had a tethered laptop though.

Then again I tend to solve everything just with exposure bracketing and some pp now: The Sony's are so much more forgiving than the Canons were.

 

wim

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9 hours ago, geogphotos said:

I've put some of my first efforts with various experiments here.

 

https://geographyphotos.photoshelter.com/gallery/Vintage1890s/G0000JTLfmWCaC_k/

 

The last one is certainly 'off' but that's it for today. The rain has arrived and I've had enough.

 

 

oh, nearly missed this post, these are really great images that you have there and good work digitizing them.

 

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35 minutes ago, Harry Harrison said:

Have you done any research on who actually took them, or did that information come with them? They are clearly by a very good photographer from that period.

 

Not as yet. But I agree these are not from some random amateur. 

 

All in good time.

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35 minutes ago, Harry Harrison said:

Here's somewhere to start:

 

https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q63184557

 

MoMA, look after those originals!

 

Google Reverse Image Search

 

 

Not sure what to make of that! Public domain.....🙁

 

What does MoMA mean? Okay - Museum of Modern Art

Edited by geogphotos
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1 hour ago, Harry Harrison said:

Yes, high quality, large format originals I suspect, certainly camera movements for the verticals, though that was the norm then I imagine. Not easy to get 'candid' pictures of street kids with that kind of setup.

 

It appears that they are quite famous - not sure what to make of all this.

 

Good news or bad news? How did they end up in auction? Where did they come from?

 

My stomach has gone all funny🙃

 

Found my urchins on a famous stock site. Not saying anymore for the while.......

Edited by geogphotos
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22 minutes ago, Harry Harrison said:

I'd say that it was good news to have original contemporary silver gelatin prints of 'quite famous' photographs, but good luck with your research.

 

Or copies that are two a penny.....at least I have them to photograph and be with!

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2 hours ago, Harry Harrison said:

I'd say that it was good news to have original contemporary silver gelatin prints of 'quite famous' photographs, but good luck with your research.

 

Might be worth re-auctioning them? With a correct description maybe they would be worth more than on (a/another) stock site? 🙂

 

Mark

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27 minutes ago, M.Chapman said:

Might be worth re-auctioning them?

They were probably taken by an Italian version of Francis Frith and  I've seen an early colourised version of the street urchins for sale as a postcard, but these are very large high quality original prints as far as we can tell from here so properly handled and researched they could, as you suggest, be worth selling individually, and we've only seen a few of them.

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On 10/12/2019 at 12:17, geogphotos said:

 

Thanks for looking Alan. The photos are firmly fixed down onto the card, they couldn't be removed. The card is very stiff and inflexible. The one album  I showed above is worse than the other two. I'll just take it one step at a time. 

 

I will show the albums to somebody in the art supplies/framing shop and see what they think. See what they say about the materials used in the bindings and how old they would be. Ask about reflective glass etc. I am reluctant to break up the albums but if it turns out that they aren't particularly old ( as I suspect), or at least much less old than the photos, then I will feel easier about separating each page. Possibly then I could apply weights or use a press. I'm sure that some artist friends could offer some help. But that is all way down the line.

 

That video Wim linked to is brilliant even though I have only been the first ten minutes. I recommend it thoroughly to anybody doing any in-camera copying of prints, negs, slides.

 

It is reassuring that all this knowledge is there to tap into, and exciting to be starting off in a what is for me a new area of photography ( only done scanning previously).

 

If the glass idea works I would put a board under the page and the glass on top, that should help to flatten the page.

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3 hours ago, Harry Harrison said:

 

 

They were probably taken by an Italian version of Francis Frith and  I've seen an early colourised version of the street urchins for sale as a postcard, but these are very large high quality original prints as far as we can tell from here so properly handled and researched they could, as you suggest, be worth selling individually, and we've only seen a few of them.

 

I wonder if rich tourists bought such prints as they went around Europe on their 'grand tour' so that they could create an album of their travels without having a camera. I'll have to see how far this photographer travelled and if that included other countries.

 

I will have to do the reverse image search on other images when I get the chance.

 

Can't think that I'll be considering auctioning them any time soon!

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32 minutes ago, geogphotos said:

I wonder if rich tourists bought such prints as they went around Europe

Yes, I would say that is quite likely, and this would not have been cheap though cheaper smaller versions might have been available. I've seen the name Giorgio Sommer come up but I've not linked it to any of your images. If even MoMA don't know the photographer it might not be easy to discover.

 

This by Giorgio Sommer for example, seems he died in Naples and had a successful photographic business:

 

http://www.getty.edu/art/collection/objects/42165/giorgio-sommer-street-scene-with-produce-vendor-italian-about-1870-1890/

Edited by Harry Harrison
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The most productive in Italy were the Alinari brothers. The business still exists and is still owned by the family. When there was a huge retrospective of their work in Florence in 1977, I went into this smallish camera store to buy some film, and noticed their name on the door. Got talking, and yes it was still the same family. From then on it has bounced back quite a bit and is now proudly the oldest photographic firm. (wiki) (site)

 

wim

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Yes some of 'my' Naples prints, and possibly others are by the Alinari family - I see them described as the oldest stock photography agency in the world ( which is obvious given what Wim says above)! I think that they have been in some financial trouble in recent years -  nothing unusual there!

 

In my albums there are also some smaller snapshot pictures, some very out of focus and amateurish, so it does look as though the album creators were wealthy tourists doing their trip c 1900 around Europe and buying photographic ready-made prints to record their experiences and show the folks back home plus taking a few of their own pictures too. There also may be one or two where they have paid to have a photograph taken at a famous site. 

 

It does seem, much like today, that there was a set route that people followed and certain 'me too' places and views of and from specific viewpoints that people wanted photographs of. In searching Google I have come across images which at first glance look identical only to see that there are slight differences - but from almost exactly the same viewpoint.

 

As a geographer I am interested in the places, the route, and the way that they wanted to experience and celebrate the sense of place ( sorry if that sounds pompous but there we are!). ie) Naples was of interest for its street life and authenticity, other places for architecture - so when you went to Naples that's what you want pictures of, that's the experience you would be expected to bring home and show to others ( even if you had actually stayed in the hotel?).

Edited by geogphotos
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