What do you really know about the old photographs you have of your ancestors? Do you have names and dates to go with each? How sure are you of the information you do have? There are ways to examine photographs which can help place the date of a photo within a couple of years. Pictures can also tell stories about your ancestors and the lives they led. The best part is, you can learn to determine the approximate year of photographs and learn to read the stories within them for yourself.
More Dating Old Photographs 1840–1929 offers a unique approaches to helping you date your old photographs. Most of this book is pages of sample photographs, with dates. You can compare your photographs to those in the book and determine if your pictures look like the same time period. Pictures are grouped chronologically and grouped into four year time periods. Of course, the book doesn’t just throw pictures at you and expect you to date your own without some point of reference. A twelve page introduction by Maureen Talyor helps you get started.
Maureen Taylor is the author of Fashionable Folks: Hairstyles 1840–1900, The Last Muster: Images of the Revolutionary War Generation, Uncovering Your Ancestry Through Family Photographs, and Preserving Your Family Photographs: How to Care for Your Family Photographs from Daguerreotypes to Digital Imaging. Taylor, a recognized expert in historical photography, compacts years of experience into a concise introduction geared to help the reader recognize key indicators to identifying a photographs age. Here is a list of topics covered in her introduction:
Photographic Methods
- Metal Images
- Daguerreotypes
- Tintypes
- Glass Images
- Ambrotypes
- Paper Images
- Calotypes/Talbotypes
- Salt-Paper Prints
- Cartes-de-Visite (Visiting Cards)
- Cabinet Cards
- Cyanotypes
- Stereographs
- Photographic Jewelry
- Other Formats
- Maniputlated Images
- Retouching
- Handcoloring
- Crayon Portraits
- Photo Editing
- A Word of Caution—Watch Out for Copies!
Noticing the Details
Photographer’s Imprint
Clothing
- Women
- Bodices
- Sleeves
- Accessories
- Hats and Bonnets
- Hair
- Men
- Coats
- Ties
- Vests
- Hair
- Children
- Other Clothing Clues:
- Occupational
- Ethnic Dress
- Special Occasions
Oddities in the Collection
Case Study: Tying the Pieces Together
- Placement of Individuals
- Photographic Evidence
- Clothing
- Manipulations
Caring for Your Photographic Collection
- Safe Handling Techniques
- Labels
- Writing Utensils
- Space Considerations
- Preserving Your Collection for the Future
Using This Publication
With the introduction as a guide and hundreds of sample photographs for comparison, you will be quickly on your way to identifying and verifying your entire collection.
Order More Dating Old Photographs 1840–1929 from Family Root Publishing; Item #: FR0116, Price: $15.63.