Most Victorian and Edwardian photographs were taken in professional photographic studios, our ancestors posing in carefully contrived surroundings. Painted scenery, selected furniture and various ‘props’ created an attractive setting, also providing physical support for the subject and sometimes demonstrating their stage of life, personal interests or occupation. Artistic backcloths and additional accessories followed prevailing fashions and expressed shifting photographic conventions, becoming important picture clues that now help us to date and understand our old family photographs.
Admiring the view