Seizing the Light: Photography History, Techniques, and Movements (Chapters 1–8)

Which process produced a single, non-reproducible, mirror-like image on a silver-coated copper plate?

Daguerreotype

What was significant about William Henry Fox Talbot's calotype?

It used a negative that could produce unlimited positive prints.

What did the wet collodion process combine?

The calotype's reproducibility with the daguerreotype's sharpness.

How is an ambrotype best described?

An underexposed glass collodion negative that reads as a positive against a dark backing.

What is the carte de visite most associated with?

A public collecting craze for small card-mounted portraits.

What was a major advance of the gelatin dry-plate process?

Plates could be manufactured in advance and developed later, eliminating the portable darkroom.

What is significant about George Eastman's 1888 Kodak camera?

It brought hand-held, mass-market 'snapshot' photography to the general public.

Who discovered hypo (sodium thiosulfate) as a photographic fixer?

Sir John Herschel

How does the stereograph create its three-dimensional illusion?

By pairing two nearly identical images viewed one per eye through a stereoscope.

What is significant about James Clerk Maxwell's 1861 demonstration?

It was the first projected color photograph, proving the additive color principle.

What is Oscar Gustave Rejlander's The Two Ways of Life an example of?

Combination printing in service of Pictorialism.

What is Julia Margaret Cameron best known for?

Soft-focus, expressive portraits of eminent Victorians and allegorical/literary studies.

Why are Roger Fenton's Crimean War photographs notable?

Slow exposures meant he documented camps, portraits, and aftermath rather than action.

What is Alexander Gardner's Home of a Rebel Sharpshooter frequently cited in discussions of?

Staged/manipulated documentary images.

What are Timothy O'Sullivan and Carleton Watkins most associated with?

Government/railroad survey and landscape photography of the American West.

How did William Henry Jackson's photographs of the Yellowstone region help?

They persuaded Congress to establish Yellowstone as the first U.S. national park.

How did Nadar expand photography's reach?

By photographing celebrities and pioneering photography underground/by artificial light.

What was Eadweard Muybridge's Animal Locomotion studies originally commissioned to settle?

Whether a galloping horse ever has all four hooves off the ground at once.

What do the Missions Héliographiques refer to?

A French government commission to photograph historic monuments for preservation records.

How did photographs reach the public during the Civil War era?

Through engravings copied from photographs, plus sold cartes de visite and stereo cards.

What was the key limitation solved by the calotype compared to the daguerreotype?

The calotype allowed for multiple prints from a single negative.

What was a key limitation solved by wet collodion compared to the calotype?

Wet collodion provided sharper images and shorter exposure times.

What limitation did gelatin dry plates solve compared to wet collodion?

Gelatin dry plates eliminated the need for immediate processing.

What was the advantage of roll film over gelatin dry plates?

Roll film allowed for easier handling and longer exposures.

Why were the carte de visite and stereograph significant socially?

They democratized photography, making it accessible to ordinary people.

What was James Clerk Maxwell's contribution to color photography?

He demonstrated that combining red, green, and blue-filtered images could recreate full color.

How did combination printing in photography argue for its status as fine art?

It allowed for artistic composition and manipulation, elevating photography beyond mere documentation.

What was Julia Margaret Cameron's approach to portrait photography?

She used a soft-focus technique to create a more emotive and artistic effect.

How did the technical limits of wet-plate photography affect Roger Fenton's Crimean War photographs?

It restricted the ability to capture spontaneous moments, leading to staged compositions.

How did images of the Civil War reach the public despite printing limitations?

They were reproduced as engravings or lithographs in newspapers.

What was the role of survey photographers like William Henry Jackson in the conservation movement?

They documented the American West, helping to promote the establishment of national parks.

How can the idea of neutrality in photography be complicated?

Photographers' choices in staging and framing can influence the perceived reality of the subjects.

What is a daguerreotype?

A unique metal positive photograph introduced in 1839.

What is a calotype?

A paper negative process introduced in 1840/41 that enables multiple prints.

What is wet collodion?

A glass negative process introduced in 1851 that produces sharp and reproducible images.

What is gelatin dry plate?

A factory-prepared photographic plate introduced in 1871 that does not require a portable darkroom.

What is roll film?

A photographic film introduced in 1888 that eliminated the need for plates.

What were CDVs?

Cartes de visite that made photographs affordable and collectible, fueling celebrity culture.

What are stereographs?

Photographs that became mass home entertainment and an early way to 'see the world' without traveling.

What did Maxwell's color photography demonstrate?

That all visible colors could be built from three primary colors using red, green, and blue filters.

How did some photographers argue for their artistic role?

By combining multiple negatives into one print to compose an idea rather than just record a fact.

What was Cameron's approach to portrait photography?

She used soft focus to create a dreamy, painterly quality, aligning portraits with literary subjects.

How did Fenton's war photography differ from Gardner's?

Fenton avoided graphic images, while Gardner photographed the dead and staged scenes.

How did the public primarily see war photography?

Through engravings copied from photographs in illustrated papers and cartes de visite.

What role did Jackson's and Watkins's images play in national parks?

Their images helped lobby for the protection of Yellowstone as the first national park in 1872.

Who took the first photograph?

Joseph Nicéphore Niépce, View from the Window at Le Gras, c. 1826.

Who photographed Trafalgar Square in 1843?

William Henry Fox Talbot.

Who created the self-portrait as a drowned man?

Hippolyte Bayard in 1840.

Who is known for the photograph of Ralph Waldo Emerson?

Southworth & Hawes, 1857.

What is the significance of the photograph by Mathew Brady in 1860?

It is a famous portrait of Abraham Lincoln.

What is the title of the photograph by Nadar featuring Sarah Bernhardt?

Sarah Bernhardt, c. 1865.

What is 'The Valley of the Shadow of Death'?

A photograph by Roger Fenton taken in 1855.

What is 'Home of a Rebel Sharpshooter'?

A photograph by Alexander Gardner taken at Gettysburg in 1863.

What is 'The Two Ways of Life'?

A photograph by Oscar Gustave Rejlander taken in 1857.

What is 'Fading Away'?

A photograph by Henry Peach Robinson taken in 1858.

Who captured 'Meeting of the Rails'?

Andrew J. Russell in 1869.

What is 'The Horse in Motion'?

A series of photographs by Eadweard Muybridge taken in 1878.