One of Bradford’s most popular studios belonged to Albert Sachs. He had worked for James Hertz until Hertz was killed in a fall from a moving train at Leeds station. Soon afterwards, in 1873, Albert opened his own studio in Westgate and later established this one on Manningham Lane. It was a rooftop ‘daylight studio’, and Albert did not begin using electric light until the early 1880s. He built up a strong clientele and benefited from being only a few doors from the Theatre Royal. After his death in unusual circumstances in 1886, the business was continued by his brother Oscar until 1920.  Albert’s involvement with the West Riding of Yorkshire Photographic Society helped him connect with other local professional photographers, enabling them to exchange ideas and share best practice. Photo c.1910 courtesy of Phil Willis.

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Appleton & Co.

Richard James Appleton was an ambitious entrepreneur who was on the cutting edge of the rapid changes that took place during the 1890s. His father Thomas William Appleton had started his photographic studio business in Bradford in the 1850s but by 1892 it was time for him to retire and to let Richard, his eldest son, take over. Richard soon engaged with the increasing number of amateur photographers, he took over Percy Lund’s photographic business, he also branched out into Leeds and Halifax. He was one of the first photographers in the UK to offer X-Rays in his studio, just a few months after they were discovered by Rhontgen. He designed and built his own camera projector to capture ‘living pictures’. In June 1897 he filmed Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations in London, developed the film on the train on the way back from London, and showed it to tens of thousands of  people in Bradford, on the very same day that the film was taken. This was a remarkable achievement at the time and something nobody else had ever done before.

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The annual Photographic Convention was held in Leeds in 1896, bringing together professional and amateur photographers from across the UK. Donald MacIver was tasked with taking the group photograph, and, as might be expected, some of the photographers had opinions about his work. According to the British Photographic Journal, “the light was dull, the wind was blowing hard, the focusing cloths swirled and waved, one or two members thought they knew better than the photographer where they should stand and when the first exposure was made, somebody loudly and confidently expressed the opinion that it was underdone. Then one of the cameras appeared to be not quite level, and somebody else obligingly informed the photographer of the fact.” Mr Sellman of Huddersfield, who was assisting MacIver, replied simply, ‘Would you like to come out and look for yourself?’ Not wanting to leave the group, the interrupter said no more.

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One of the more elaborate card designs used by Charles Henry Braithwaite of Albion Street, Leeds. Charles had been working as a master butcher in Leeds but found photography more to his liking. 

He started by working for John/Joseph Baume as a canvasser but then set up in partnership with Joseph Navey. Baume had previously worked with Oliver Sarony one of the most celebrated photographers of the Victorian era.. 

Charles or C. H. Braithwaite as he was known established good connections and was fortunate to be able to take portraits of some of the most influential people in Leeds, local Industrialists, Mayors, MPs such as Herbert Gladstone and Prime Minister William Ewart Gladstone (shown here). He also managed to acquire a portrait of Bill Cody when he put on the Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show at Cardigan Fields, Leeds in June 1891. Cody brought his Red Indians, Mexicans, Buck Riders, Cowboys, Riflemen, Horses and 18 Buffalos with him and advertised that he was going to put on the show come rain or shine. One of the copies of the portrait was sold at auction in 2009.

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Here is a rare example of where two different photographic printing processes were used to produce prints from the same negative. Both prints are in excess of 120 years old and have survived remarkably well but the Permanent Chromotype has deteriorated very little since the day it was produced. Albert Sachs used a number of different printing processes over the years perhaps always searching for a solution that he and his customers would be happy with but would also keep him one step ahead of the competition. If the process was patented photographers would have to pay a licence fee and sometimes this would give them exclusivity within a certain geographical area, as was the case with the Permanent Chromotype. The sitter here is Rev Thomas Galland Horton, pastor of Salem Chapel from 1876 though to 1888 when he moved to Portishead, near Bristol.