1870s Gallery

A gallery of portraits taken during the 1870s by Leeds and Bradford photographers. To determine the date of each photo the address has been used which is printed on the back or front of the photograph and compared with the database of studio addresses which itself has been compiled from local directory information and newspaper articles/advertising.

I make no excuse for including many of the Albert Sachs permanent chromotype portraits which were produced during the late 1870s and early 1880s.  They have not only shown themselves to be truly permanent but they are excellent examples of portraiture. You will notice that compared with the 1860s three quarter length and head and shoulders portraits are much more popular now than full length portraits. Fashions have changed of course since the 1860s but this didn't happen overnight and some 1870s portraits are still reminiscent of earlier times.

A new method of production had emerged during this decade and this is the raised cameo portrait. The last three examples on this page are of this type. Besides Hanson and Smith, Albert Sachs also uses this technique.

The most striking images are those in profile and from the Albert Sachs examples shown here you just get the feeling that he was experimenting with different sitting positions in order to bring out the best in his sitters, not something that is too evident in the examples from the other studios.

The 1870s saw a move away from using the painted backdrop and this might have been just a sign of the times or the fact that more close ups were being taken where a painted backdrop would become  less relevant.