From P.A.Johnston In India
Author
P.A.Johnston
AssociatedAssociated with
George Washington Wilson
(Alvah, Banffshire, Scotland, 1823 - 1893)
DateApril 1881
Object NameLetter
Mediumpaper
ClassificationsPhotography
DimensionsOverall: Height: 25.3 cm, Width: 20.3 cm
AcquisitionPurchased in 1987 with assistance from the National Fund for Acquisitions, the National Art Collections Fund, the National Heritage Memorial Fund and with income from the Ramsay-Dyce Bequest.
CopyrightOut of copyright - CC0
LocationView by Appointment - Aberdeen Treasure Hub
Object numberABDMS022995
Keywords
Half way through the letter Johnston asks Wilson what camera and lens he used in his Aberdeen photographs. Johnston also asks for advice on taking outdoor photographs. Wilson has been identified by historians as a pioneer in his methods of landscape photography, especially for his composition. He was able to capture the actual scale and character of mountains, which was a technical difficulty in photography as mountains often appeared flat and featureless in photographs. This letter indicates the respect that other photographers had for Wilson and his approach to photography.
Johnston is writing from Bombay where he has gone specifically to take photographs of the views, therefore it provides a little insight into the activities of photographers in the latter part of the nineteenth century and the demand they had from their customers.
George Washington Wilson
c. 1870
