The End of several eras

[tommiejeep]

http://www.dpreview.com/news/8668353651/after-176-years-bourne-shepard-kolkata-photography-studio-closes-its-doors?utm_campaign=internal-link&utm_source=mainmenu&utm_medium=text&ref=mainmenu
I picked this up from the Indian news a couple of days ago.
I've not been to Kolkata (Calcutta) since 1971 (a war going on) and never made it to the establishment.  I know there is at least one member from Kolkata and one that grew up in Calcutta.  Over the years I have viewed many images from the Studio photographers , often for inspiration    Very sad 

It is very hard to take images these days without the 20th/21st centuries showing their presence  .  Even when I shoot documentary type images of old fashioned, disappearing activities , things such as t-shirts, baseball caps and mobile phones are in evidence.
A few attempts:  Camels shot from a moving , crowded Jeep.
Older image

New images

[Jakov Minić]

Tom, the last portrait is great.
The second to last would have been great if it weren't for the gentleman in the background

[Anirban Halder]

That is end of an era indeed. Here's the history of the studio Tom is talking about:

"One of the most famous of the early European commercial photographer-cum-adventurers, and the most prolific photographer of the picturesque, Samuel Bourne arrived in India in 1863. A former clerk in a Nottingham bank, Bourne abandoned his position in favour of a photographic career in India that seemed to combine beautiful landscapes with an expanding commercial potential. Undertaking several expeditions in the seven years he spent here, including some extremely perilous journeys, Bourne photographed the expanse of Imperial India: from the Himalayas down to Ceylon (present day Sri Lanka).

Initially partnering with William Howard, Bourne set up the Howard & Bourne studio in Shimla. They were joined by Charles Shepherd, and with the leaving of William Howard, the studio dropped his name to become Bourne & Shepherd. In 1866, in alignment with a growing culture of studio-photography, the Bourne & Shepherd establishment set up a branch in Calcutta, where it soon became one of the most prestigious studios of its time — patronised heavily by royalty, nobility, Europeans, Indians and a mushrooming upper middle class; and where it still trades, as one of the oldest studios in the world, to this day.

While Shepherd became more known as a master printer, staying back to head the business and commercial side of operations and handle the bulk of portraiture at the studio; Bourne assumed  the position of the travelling photographer, immortalising the Indian scenery, architecture and people through the length and breadth of the country. Drawn from the MAP (Museum of Art & Photography, Bangalore) collection, this exhibit showcases their wide range of expression through its selection of landscapes, topographical views and portraits produced by Samuel Bourne, Charles Shepherd and others of the Bourne & Shepherd studio."

Taken from www.tasveerarts.com/photographers/bourne-shepherd/biography/

[elsa hoffmann]

Beautifully executed images Tommie

[Joost Bollens]

Very nice indeed, if you told me they were taken 60 years ago, I would believe you

[tommiejeep]

Thanks to all for viewing and commentating 
Jakov, I actually pulled the guy inside the hut from the darkness.  The man posing is a local Opium Trader and the man inside was not happy with my presence.  Just for context. Opium is still widely consumed in Rajasthan.

Anirban, thanks. Travelling parts of the Himalayas can be troublesome even now  .  Roads, weather being the most often culprits along with other happenings.  My first times in the early 70's were worse than my last trip to Ladakh a couple of years ago, but three rock slides between Srinagar and Leh does slow one down(about 7 hours). One negative these days is the ever increasing number of private vehicles.  Driving around Chalsa, Siliguri, Darjeeling etc, in 1995 , one saw only truckers and Indian Army with the very odd private vehicle.

 I do not even travel with the D700 and the f2.8 zooms any longer so the gear Bourne had to travel with boggles the mind.  Of course the arranging many bearers was not a problem.  I need to study the post- 1857 period more.   Photographs from the Studio are in quite a few Museums around the world.  I first became aware of Samuel Bourne from National Geographic in the early 1950's.

Elsa and Joost, I will continue to play with some programs to get better at the 'old' look  .

[armando_m]

Great images Tom, thanks for sharing them

[Jacques Pochoy]

I saw that news too..! What seems incredible (to me) is that having grown up in that city from parents who were there since 1946, I never saw that studio (or even heard of it). We used another studio that was also a shop for prints and were quite happy with that !
But then Calcutta or Kolkata was already a very big city and some districts were too far for the casual stroll...

Another big regret is not to have taken pictures of those water tanks on top of buildings, as they were soldered in fantastic shapes, palaces, planes, ships, towers, etc. Making for spectacular sunsets over the city building's tops ! What is weird is that after all those years, I havent seen elsewhere any pictures of those ?

[Les Olson]

Elsa and Joost, I will continue to play with some programs to get better at the 'old' look  .

Very nice images - but too sharp to look old.  Film and paper emulsions were both much thicker in the 19th century than they are today, which gives the images a characteristic lack of acutance.  In portraits, the softness was exaggerated by the very long exposures needed (which is why people in 19th century portraits are always leaning on something and no one is ever smiling).   

Also, panchromatic film did not appear until around 1900, so everything before then used orthochromatic film - and probably a lot after, because for a long time panchromatic film was more expensive.  So the sky has to be white, greens light and reds very dark.  This makes orthochromatic film images more contrasty, because there are fewer grey mid-tones.

A third thing that contributes to the characteristic look of 19th century photographs, especially landscapes, is halation, because there was no anti-halation layer. 

One thing that is often thought to be characteristic of 19th century photographs but isn't is sepia toning.  Sepia toning replaces the metallic silver in the print with silver sulphide, which is more stable so the image does not deteriorate as much under the influence of light and atmospheric pollution.   So it was used for things like wedding photographs, which is why we see it so often, but it cost more and was rarely used for photographs for sale.

[Akira]

The images are very appropriate as homage to the historical studio in India.

I wonder if the studio could continue to operate as rental one for the photographers ranging from professional ones to casual hobbyists.

[tommiejeep]

Armando and Jacques, many thanks.  Jacques, Google was not my friend, I searched every combo for rooftops, sculptures, water tanks etc in Calcutta.  Nada

Les, many thanks for the information.  I'm obviously not a student of Photography and have already started some research.  I do have many Documentary style images and will put together a series of then vs now covering my 18 years in Goa(yup, things have changed dramatically in that period) .  I will also differentiate many by PP.

Akira, interesting but the owner did say that he would like to keep much as possible as a history (quasi Museum) .  I know nothing about property  values in Kolkata but if similar to most Indian Metro prices, the building would be very valuable.  Would also depend on the location in Kolkata.  In Goa, a losing battle to retain beautiful 100- 300 year old buildings.  Even with the Heritage/Zoning laws, a few of bribes, and the buildings get torn down and replaced by much larger modern structures.

[tommiejeep]

Les, did some reading but no new programs.  Just trying some different film effects and tones in Nik SE Pro .  One of the Agfa films

Shame about the box for the Flood Lights.  Outside the entry into Jodphur Fort

[longzoom]

Your images just remind me gravures from beginning of last century. Well done, Tom!  Please do continue!  LZ