Backdrops of the Civil War

Another journey into the backdrops used by photographer's studios, this time in a certain context. During the American Civil War, ambrotype and tintype portraits of soldiers were made in great numbers by photographers who set up temporary studios at military camps (this blog has featured quite a few). While the majority of photographers just went with the plain canvas backdrop, painted backdrops were also in common use. Backdrops depicting camp scenes--usually with a prominent American flag-- were popular, along with a variety of landscapes, from the realistic to the somewhat fanciful. It is very interesting to see the kinds of scenes these young men wanted to be placed in (or the photographer though they might want to be placed it, at least). 

Library of Congress

A Union soldier with a landscape backdrop. Source

Library of Congress

A Union soldier with a checkered terrace backdrop. Source

Library of Congress

A Union soldier with a military camp backdrop. Source

Friends of the Civil War

As we've seen before-- and as you can see with even the briefest visit to the Library of Congress's holdings-- photographs of soldiers during the Civil War were very popular. After all, this might be first, only, and/or last time one of these men might be able to get his picture taken. With that in mind, I find it striking how many of these men wanted that picture to be with a friend. It's especially touching how they made sure to display the affection they felt for one another, with arms on shoulders, linked arms, and even held hands (the mid 19th century was a lot less uptight about displays of male affection, perhaps surprisingly). 

Ambrotypes and tintypes, 1861-65.

Library of Congress

Private Reggie T. Wingfield and Private Hamden T. Flay in Confederate uniforms. Source

Library of Congress

Soldiers in Union shell jackets. Source

Library of Congress

Sergeant Robert Black and Private Herman Beckman in Union uniforms. Source

The Civil War, Tinted

I haven't had a people of the civil war post in a long time, which is a shame as the photographs are striking to look at and started me into this blog in the first place. Fortunately I got sucked into the Library of Congress's collection for a few hours today (when I should have been studying for a photo history exam, ironically), so I have rather a lot of material now to draw from! Expect more of this in the coming months. 

Today's theme: hand-tinting. People were crazy about photography right away, but sad it didn't yet come in colour. So a market sprung up for the tinting of photographs with paints, aided by the fact that photography put many former painters of miniatures out of work. They tinted daguerreotypes (like this one), and when they moved on to tintypes, ambrotypes, and glass negative-paper photography, they tinted those even more. You almost always see some degree of tinting in ambrotypes and higher-end tintypes, especially the cheeks. Jewellery and buttons are also often painted with gold. (just glance through this post of civil war portraits!). However, it didn't always stop there. Parts of clothing, all the clothing, parts of the backdrop, tablecloths... all were potentially coloured. Sometimes this is a nice effect. Sometime it's.... not. (Though, granted, sometimes the different rates of deterioration in the imaging substance and the paints means the colour looks more drastic today than it did originally. Sometimes, though, it was just flat out badly done).

Portraits were done very widely in the civil war, as ambrotypes and tintypes, and there was a similar wide variety of tinting going on.

From the Library of Congress.

Library of Congress

A Confederate captain. Ambrotype. Source

Library of Congress

Union soldier with bayoneted musket. Ambrotype. Source

Library of Congress

Unidentified Confederate soldier. Ambrotype. Source

People of the Civil War II

It's taken a rather long time to do so, but we're returning to the American Civil War. As I talked about in my first post on this theme, there are thousands of portraits of the (often very young) men who had to fight in this war, and it's incredible to look into their faces. This was 150 years ago, and yet they are so clearly like any boys today. You can see their individuality, bits of their personalities and feelings-- and 150 years comes to seem like nothing at all. 

All are from the Library of Congress. They come in elabourate frames which I've mostly cropped out to focus on the faces; you can see the originals in the links if you so desire. These particular soldiers are all unidentified. 

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Man in Zouave uniform. Source

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People of the Civil War

I don't really know anything about the American Civil War. It was from 1861-65 (I just looked that up) and more or less between North and South. But, what I find most compelling in looking at civil war photographs, is that not knowing anything doesn't really matter much. You can still look into the faces of these men (and sometimes women) who lived 150 years ago and be moved. This is the first major conflict since photography was invented, which makes it all the more striking. For the first time, we can see the men who fought and died, see that wartime sad look in their eyes. We can see the real people. It is also so shocking to see the youth of some of these men-- boys, not even men, teenagers a lot of them. So interesting, and so sad.

These are all from the Library of Congress's massive collection-- here, to see them on their site, and here for the Flickr Commons collection of the same photographs. I'm going to link to the Flickr Commons ones.

I'm not going to say anything more, because this is about looking into the faces of a hundred and fifty years ago, and seeing people who at heart are just the same as those alive today.

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