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By integrating images from thousands of public and private collections we can have visual sliders that take us through by photographers, themes, contextual connections, collections, years, techniques or anything else that we can come up with. The system shows images with full captions along with highly relevant connections. Each starting point is interconnected to all the others in a vast network of relationships. As it uses the indexes and themes already on Luminous-Lint it is a rich visual resource that links directly into the ever-expanding Themes that are becoming encyclopaedic.

The prototype is ready and the PhotoHistory Visualizer will be ready to go public next month. Subscribers to Luminous-Lint will have an enhanced version with additional capabilities.

The only limitations here are my programming skills (CSS, PHP, MySQL etc) and I'd be interested in collaborating with institutions and individuals who would like to push this as far as we can for the benefit of the community. So if you have suggestions or can assist let me know.

I've spent many years with these images and I hadn't expected to be surprised by the connections the PhotoHistory Visualizer shows but I am blown away. It encourages fresh ways of travelling through different photohistories to gain documented insights. It has the potential to profoundly change photohistory.

Earlier this year I attended the "Photography's Shifting Terrain" conference in Abu Dhabi hosted by NYUAD and it was a stimulating event bringing together specialists in Middle Eastern, African and Asian photography. As you know from previous Luminous-Lint Newsletters I‘m interested in the analysis of trends around the world through the many histories of photography. At one point during the conference I was talking with Christopher Pinney, who you may know for his asute analyis of Indian photography and we discussed large datasets. He suggested that I should contact John Falconer at the British Library as he‘s been working on A Biographical Dictionary of 19th-Century Photographers in Souith and South-East Asia. On my return to Canada I contacted John and he graciously agreed to provide this work so it could be included on Luminous-Lint.

It took about three weeks to convert the thousand plus biographies with all their footnotes from an MSWord file into a format that could be used effectively on Luminous-Lint but it has been well-worth the effort - after all John has spent decades of research bringing the material together. Why I am seeking large sets of biographies may not be obvious so let me explain.

Photography in 19th century India     We are seeking scans of daguerreotypes, calotypes, albumen prints, carte de visites and cabinet cards of all aspects of life in India. Another useful item are adverts for photographers active in India and S.E. Asia.
LL/36309	LL/28254	LL/49634

The rationale is to provide an online resource that provides original source material and research on the photographers themselves. As the biographies are supported by transcriptions from archival documents we can get first-hand accounts of the trials and tribulations of photographers as they struggled with colonial beauocracy. To read the letters of Edmund David Lyon (1825-1891) gives one insights into early photography that are difficult to find elsewhere.

Another benefit of converting the dictionary is that it allows a whole series of additional indexes so we can find lists of commercial and amateur photographers who worked in India, Sri Lanka, Burma, Singapore and other countries.

Studios in SE Asia     To illustrate the biographies we are seeking backmarks, photographs of studios, portraits of photographers who were active in SE Asia and ephemera. Any contributions you can add will be appreciated.
LL/52038	LL/60352	LL/52033

Evidence for the locations of photographers is usually based upon newspaper reports, advertising, trade directories, diaries and the imprints on carte de visites and cabinet cards. Any decent history of 19th century photography uses these to establish studio chronologies. As with the biographies private collectors and institutions are being approached to provide portraits and scans of photographs and imprints to fill in some of the gaps.

Each of these is important but the real benefits come through the integration of material into the over 1,000 Themes that Luminous-Lint has on the histories of photography. As the biographies include primary source materials they can be used to support research into Themes including:

Magnesium light
The use of photographs as the basis for book and magazine illustrations
Tipped-in photographs in book
Expeditions and exploration
Anthropology and ethnology
Archaeology
Architecture
Landscapes
Scientific
Photographic supply houses
The spread of photography
Colonialism and photography
The military uses of photography
World's Fairs and International Exhibitions

If you have access to a set of biographical information on photographers from anywhere in the world get in touch so we can share it more widely to improve our understanding. All content is credited to those who provide it and sharing makes the world a better place.

Studios on boats and barges     During the 19th century there were a number of floating photographic studios such as those of J.P. Doremus, noted for "Doremus Views of the Mississipi and its Tributaries" David Roby Judkins in the Seattle area of America and southern Canada, and Henry W. Taunt of Oxford in England. If anybody has photographs of water-borne photographic studios or ephemera relating to their activities from any part of the world I‘d be most interested. Thanks to all those who have provided examples and information.
LL/60415	LL/60406	LL/60411

Photography in the Pacific     To extend the regional coverage I'‘m seeking biographies of photographers who worked in the Islands of the Pacific and the region. Photographers include, but are not limited to: Hugo Bernatzik (1897-1953) Polly Borland Alfred Burton (1834-1914) Walter Burton (1836-1880) Burton Brothers N.J. Caire (1837-1918) Harold Cazneaux (1878-1953) Dufty Brothers Max Dupain (1911-1992) Allan Hughan (1834-1883) Jules Itier (1802-1877) John Kauffmann (1864-1942) Charles Kerry (1858-1928) Henry King Paul-Émile Miot (1827-1900) Tracey Moffatt Roger Scott Athol Shmith (1914-1990) F.E. Williams (1893-1943 Richard Woldendorp Henry Stuart Wortley If you specialize in Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu and numerous other locations this is the time to get in touch.
LL/8658	LL/40057	LL/14412