An 1899 Photography Almanac from the Book Collection
Originally posted on Instagram. Notes from the repair bench, kept here as a searchable archive. View the original on Instagram
This almanac was printed in 1899. We have a very large collection of photography books, but the most fascinating are the ones over 100 years old. Looking through this book it reads like a modern photo blog. It has articles with tips to help photographers, formulas for chemical ratios, and even ads. The ads for print paper are taped into the book so the potential buyer can feel the quality before purchasing, and in one instance there is a contact print on the paper. You could buy a complete 4x5 or 5x7 kit for $35.00 and $45.00 respectively. Adjusted for inflation that is $1,089 and $1,401. That really does seem about what a photographer would pay today to get started. The more things change, the more they stay the same.
