Portraits  Museums such as the Hart-Cam Museum in Hartney display fine examples of the portrait photographer’s art. It seems likely that portraits were the foundation of a thriving photography business. In today’s museums we find many an example of large, elaborately framed, enlarged portraits that once graced the parlours of the homes of well-established pioneer families.   This fine example of a Family Photo was no doubt treasured by the Sutherand family of Hartney.  Someone took some trouble to bring together these three pioneers from Carberry.  
The photo studio would offer display options, often with the name of the Studio embossed on the frame  Composite Photos in special frames were popular with sports teams.  Booklets & Promotional Publications Photographers would sometimes work with publishers to produce photo oriented books and promotional publications. Martel & Co. based in Brandon and Winnipeg produced many of these in the Pre-WW1 era. An “Illustrated Souvenir of Brandon” is one such volume. Published by W. Warrener, it consists of a short introduction and a series of 44 pages of photos that combine street and agricultural scenes along with a wide selection of prominent buildings. Looking back these provide the historian with a ready-made overview of the city and immediate vicinity.   Composite photos like this one highlight some of Brandon’s notable buildings.  This page features the farm of Mr. Nellis, a site we now known as the Sandison House. It was built in 1893 and this is a rare photo from its early days. There is quite a story that remains untold in the book. Brandon-area farmer John W. Sandison, built this impressive two-storey granite fieldstone a few kilometres northwest of Brandon. Sandison never occupied the house, as financial reversals caused him to disappear in May 1893, abandoning his family and extensive farm holdings around western Manitoba. The photographs had been taken by the photographic firm of William Martel. Martel’s produced similar booklets for other communities. pdf file Brandon Souvenir Online http://www.virtualmanitoba.com/Places/B/Brandon/BrandonSouvenir/index.html Building the Grand Trunk Pacific   Another approach is topical, a good example being Edwin C. Blair, a photographer from High Bluff who produced a short booklet: “Photographs – Grand Trunk Pacific Railway Construction.  This photo shows the building of the grade across a creek north of Carberry.  Blair’s photo of the newly-built bridge over the Little Saskatchewan River approaching Rivers. pdf file Revisiting A Collection Contemporary historians are still finding ways of presenting the works of early photographers to a new audience. Here “Images of Baldur” adds a bit of history and context to photos from the James Wall Collection.  pdf file James Wall Photo Collection http://www.virtualmanitoba.com/argyleheritage/photos/p6wall.html Newspapers In the early 1900’s newspapers were beginning to use more photographs, adding another possible revenue stream for the small town photo studio. The special Historical Edition of the Baldur Gazette published in 1899 made good use of the photography of Fred Stevens. It contains some of the earliest photos of the towns of Baldur, Belmont and Hilton.  Baldur  Belmont  Hilton  Photos of farms sites taken before 1900 are rare. Online Edition - Baldur Gazette - 1899 http://www.virtualmanitoba.com/argyleheritage/Gazette1899/index.html Magazines The “Collections” section highlights the importance of photos collected and taken by Gilford Copeland of Bunclody. Those photos were put to good use by historian John Todd in a 1975 issue of the magazine “Canadian Rail”    One of several photos provided by local collector, Gilford Copeland, make this article come alive. pdf file Display Options The Stereoscope  The stereoscope, shown here in the Beckoning Hills Museum was one of several innovations designed to enhance the viewing experience. Slides  This slide projector, also from the Beckoning Hills Museum was somewhat cumbersome.
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