Photographs, Pistols & Parasols

It’s 1860, you’re a landscape photographer, and the dazzling sunlight is playing havoc with the photo you’re trying to take. Without photography accessories shops around, you improvise and use your fashionable parasol as an improvised lens shade. Problem solved. … It’s 1895, you’re an itinerant photographer travelling dangerous backroads alone. You’re not worried, though: a man’s hat hides that you’re a woman and besides, you’ve always got your pistol at the ready. …Those are but two of the many intrepid women who found success as professional artisan photographers, pursuing careers in photography shortly after it began in 1839. These women were successful entrepreneurs who ran thriving photography businesses and produced high-quality photos with the ever-changing technology, but unfortunately their accomplishments are too often marginalized or left out of the history books altogether. Join host Lee McIntyre twice a month as she introduces you to the captivating stories of talented women who started their professional photography careers between 1840-1930.