Photo on Metal Plate?

[arj8122]

Hi
I have recently aquired a photo on a metal plate that I would be interested to know more about. The photo shows a man, women and young child, the location is not obviuos though could be on the beach. Why has the phot been printed on the metal and what date could it be from?
I think it could be about 1880 onwards though I am not sure, the people in it don't tie to any other phots I have though look very similar - the child could be someone who I have many photos of though it may again not be!
Any help or suggestions would be appreciated
A
- I inted to photograph and post a copy asap

[Gaille]

Hi,

I have two similar photos I inherited.
One is just plain, the other has a realy ornate metal scrollwork around it as a framing.

My dad is into photography & he said they were early photos printed onto Metal as in the early days photos were mainly printed onto metal or glass, paper only came in later.

These were known as daguerreotype photos.
take a look here - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daguerreotype

These would have been taken in the days when having your photo taken was the equivilent of having your portrait painted.

Gaille

[jim1]

What you have is called a tintype (ferrotype in the USA).These were produced over a long period,earlier in a studio but later by itinerant photographers who travelled around mainly tourist spots,sometimes setting up booths on the seafront or park.The beauty of these were that as there were no negatives involved the process was quick & easy.The image is directly imprinted on a thin sheet of iron so what you see is a mirror image usually obvious where men's jackets are seen as the buttons are on the wrong side.What you have is probably post 1880 but we'll know more when you put it up.In the meantime here's some info. on tintypes.
http://www.rleggat.com/photohistory/history/tintype.htm


jim