Did almost everyone have their photos taken in 1800s?

[KnowledgeEnthusiast]

On average, how many people do you think had their photos taken in the period of 1870-1910?

[Milliepede]

That's a good question.  I haven't got any of my family from that time but then I haven't got many photos full stop 

[rosie17]

I would think it would depend on how well off the family were to have money to pay for photo's ..I have some from 1891-97 but not any before then 

[pinot]

I agree with Rosie; I've inherited (earlier than grandparents) just one posed photo of ggrandparents (working class) in the 1890s. My other line had more children so others in the family may have some - I've no way of telling.
                      Pinot

[jim1]

I remember reading somewhere that there were around 4,000,000 photos produced in the UK during the Victorian Era.

[KnowledgeEnthusiast]

Ah, so that would only be a small percentage from 1831-1901 according to the population at the time - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victorian_era#Population_in_the_Victorian_era.

[jim1]

A larger percentage than it might appear as an awful lot had more than 1 person in them, sometimes whole families.
If you said there was on average 2 people in every photo that would make 8m.

[CarolA3]

Jim, would I be right in thinking that photography as we understand it didn't get going until the 1840s?

Some years ago I was asked for copies of any photos of an ancestor who died in 1843, and I seem to remember saying that there couldn't have been any at that time.

Carol

[sonofthom]

Earliest family photo that we have is of an ancestor of my wife; it is dated 1854. Family photographs at this time were few and far between and really only available to the wealthy - in my wife's case the photographer was the son in law of her ancestor. People did not generally own cameras in Victorian times so you had to pay for a professional studio portrait if you wished a photograph.