COVE

Gertrude's Commentary: 

Finally, the new edition of The British Journal of Photography is out! Each week when a new edition is released I run to get my hands on it and immediately start reading. Oh look! On this page they are advertising a “Ladies Photography Club”. How lovely it would be to work side by side with other women who love photography as much as I do. I mean sure Lucy shares my interest, and is quite a talented photographer herself, but Fanny and Phyllis tend to get easily distracted by other more “lady-like” if you will, priorities that are pushed upon almost every woman like us. As for me, I’d spend all the time in the world out in the garden capturing photos if I could. That’s why I love reading through these editions. I find so much joy in expanding my knowledge on all things photography, and there’s so much I still want to learn about it. The Journal offers so much information that can help improve my skills, like how to properly capture “the purity of water” as I can read about on the bottom of this page. Hopefully one day I’ll be able to devote more time to my photography and maybe if it goes well enough, I could turn it into something greater. Maybe this Lady’s Photography Club would provide me with enough experience to create a photography business of my own. And my sisters could even help out too! Ah, what I would give for a life like that.

Editorial Commentary: 

This page from January 8th’s edition of The British Photography Journal (1892) is clearly meaningful to Gertrude, as it represents her passion for photography even before the start of her soon-to-be photography shop. As she browses the pages, we get a sense for the level of excitement the mere subject brings to her, and this suggests that photography may eventually become an even larger part of her life. Her eagerness to read each edition demonstrates that the journal is most likely one of the only places she can learn more about photography. As a matter of fact, in Jochen Petzold’s article, “Victorian Gendered Photography in the Boys Own Paper and the Girl’s Own Paper”, the author explains that while photography in the late 1800’s was popular, it was “a comparatively difficult process that was inaccessible to children” and especially females (Petzold 58). This demonstrates that photography in the Victorian Era was an occupation based around gender as well as age, and therefore young females such as Gertrude weren’t typically exposed to the phenomena. By taking advantage of opportunities such as the “Ladies Photography Club” and other information in The British Photography Journal, and eventually turning creating a business centered around photography, Gertrude is able to defy the stigma placed on young women in photography. Thus, The British Journal of Photography demonstrates a way for Victorian Women to expand their knowledge on opportunities and information not readily accessible to them because society deems them unworthy.

Citation: 

Petzold, Jochen. “Victorian Gendered Photography in the Boy's Own Paper and the Girl's Own Paper.” Victorian Periodicals Review, vol. 52, no. 1, 2019, pp. 57–79., doi:10.1353/vpr.2019.0002.

“The British Journal of Photography : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming.” Internet Archive, London [Etc.] H. Greenwood [Etc.], archive.org/details/britishjournalof39londuoft.