The professional photographers such as Bruton and Ring have already been covered in two blogs viz one on James Bruton and another generically on the Early Photographers. This does not imply that the quality of the premier amateur photographers was in any way not on a par with the professional photographers. The epithet amateur merely implies that the profession of the amateurs was not photography.
This fact is borne out by William Alcock, a tinsmith, who excelled at stretching the boundaries of the art of the possible.
Main picture: William & Edwin Building built in 1860 at 100 Main Street by William Alcock, a prodigious amateur photographer. This building was demolished to make way for the VSN Centre
Camera Clubs
Camera Clubs fulfilled a vital role in the development of photography as they were a source of the improvement of photographic techniques. The first amateur Photographic Club in South Africa was founded in Kimberley in May 1890 and the second in Cape Town in October of the same year under the Presidency of Sir David Gill, Astronomer Royal at the Cape. The third opened in Port Elizabeth in July 1891 at which 15 persons were present. William Alcock, the future Mayor of Walmer, was appointed the first Chairman and the first Secretary was Mr. C Ablett.
Activities
In the early days the Port Eizabet Club was a very active body. Outings and excursions were frequently arranged and sometimes written up by Mr. Scruton under the pen name of York. Over New Year 1893, a successful four day trip to Knysna on the vessel S.S. Melrose, drew 150 members of the P.E. Amateur Photographic and Eastern Province Naturalists’ Societies.
Apart from the outings, frequent meetings were held at which serious aspects and difficulties with photography were discussed. A studio and dark room for the use of members was established temporarily in Havelock Street and later as a permanency in the Atheneum building.
X-ray photography
An important event in the history of the Club was the first recorded demonstration of x-rays in South Africa, only seven months after the announcement of their discovery by Professor Roentgen had been made by him in Germany. The Chairman of the Club, Mr Walsh, had acquired a full set of apparatus for producing for producing the rays and the Committee of the Society arranged a demonstration especially for the doctors of Port Elizabeth.
William Alcock
One of the amateur photographers who became a legend in the field, was the platemaker, William Alcock. He arrived from England in the early 1880s and gained prominence in the Photographic, Naturalist and Dramatic Societies. He also was instrumental in the introduction of the first motor vehicle to Port Elizabeth when he shipped the 4.5h.p. Benz to the town in 1900.
Moreover he was also instrumental in building a method of illumination known as his “limelight apparatus” for projecting dissolving views. In 1888, it came to the rescue of the crew of the barque Boschetto when darkness made it impossible for the Rocket Brigade to launch their lines onto the stranded craft. In these dire circumstances, Alcock was called out to assist the rescue operations with illumination.
His photographic prowess led him to produce lantern slides with which he provided very popular evening entertainment, mostly for charitable purposes. It was through one of these shows that Alcock met Mr. Scruton, an auctioneer by trade but also an avid naturalist. A sound friendship was kindled and the two men did much to assist the progress of amateur photography in Port Elizabeth during the years ahead.
Photographic Salon
In a photographic salon, photographers are invited to submit their images in various categories for possible inclusion in the salon exhibition. A panel of judges scores all the submitted images and chooses approximately 20% for exhibition. One such exhibition had particular significance. A Salon held in 1966 had unusual significance in that it celebrated the 75th anniversary of the foundation of the Camera Cub in 1891 by Jack Arnold. It was held in the Arts Hall at St. George’s Park on the 12th July 1966.
Of particular interest to historians were a collection of prints taken during the closing years of he previous century by early members of the Camera Club. These depicted club excursions to Van Stadens and other places in the vicinity of Port Elizabeth. Such outings were no short afternoon affairs but took several days, the Club hiring ox wagons to transport members together with their camping and photographic equipment.
First usable photographic technique
Even though the photographic technique known as camera obscura might have been discovered ten centuries ago, it was not an satisfactory approach to photography. This process was first used in South Africa by the astronomer, Frederick John Hershel.
In 1819 the Frenchman, Louis Jacques Monde Daguerre announced his process which was named after him. Dr W.G. Atherstone of Grahamstown who happened to be in Paris at the time, brought back knowledge of this first real photographic technique to South Africa. A daguerrotypist is known to have visited the Eastern Cape as early as 1845 when in 1846 a Frenchman named Leger, a traveller on his way home from the East , actually set up a studio for a few days in Port Elizabeth, advertising daguerrotypes, complete with frames at £1 10s 0d each.
His venture was such a success that he decided to discontinue his voyage. Instead he made his way to Graham’s Town to meet a man named William Ring, a stationer and tobacconist. Together with Ring, they set up a photographic business in the town. Shortly thereafter Leger departed for Cape Town and Ring, left to his own devices, was apparently not sufficiently well versed in the new process to make a success of it, and eventually went bankrupt and was compelled to sell his equipment. Leger who advertised the first photographic studio in South Africa [Port Elizabeth] and Ring, the first resident South African photographer, probably never met again.
Within a few years, several photographers had set up studios in Port Elizabeth , one of them being Oliver Lester, the artist, who introduced the Talbotype process.
Sources
The Photographic Salon July 12th to 17th 1966 by E.K. Lorimer [Looking Back, Vol. VI, No.3, September 1966.