Boston Camera Club


The Boston Camera Club is the leading amateur photographic organization in Boston, Massachusetts and vicinity. Founded in 1881, it offers activities of interest to amateur photographers, particularly digital photography. It meets weekly from September to June and is open to the public.

History

was introduced in 1839. For some decades practice involved laborious daguerreotype followed by wet-plate and other processes. Amateur photography in the United States received its first major impetus in 1880, when the future Eastman Kodak Co. and others introduced dry plates—glass plates with chemical emulsion already applied. In 1888 Kodak introduced flexible media—first paper and soon film—and third-party processing. These innovations brought photography to the masses. Still, professionals and advanced amateurs typically continued to use glass plates until the early 20th century, when film was finally accepted. Today most photography is digital.

Boston Society of Amateur Photographers, 1881

The club known today as the Boston Camera Club was founded October 7, 1881 in Boston as the Boston Society of Amateur Photographers. It is the oldest continuously extant camera club founded primarily by amateurs, and the second-oldest extant camera club, in the U.S. Present at the October 7 meeting were F. H. Blair, James M. Codman, W. C. Greenough, A. P. Howard, Lucius L. Hubbard, Frederick Ober, and John H. Thurston, with Thurston having the most active role. At first, temporary officers were elected. The seven men were joined on November 18, 1881 by James F. Babcock, William T. Brigham, Wilfred A. French, William A. Hovey and others, at which time permanent officers were elected—Brigham president, Babcock vice president, and French secretary and treasurer. Initially the club met in the offices of the Boston Sunday Budget. Later it met at what is now called Massachusetts Institute of Technology, located at the time in Boston.

Boston Camera Club, 1886

As amateur photography in the United States became more widespread, in 1886 the club changed its name to Boston Camera Club. The first regular meeting of the renamed club was held October 7, 1886. On April 6, 1887 it incorporated in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as the state styles itself, under the new name, stating as its purpose the furthering of "the knowledge of photography in all its branches and the promotion of social intercourse among the amateur photographers of Boston and vicinity." The first president of the incorporated club was George Edward Cabot. As of 1888 the club had 64 members. By the end of the 19th century it was typically closer to 100. Dues were expensive—$20 annually.

50 Bromfield Street

In 1886 the Boston Camera Club rented permanent headquarters at 50 Bromfield Street, Boston. It may have been selected by being the business address of both club founder Thurston, a photo supplier, and early vice president Charles Henry Currier, a professional jeweler and photographer. It was also conveniently located near downtown photo-supply stores. The club had eight rooms:
Apparently the building had an elevator. At 50 Bromfield, for some decades the club held public exhibitions of work by its members and guest photographers.

Early 20th-century difficulties

In 1899 Boston-based journal , launched in 1898, said it had been "elected" the official organ of the Boston Camera Club and would carry its announcements. The club's Joseph Prince Loud was on the journal's first board. From 1907 to 1920 the editor was the club's first permanent secretary and treasurer, photo supplier Wilfred A. French, son of daguerreotypist Benjamin French. French continued as editor until at least 1924.
For reasons begging research, by 1908 the Boston Camera Club was facing difficulties, although it remained active, holding member exhibitions until at least 1912. Still, minutes of 1913 by longtime club secretary Thurston show membership in the club had fallen off, and its future was under discussion. Business meetings continued, but apparently far fewer regular meetings were held. The club was kept alive by Frank Roy Fraprie, Phineas Hubbard, Horace A. Latimer, and the aging Thurston. The club, it is believed in 1924, left its longstanding 50 Bromfield Street location, and for some years it met at the Boston Young Men's Christian Union. Amateur photography in Boston now seems to have been dominated by three entities—the Boston YMCU Camera Club, extant from 1908 to at least the 1920s, which in 1920 had 82 members; Boston Photo-Clan, formed circa early 1912 and apparently defunct by about 1921, dominated by Boston photographer John H. Garo at whose studio it met and exhibited, and of which Fraprie was a member as well; and The Society of Arts and Crafts, Boston.

Horace A. Latimer bequest, 1931

In 1931 a bequest by longtime club member Horace A. Latimer of Boston, an independently wealthy amateur photographer of some renown, for reasons not yet fully understood, profoundly reinvigorated the Boston Camera Club. Membership rebounded, and with the return of servicemen after World War II it reached 286 in 1946. With the funds the club would purchase new headquarters. Temporarily it moved to 330 Newbury Street, in the Back Bay section of Boston.

351A Newbury Street, 1934–1980

In 1934, with part of Horace Latimer's bequest the Boston Camera Club purchased and moved into another building, at nearby 351A Newbury Street, Back Bay. The club occupied three floors. There were a large and small exhibition gallery, darkroom, library, and kitchen. Public exhibitions of photography resumed. For tax purposes, in 1946 the club decided to sell no. 351A and remain in the building as a lessee. Growth continued apace, reaching 555 in 1959—492 regular, 51 associate or corresponding, and 4 honorary members—a size maintained for perhaps two decades. Besides post-war prosperity, the growth is attributable to introduction of 35mm film by Kodak in the 1930s, and single lens reflex 35mm cameras by Nikon, Pentax and others in the 1960s. In this era, enthusiasts often sought instruction in camera use by joining a camera club.

Brookline, 1980–present

Because of the owner's pending sale of the building, in 1980 the Boston Camera Club had to vacate 351A Newbury Street. The club left Boston, relocating to the adjacent town of Brookline, Mass., its location today. In 1997 it had to relocate again, moving across town to its present headquarters in Brookline.
Meanwhile, for the second time in its history, in the 1980s and 1990s membership declined dramatically. The trend can be attributed to a number of factors—camera automation, for example autofocus and programmed exposure which reduced the need for user training; the advent of consumer video; and changing social mores. Starting in 2006, membership rebounded to about 150 today, due in large part to the club's emphasis on digital photography. However, an increased emphasis on promoting the club and especially its online presence contributed to the increase in membership as well.

Exhibitions

The exhibition history of the Boston Camera Club is long and somewhat complex. The club has hosted several species of shows: exhibitions by its members, joint shows with other camera clubs, exhibitions by outside photographers, and salons—judged competitive exhibitions of photography open to the international public.

Member exhibitions, 1880s–1910

About 1883 the Boston Society of Amateur Photographers, as the club was first known, held its first exhibition at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, an unusually large show of some 700 prints. The second exhibition in 1884 was held at the Boston Art Club. The third, in 1885, included male nudes, raising eyebrows in conservative Boston. In 1892 the club exhibited in the long-running triennial exhibition of the Massachusetts Charitable Mechanic Association. In 1893, judges in the club's annual exhibition included American painter Edmund C. Tarbell, and Boston photo studio owner and club honorary member Frank Rowell. In the club's seventh and tenth member exhibitions in 1895 and 1898, member Emma D. Sewall received the top award. Prominent in the 1898 show were two club members, Sarah Jane Eddy and Boston personality Sarah Choate Sears.
In 1900 the Boston Camera Club held an exhibition by prominent Boston photographer and member Fred Holland Day. In 1904 it exhibited its members' work at Day's studio in Boston. The same year the club helped organize, and exhibited in, a photograph exhibition at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition, the St. Louis World's Fair. The club's annual show of 1910, which photographic journal Photo-Era called the club's "best for many years," had prints by Eddy, Frank R. Fraprie, Horace A. Latimer, and Joseph Prince Loud.

Joint Exhibitions of Photography, 1887–1894

Concurrently Joint Exhibitions of Photography were held, sponsored by the Boston Camera Club, Photographic Society of Philadelphia, and Society of Amateur Photographers of New York, with the venue rotating annually among the three cities. There were seven exhibitions, in 1887–1889 and 1891–1894. At first the three clubs shared in the preparation for each show. In the first Joint Exhibition, held in New York City in 1887, Joseph Prince Loud and Horace A. Latimer received the Boston club's only diplomas. In the third exhibition in Philadelphia in 1889, Boston was represented by Wilfred A. French; Horace Latimer, the club's only award winner; and William Garrison Reed. Starting with the fourth exhibition in New York City in 1891, collaborative preparation ended and each club individually ran the exhibition in the city in which it was held. That year Latimer exhibited the most prints from the Boston club. The fifth Joint Exhibition, held at the Boston Art Club in 1892, was a large show of over 600 objects including 18 prints by Alfred Stieglitz, future founder of the Photo-Secession, and 45 prints by Boston Camera Club member, Bell telephone inventor, and high-speed photography pioneer Francis Blake, Jr., the first public showing of his work. Of the sixth exhibition in Philadelphia in 1893, Stieglitz said, "It was, without doubt, the finest exhibition of photographs ever held in the United States, and probably was but once excelled in any country."

First salon series

The Boston Camera Club has had two series of photographic salons, or competitive exhibitions. The first series was held in the first decade of the 20th century, probably for only a few years. Presently only the second salon, held in 1906, has been identified.

Boston Salon (International Exhibition) of Photography, 1932–1981

After its revival by Horace Latimer's 1931 bequest, in 1932 the club launched an international competition, the Boston Salon of Photography, held almost annually for the next five decades. In 1953 it was renamed the Boston International Exhibition of Photography, although informally it was often still called the "Boston salon." Also in 1953, the Frank R. Fraprie Memorial Medal was created in recognition of Fraprie's role, along with Horace Latimer, in having kept the club alive in the difficult years of 1913–1930.
At first, the salon was limited to black-and-white prints. Starting in the 1954 International Exhibition, color slides were admitted as well. From 1959 a color print section was added. The 43rd and last exhibition was held in 1981, the club's centenary year. In discontinuing the international exhibitions, the club cited lack of manpower. Whereas earlier salons typically received hundreds of entries each, the 1981 exhibition required a man-year of labor to process almost 3,300 prints and slides.
Entrants of note in the Boston Salon and International Exhibition over the years included Croatian photographer Tošo Dabac, the 1937 medal winner. Competing by the 9th Salon in 1940 were Eleanor Parke Custis and lifelong amateur photographer, future U.S. Senator, and future presidential candidate Barry Goldwater. Noted pictorialist and longtime Baltimore Sun photographer A. Aubrey Bodine, who was competing by 1944, received the first Fraprie medal in 1953, which he won again in 1955 and 1959. Competing in this era as well was 1940s pictorialist Rowena Fruth. There was also longtime competitor Wellington Lee, who competed from 1950 to the last salon in 1981; Hong Kong-American photo prodigy, actor and director Fan Ho who first competed in 1954 at age 17; and Mexican cinema director José Lorenzo Zakany Almada, who won the Boston Camera Club Medal in 1968.
Exhibition judges included club members Cecil B. Atwater; Leonard Craske; Custis ; John W. Doscher; Adolf Fassbender; Franklin I. Jordan; L. Whitney Standish; John H. Vondell; and Henry F. Weisenburger. Guest judges included Bodine and etcher Arthur William Heintzelman, first keeper of prints at Boston Public Library.

Guest exhibitors

From the late 19th to at least the mid-20th century, the Boston Camera Club had exhibitions by prominent outside photographers. In 1896 it showed work by Alfred Stieglitz. In 1899 it showed work by Frances Benjamin Johnston; and by Clarence White, organized and hung by Fred Holland Day. In 1900 it exhibited 150 photographs by Gertrude Käsebier. Photo-Era called it "undoubtedly the finest collection of photographs ever seen" in Boston. Also in this era, the club exhibited the work of English pioneer photographer Henry Peach Robinson, and by Rudolph Dührkoop. There were other exhibitions by lesser-known photographers.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries U.S. camera clubs mounted exhibitions of each other's work. In 1908 the Boston club exhibited works from two organizations in Buffalo, New York, and works by the Capitol and Portland Camera Clubs.
In 1940 the Boston Camera Club exhibited the work of Edward Weston. In 1950 it showed work by Paul Gittings, Sr. In 1953 it exhibited the 1840s work of Scottish pioneers David Octavius Hill and Robert Adamson.

Later exhibitions

After the Boston Camera Club's revival in 1931, it moved temporarily to 330 Newbury Street, Boston. It is unknown whether this space had an exhibition room. The club's permanent facility at 351A Newbury Street, purchased in 1934, had a large gallery. Public exhibitions of outsiders' work in this period was mentioned; member shows have not been identified. Since 1980 when the club left no. 351A, it has had no gallery space, all member shows being held at other venues in the Boston area. The club had exhibitions at Boston City Hall in 1993; , 1997; Boston's Hynes Convention Center, 2004; art and photo studios; and camera stores in the Boston area.

Education

In discharging the mandate of its 1887 state charter to promulgate "the knowledge of photography," for most of its existence the Boston Camera Club has sponsored lectures and programs by expert members and guests. In 1886 and 1890 club member Francis Blake, Jr. presented important papers to the club on high-speed photography, treated below. In 1895 member Owen A. Eames presented his Eames Animatoscope, an early motion picture device In 1897 Friedrich von Voigtländer, head of the Austrian optical firm of that surname, spoke to the club. In 1904 Fred Holland Day presented a paper for which he was well known, "Is Photography a Fine Art?" There were many other lecturers in the club's early years.
Guest speakers at the club for much of the 20th century have not been identified. In the 1970s and 1980s the Boston Camera Club had presentations by Marie Cosindas and Minor White. In the 1990s it sponsored day-long courses by Lou Jones, Frans Lanting, John Sexton, and others. Boston-area professionals such as staff photographers of The Boston Globe and The Boston Herald, and instructors in Boston's New England School of Photography and other institutions, have long been regular club presenters and competition judges. Since the latter 1990s the Boston Camera Club regularly has had lectures and field trips in digital photography.

Other activities

About 1888 members of the Boston Camera Club, including William Garrison Reed, undertook the Old Boston project, a "survey of buildings and farms for local archives," whose photographs, owned by the Boston Public Library, were rediscovered in 2007.
During the 1890s members of the club pursued stereo, or 3–D, photography. Lantern slides, the forerunner of 20th-century color slides, were highly popular at the time as well. In the 1940s the club undertook "entertainment and instruction of disabled veterans of World War II... sponsor a camera club at one of the large Army convalescent hospitals nearby." In the 1950s and 1960s the club had a movie group and owned a movie projector.

Prominent members

Because the Boston Camera Club was founded before amateur photography was widespread, many early members were advanced practitioners, or "workers," in period parlance. A few members even made some advances in photo technology. Even after photography became more consumer-friendly in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a number of club members continued to attract notice
Since at least 1889 the Boston Camera Club has awarded honorary life memberships on two classes of deserving individuals: members giving extraordinary service to the club, and outside personalities in the Boston area for signal achievement in photography. As of 1889 there was one honorary member, well-known Boston studio photographer Frank Rowell. Whether he is the first honorary member, and the reason for his being honored, beg research.

19th century

Among the founders of the Boston Society of Amateur Photographers, as the Boston Camera Club was known until 1886, some were noted locally, even nationally. First permanent vice president of the club James F. Babcock was a well-known Boston chemist and science lecturer who held several U.S. patents. Wilfred A. French, aforementioned editor and publisher of Photo-Era, was a founding member of a group called the National Historic Picture Guild.
Prominent in the early club were Emma J. Fitz and painter Sarah Jane Eddy, Also prominent was Maine photography pioneer Emma D. Sewall, Honorary member George Edward Cabot, first president of the club after its incorporation in 1887, was a partner in the Holtzer-Cabot electric car company, Boston. Another early honorary member was late-19th century traveling lecturer Antonie Stölle, who presented innovative color slide-illustrated lectures on works of art.
The Boston Camera Club counted two astronomers among its members, Percival Lowell and honorary member William Henry Pickering, an astrophotographer who discovered Saturn's moon Phoebe, worked on faster shutters for nighttime work, and furthered the cause of women in astronomy.
Painter, photographer, wealthy Boston patron and club member Sarah Choate Sears, heavily connected in the art world, was named a Member of the Photo-Secession by Alfred Stieglitz. In 1899 she had a solo exhibition at the club that included a portrait of Julia Ward Howe. The same year she showed in the second Boston Arts and Crafts Exhibition.
Two collaborators of Alexander Graham Bell were honorary members of the Boston Camera Club. Prof. Charles "Charlie" Robert Cross is believed to have taught the first electrical engineering course in the U.S., at Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1882–1883. Inventor and club vice president Francis Blake, Jr. is believed to have substantially helped the club financially in its early years. Blake's 1877 microphone was a key component enabling Bell's to become the predominant telephone brand in the U.S. In 1886, two weeks after the club changed its name to Boston Camera Club, he read an important paper on camera shutters, in which he did pioneering work. Although his work was likely not yet perfected, Elton W. Hall claims the paper "established him as an expert in high-speed photography".. In 1890, by which time he had achieved 1/2000-second exposure times, Blake presented the results of his work to the club.
In 1896 a print by wealthy amateur Boston photographer Horace A. Latimer, today the club's best-remembered early member, was shown in an exhibition at the Smithsonian Institution. Latimer, who specialized in yachting photography and international travel photography, is the only known Boston Camera Club member published in Camera Notes, an organ of The Camera Club of New York, of which he was a member as well. In gratitude to his 1931 bequest which revived the fortunes of the Boston Camera Club, the club's print critiques today are held under the name Horace A. Latimer Print Competitions.

20th and 21st centuries

In 1906 well-known Boston photographer, publisher, esthete, and Boston Camera Club member Fred Holland Day judged at least one exhibition at the club.
In the first half of the 20th century three club members were well-known authors and publishers of photography. Wilfred A. French was mentioned. The prolific Frank Roy Fraprie was head of American Photographic Publishing Co. and editor of annuals and American Annual of Photography. Honorary member Franklin Ingalls "Pop" Jordan was a photographic author and editor. Another personality, Adolf "Papa" Fassbender, the German-born New York City educator called a "one-man photographic institution," had a career of 72 years training thousands in photography. Another noted photographer was Lillian Baynes Griffin, an associate, or corresponding, member of the club, who joined in 1906.
The Boston Camera Club had members who were non-photographic artists of note practicing photography secondarily. They include Gloucester Fisherman's Memorial sculptor Leonard Craske ; prolific Cape Ann, Massachusetts artist, photographer and author Samuel V. Chamberlain, an honorary member who wrote at least 45 photo-illustrated travel books; painter Emil Albert Gruppé; and post-Secessionist photographer and watercolorist Eleanor Parke Custis.
Amateur photographer, photographic author and publisher, and honorary club member Arthur Hammond won top prize from organizers of the 1939 New York World's Fair for his photo of the fair's icons, the Trylon and Perisphere. Architect, amateur photographer and author L. Whitney "Whit" Standish, president of the club, 1939–1942, was an influential honorary member who helped organize its weekly meetings, competitions, educational courses, and newsletter.
One of the most well-known figures in 20th-century photography, National Medal of Science recipient, Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor, and Boston Camera Club honorary member Harold Eugene "Doc" Edgerton greatly advanced the photographic strobe by achieving exposure times of one-millionth of a second, and took the well-known Life magazine photographs of a bullet penetrating an apple, and a crown of milk droplets. Lesser known are his night aerial strobe work for the Allied D-Day invasion in World War II, his co-founding of defense contractor EG&G, and his undersea explorations with Jacques Cousteau.
At least five persons named club honorary members in the 1970s–2000s had achievements of note. Henry Bradford Washburn, Jr. was a mountaineer, cartographer, aerial photographer, and longtime first director of the Boston Museum of Science. Photojournalist Arthur Leo Griffin was the best-known photographer of New England scenes in the mid-20th century. Aeronautical engineer Henry F. Weisenburger, club president 1965–1967, who has practiced photography since the 1940s and joined the club in 1954, is arguably the longest-active living exponent of amateur photography in New England. In 1959 Leslie A. Campbell was founder of Massachusetts Camera Naturalists, a nature photography group. Lou Jones is a Boston-based commercial, Olympic Games, and jazz photographer, a photojournalist whose books include Final Exposure: Portraits from Death Row, and photography educator.

Affiliations

Francis Blake, Jr., William Henry Pickering, Percival Lowell, Harold Eugene Edgerton, and Arthur William Heintzelman were Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Frank R. Fraprie and Allen G. Stimson were Honorary Fellows of the Photographic Society of America. Cecil B. Atwater, Eleanor Parke Custis, John W. Doscher, Adolf Fassbender, Rowena Fruth, Barbara Green, Arthur Hammond, Franklin I. Jordan, Charles B. Phelps, Jr., L. Whitney Standish, John H. Vondell and Edmund A. Woodle were Fellows, and Richard Yee is a Fellow. Many other club members were Associates.
Fraprie was an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Photographic Society of Great Britain. Atwater, Doscher, Fassbender, Green, Hammond, and Jordan were Fellows, and Yee is a Fellow. Fred Holland Day was a member of British photographic society The Linked Ring.
Roydon Burke was, and Henry F. Weisenburger is, a Master Member of the .
Professional photographers Arthur Griffin and Lou Jones have belonged to the American Society of Media Photographers.

Holdings of members' work

The U.S. Library of Congress has major holdings of the work of at least two Boston Camera Club members. Photographs of Middle Class Life in Boston, 1890s–1910s is a collection of 523 photographs by Charles Henry Currier. The Library also holds the largest number of photographs of Fred Holland Day.
There are substantial institutional holdings of the photographs of Francis Blake, Jr.; Eleanor Parke Custis; Harold E. Edgerton; Adolf Fassbender; Arthur Griffin by his ; Emil Albert Gruppé; Sarah Choate Sears by Harvard University; L. Whitney Standish; H. Bradford Washburn; Henry F. Weisenburger by Univ. of Florida, Gainesville; and others.

Today

As it has for most of its existence, the Boston Camera Club meets weekly. Meetings are held at its Brookline, Massachusetts headquarters every Tuesday evening from September to June. Guests are welcome.
The club's primary emphasis is on digital photography. Activities range from beginner to advanced and comprise education; print competitions and critique; formal, live-model portrait sessions; field trips; and inter-club competitions. Outside speakers and competition judges are regularly invited. The club communicates through its website and newsletter, The Reflector, launched in 1938 and published electronically.
The Boston Camera Club, a 501 nonprofit educational corporation registered in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a member of and Photographic Society of America.
Records of the Boston Camera Club, 1881–1971, are held by the Boston Athenaeum and are available to researchers by appointment. An archive of available The Reflector newsletters back to 1954 is available on the club's website .

Image gallery

Boston Camera Club records & publications

BCC denotes Boston Camera Club:

Archive

Selection. In chronological order:

Life dates of some persons mentioned

Cecil B. Atwater ; James F. Babcock ; Francis Blake, Jr. ; A. Aubrey Bodine ; Roydon Burke ; George Edward Cabot ; Samuel V. Chamberlain ; Charles Robert Cross ; Charles Henry Currier ; Eleanor Parke Custis ; Fred Holland Day ; John W. Doscher ; Rudolph Dührkoop ; Sarah Jane Eddy ; Harold Eugene Edgerton ; Adolf Fassbender ; Frank Roy Fraprie ; Rowena Fruth ; Barry Goldwater ; Arthur Leo Griffin ; Lillian Baynes Griffin ; Emil Albert Gruppé ; Arthur Hammond ; Arthur William Heintzelman ; Fan Ho ; Frances Benjamin Johnston ; Lou Jones ; Franklin Ingalls Jordan ; Gertrude Käsebier ; Leonard Craske ; Horace A. Latimer ; Percival Lowell ; Charles B. Phelps, Jr. ; William Henry Pickering ; Frederick Alcott Pratt ; Frederick Haven Pratt ; Henry Peach Robinson ; David F. Rodd ; Sarah Carlisle Choate Sears ; Emma D. Sewall ; L. Whitney Standish ; Alfred Stieglitz ; Allen G. Stimson ; John H. Vondell ; Henry Bradford Washburn, Jr. ; Edward Weston ; Henry F. Weisenburger ; Clarence White ; Edmund A. Woodle.