Primitive Camp Scenes
By Buck Zaidel Painted canvas backdrops were used by Civil War era photographers to enliven the image, and to place the new warrior in a setting similar to what they
Category: Behind the Backdrop
Triplets? Third Cousins? Thoughts on Three Similar Camp Scene Backdrops
By Buck Zaidel, with images from the author’s collection As a collector of Connecticut Civil War images, I am well aware of the artistic painted canvas camp scene backdrop seen
Germon’s Sea of Tents Background
By Buck Zaidel and Ronald S. Coddington Philadelphia, the second-largest urban center (behind New York City) in the United States in 1860, was a major hub of photography. Daguerreian pioneers
A Painted Camp and Forts Backdrop from Virginia
By Dave Batalo These portraits of Confederate soldiers posed in front of a painted backdrop are normally difficult to locate in a specific state. Such military imagery painted in a
Holyland’s Military-Landscape Painting
By Ronald S. Coddington The painted backdrop visible in portraits taken by a young photographer honing his craft in Washington, D.C., is the focus of this installment. During the war,
The Military Backdrop of the Moore Brothers in Hartford, Conn.
By Adam Ochs Fleischer This column is the first to investigate a backdrop used in Connecticut during the Civil War. Despite its small size, the “Nutmegger” state made a significant
The Caribbean Plantation Backdrop
By Adam Ochs Fleischer The backdrop featured in this installment is noteworthy because the content of the scene is compelling and subject to interpretation. Usually, backdrops of the era are
Kunstman’s Cannonball Backdrop
By Adam Ochs Fleischer This installment is significant in that it marks the first time a photographer’s identity and use of a backdrop was discovered through period images of the
Artificial Intelligence and Backdrop Research
By Adam Ochs Fleischer Artificial intelligence (AI) is changing the world in myriad ways, from revolutionizing industries and transforming business operations, to enabling apps like TikTok to cleverly recommend exactly
The Harp Backdrop of Camp Graham
By Adam Ochs Fleischer The backdrop highlighted in this installment is the only example I have cataloged thus far featuring subjects from a single regiment: the 23rd Pennsylvania Infantry, also