Civil War photos plus more..

[theknapsack]

Re: Civil War photos plus more..

I still think it is not original. Even so, the use of a plate as a frying pan and a tin can boiler would suggest probably at least 1862.

This is an original image of pickets making coffee:
(from NAIL Browser's Matthew Brady collection http://narademo.umiacs.umd.edu/cgi-b...l?object=63083)

[Mtn.Guerilla]

Re: Civil War photos plus more..

Just for the record, blousing one's socks is not a reenactorism, and just so happens to be in many period photos. But that doesn't really need to be said.

In regards to my comment, maybe I chose my words poorly. I was trying to state that blousing one's socks tends to be overly done in certain circles, I did this using the term reenactorism. Assuming that everyone knows it was done.Later I did state in my comment, that things considered reenactorisms (not using the same words) are found in CW photos. ( ie: sock blousing) Sorry for the confusion.

[rick35ovi]

Re: Civil War photos plus more..

If you look closely in the lower right-hand corner, you'll see the blurring of some plants, suggesting movement.

One thing that I have contemplated, but have no documentation to back up, is that these photo were indeed taken during the war, perhaps even in 1861 (dark blue trousers on the one fellow), but that the subjects are not soldiers. I agree they just don't seem to have the look or feel of soldiers to me. Perhaps Bierstadt got some folks to dress up and pose for the images. Again, I have no documentation, just speculation.

Eric

I too noticed the dark blue pants, Made me think of early regular infantry. There is some blurring in the background, looks like someone is standing post in the background. What makes me think this early is the condition of their uniforms they look almost pristine, and their kepis still look freshly issued.
I have a friend that was a reenactor in the early 70s and he always talked about reenacting in those days, blue polyester work pants, work boots and anything they could use to look close, if these are reenactors in the 60s (of course i don't know for sure) i dont think they used that level of authenticity. Great photo though!

[theknapsack]

Re: Civil War photos plus more..

There were more than a few guys in the 60's wearing originals, if I am not mistaken.

[DougCooper]

Re: Civil War photos plus more..

Great photos of the dawn of modern CW reenacting on Charles Childs website (County Cloth) here: http://www.crchilds.com/id48.htm

[C. Hyson]

Re: Civil War photos plus more..

I had glanced at this site a while ago, but never paid much mind to this photo. Its looks as though everything in the photo being worn by all of these individuals is newly issued as Rick had stated. I see the blur in the lower right corner, but yet there is none around the individual in the woodline who one would assume would be a picket and moving about nor on any of the three in the forground or what appears to be another person inside the tent with his face on the leftside.

Craig Hyson

[ThehosGendar]

Re: Civil War photos plus more..

Hello all,

Eric's right about the staged nature of the photograph, and probably to the surprised of many of you, yes, it is original.

A stereo of this image, the fellows around the campfire, was produced during the war, and was labeled as pickets cooking their rations near Fredericksburg, December 8, 1862. This stereo is reproduced on page 29 in Bob Zeller's The Civil War in Depth, Volume 2. However, looking at it, you can quickly tell that this wasn't taken in December... look at all the foliage in the background! Photohistorian William Frassanito connected this one with the other image, "Confederate Dead on Matthew's Hill," as the fellows in this also appear in that.

As to the blur around the edges, that has nothing to do with exposure time. That comes from the fallout of focus from the lens. The center of focus looks like it was the fire, and due to the limited focal quality of the lens being used (I have no idea what it was, though), the focus falls out roughly in a ring around the image starting about where the soldier's socks are. With all the ample light, yes, this would have been a fairly quick exposure, so the men are in good focus, as any well-balanced person can stand still for 3-7 seconds!

[Randy]

Re: Civil War photos plus more..

I agree this photo is an original, and also that it was tightly composed by the preeminent nineteenth century epic landscape painter Albert Bierstadt to be used as reference for a painting or a study. Use of photography for reference was often used by American painters during the nineteenth century, such as Winslow Homer, Thomas Moran, George Inness, J.A.M. Whistler, Thomas Eakins, to name a few.

[P.Brown]

Re: Civil War photos plus more..

I agree with Mr. Mink's take on the possibility that these guys might actually be civillians posing as soldiers. There seems to be an un-soldierly feel about the image. Maybe the photographer and his associates thought up some steriotypical things such as blousing their socks that civillians would seem a bit taboo, but would understand it as a soldierly thing. They just seem a bit clean. Even if they were not on an active campaign, soldiering in the mid 19th century must have been a very dirty job. Also you get the feeling that the equipment must have been borrowed in some way, they don't seem very comfortable in the picture, warrant it isn't comfortable to stand still for a picture in the first place. Anyways theres my two cents.



Philip Brown

[Horace]

Re: Civil War photos plus more..

Thanks for mentioning this site. It is, I think, literally endless. It appears to have a 'shuffle mode' so that you see pictures you've already seen, but they keep mixing with ones you haven't. You'll also see alternative shots of images you've already seen a hundred times before. I found a great deal of useful images here.
As to the picture being discussed, I did wonder about someone wearing a greatcoat in the summer, and why they built a fire and started cooking before they took their gear off.
There's another baffling image on the site of Federals tossing a kid in a blanket, and the kid's in the air. It has to be wrong, but the soldiers look like the period. I don't know how you'd stage a kid up in the air. I hunted around for the image again and haven't found it.

T.S. Bemis
1st Texas

[Horace]

Re: Civil War photos plus more..

Here it is:
.
It's the only misfiled image in the bunch, unless...
TS Bemis
1st Texas

[ThehosGendar]

Re: Civil War photos plus more..

It has to be wrong, but the soldiers look like the period.

Why does it have to be wrong? On a bright, sunny day with good, fast chemistry, you can get exposures of a second or two. Everything is not in perfect focus... actually the entire image is out of focus. It looks like a perfectly plausable image to try to take, and came out with the results one would expect when trying such an shot.

[Jas. Cox]

Re: Civil War photos plus more..

The link is really cool, thanks. I like to look at the various images for first hand research.

Something doesn't look right about the aforementioned soldiers cooking photo to me as well. I read the above where it is possibly authentic, but it's the sharpest CW photo I've seen, the uniforms all look like they have not seen action. Perhaps it's an early propaganda photo. :D