Photo Collections
A unique record of life in Perth and Perthshire from the 1850s
to the present day
Perth Museum & Art Gallery’s photographic collections
are significant for their size, quality and range. They
contain examples of the earliest photographic
processes right through to the digital photography of
today.
The Magnus Jackson Collection
Our earliest photographs of Perth and Perthshire are mostly
found within this wonderful collection of about 2,500 glass
plate negatives. Magnus Jackson built his
first photographic studio on Marshall Place, Perth in the late
1850s where St Leonard's in the Fields Church now stands.
You can also read an article on Magnus Jackson's life and his award
winning tree photography, on the Big Tree Country website by
following this link:
http:/www.perthshirebigtreecountry.co.uk/MagnusJackson/index.asp
The Wood & Son Collection
Wood & Son Printers, Perth, produced a series of
postcard views of Perthshire from photographs taken by several
local photographers between 1903 and 1923. Perth Museum & Art
Gallery cares for the 1000+ negatives which have all been digitised
and may be searched using our Showcase public access terminal in
the entrance hall of the Museum.
The Laing Collection
Our most recently acquired collection
of up to 15,000 images, taken between 1927 and 1993, from
the business of D Wilson Laing Photographers,
Blairgowrie has been the subject of an exhibition 'A Long
Exposure' at our Alyth branch Museum. The exhibition will be
available for viewing once more when the Alyth Museum reopens in
May 2011.
Follow the link above to find out
more about how this fascinating body of work was saved.
The Cowper/Flood Collection
This is our biggest single collection of
images consisting of around 100,000 negatives taken
from 1948 and running right through to the 1990s. Taken by the
businesses Alex Cowper and later Louis Flood operated from 40
and 41 respectively, South Methven Street, Perth. Much of the work
was aimed at the many newspapers of the time which provided a
healthy market for pictures of local interest.
The McLaren Collection
P K McLaren worked for his father's photographic business
Starphotos initially but from about 1945 he had set up his own
business as a commercial photographer of high calibre. Perth Museum
& Art Gallery has about 5000 of his negatives from the 1950s
and 60s. Two volunteer workers have been transcribing his card
based records in readiness for computerising these for easier
access.
Aase Goldsmith
Other photographs
There are other smaller collections and individual items
of no lesser importance than those mentioned above.
The Photographic Collections are still being added to today both
through our own photographic recording and careful
collecting.
Digitising
Digitising is the process of turning images on film and
glass into images for use by computers. Perth Museum & Art
Gallery has been using this process to protect the more vulnerable,
glass and older film-type negatives from overuse as well as
increasing the access to all images. Digital images are a
convenient form in which to store photographs for rapid use in a
variety of ways including exhibitions, publications and
prints.
Accessing the photographic collections
Perth Museum & Art Gallery is committed to improving
the access to our vast collection of photographs. The work of
computerising the collection is ongoing with the help of
volunteers.
If you can't find what you're looking for on our public access
computer, please get in touch and our photographic officer will
carry out a search on your behalf.
We offer a photographic service which allows you to order prints
from our photographic collection, paintings or indeed any object in
the collections. See the
photographic services page for further details.
