Wondering just how long an old photograph has been around? There are several clues you can use to determine the time period an old photograph was originated, and the process used to create the photographic image. These clues will help you classify the type of photograph you posses.
Daguerreotype
The Daguerreotype has one of the most unique and recognizable images throughout the whole history of photographic processes. The Daguerreotype is made on highly polished metal plate with an image that has a reflective, mirror-like appearance. The image is often compared to one of the small holograms you might see affixed to a credit card. Like the hologram, the Daguerreotype image is only visible from certain angles. No other photographic image has the mirror-like non-image areas or "floating" hologram-like image of the daguerreotype. The Daguerreotype is a unique one-of-a-kind image not involving a negative, and the image is a mirror image (reversed left to right) of the original photographed scene.
Ambrotype
The Ambrotype image has a low contrast, grayish white appearance and consists of a glass plate supporting a collodion image, which is very similar to its cousin, the Tintype (Ferrotype process). The process was discovered by the sculptor Frederick Scott Archer in 1855, and quickly became an inexpensive alternative to the Daguerreotype. The Ambrotype quickly became a favorite of the portrait gallery trade, displacing the Daguerreotype. By 1860, the Daguerreotype was almost completely supplanted. The reduced cost of the ambrotype image helped widen the availability of photography into the American middle-class. Most Ambrotypes are not tinted, and will have a whitish gray tone, similar in appearance to the Tintype. Ambrotype use peaked in 1860 and began to wane in 1862 with the introduction of the Carte de Visite.
Tintype
The Tintype is relatively easy to identify because the Tintype image is made on an iron plate, thus the Tintype will attract a magnet. To test whether or not you have a Tintype photograph, take a small magnet, and see if the plate attracts it. If it does, you have a Tintype photograph. Also, by removing the image from its case, you should be able to see the metal plate. The Tintype plate is also very light compared to the heavy glass Ambrotype plate.
Carte de Visite
The Carte de Visite is easily recognized by the small card on which the photograph is mounted. In this format, a small paper photographic print is mounted on a commercially produced card. This style of photograph was introduced in 1859 by the French photographer Disderi. These early images are extremely rare and are unlikely to be encountered outside of museums. However, millions were produced in the nineteenth-century so you might find one among your family photos. The height of the "Carte craze" was the period from 1860-1866, which included the photography boom that occured during the American Civil War. The early 1860s saw the first commercial photographic albums (the Carte album), which began to grace ordinary middle-class parlors. Starting in 1866, the cabinet card began to erode the position held by the Carte de Visite. Carte production waned from 1870 to the late 1880s when they all but disappeared from the scene. Cartes were, however, produced after 1900, perhaps until 1906, or in limited numbers to the early 'teens. The small images were everywhere and collected by nearly everyone. The Victorians were avid photograph collectors, with every parlor having its share of Carte de Visite albums brimming with the images of family, friends and celebrated persons. Integral to the Carte de Visite is the imprint or backmark, giving the name and location of the photographer. The dimensions of the standard Carte de Visite mounting card are 2 ½ x 4 inches. Most Carte de Visites were carelessly trimmed, so individual prints and cards may vary from the standard dimensions.
Cabinet Card
The Cabinet Card is a larger version of the Carte de Visite, retaining the photographer's imprint and exhibiting similar styles of decorative artwork on the card face or back. Like the Carte de Visite, it consists of a paper photographic print mounted on a commercially produced mounting card. Styles of portraiture generally copy those of the Carte de Visite, but take advantage of the larger image area. In 1866, the Cabinet format was adapted for portraits. Although not uncommon in the 1870s, the Cabinet Card did not displace the Carte de Visite completely until the 1880s. Then the 1890s witnessed the decline of the Cabinet Card and the card photograph album, as they were replaced by the snapshot (an unmounted paper print) and the scrapbook album. A variety of other large card styles of various names and dimensions came about for professional portraits in the 1880s and 1890s. After 1900, card photographs generally had a much larger area surrounding the print. An embossed frame around the image, heavy, gray card stock and blind imprints were hallmarks. The last Cabinet Cards were produced in the twenties, perhaps as late as 1924. You may see Cabinet Card images from the 1890s that have the appearance of a black and white photograph. These photographs, exhibiting a neutral image tone, were likely produced on a matte collodion, gelatin or gelatin bromide paper. Sometimes the image can have a greenish cast. Gelatin papers were introduced in the 1870s and started gaining acceptance in the 1880s and 1890s, as the gelatin bromide papers became popular. The last Cabinet Cards were produced in the twenties, perhaps as late as 1924. The dimensions of the standard Cabinet Card are 6 ½" x 4 ½".
