In October 2015 we ran a two-day photography workshop for adults, inspired by the exhibition Photography, A Victorian Sensation and in particular, by studio portraits and cartes-de-visite.

Day 1 was led by photographic artist, Robin Gillanders, whose career includes fashion photography, album covers and special commissions including photographing  the new Scottish Parliament members in 1999. Robin talked about projects including Ten Men, photographing people who, like Robin, had just turned 60.

Workshop participants visited the Victorian photography exhibition and spent the afternoon in the Grand Gallery and sculpture gallery, setting up and taking portraits using a large plate camera and roll film.

As their confidence grew, our amateur photographers became more ambitious in their compositions.

Day 2 at Stills Centre for Photography was spent carefully printing out their images in the darkroom there and experimenting with tea and coffee to tint them to a Victorian ‘hue’. They even produced one image that looked like an authentic, damaged carte-de-visite.

Small, Perfectly Formed: Photography Workshops were part of Luminate: Scotland’s Festival of Creative Ageing.