Exploring 19th Century British Tintypes

This is a joint event, organised by Edinburgh Photographic Society and Studies in Photography, to help promote and support contemporary photography in Scotland.

Sheila Masson is a photographer and independent photo historian who has worked within photography for 30 years in both the USA and the UK. Sheila worked as a picture researcher/editor for Corbis and Getty Images in New York City, and as a photo assistant, picture editor and photojournalist in Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area. Since 2009 she has lived in Edinburgh, and she most recently worked as the photographic preservation manager of the National Collection of Aerial Photography, part of Historic Environment Scotland. Sheila is a committee member of the Scottish Society for the History of Photography and is an editor of their journal, Studies in Photography.

Sheila’s photographs have been published in numerous books, newspapers and magazines, including America 24-7, Life: The Year in Pictures, Vanity Fair, The Times, The Guardian and The Independent. Alongside her own photography, Sheila also specialises in the research of 19th century British tintypes and 19th century British itinerant photographers. Sheila received an MLitt in History of Photography from the University of St Andrews in 2013.

During this event Sheila will talk about the history of British tintypes, using images from her own extensive collection of 19th and early 20th century plates, including several Scottish examples. At the peak of their popularity, British tintypes were made almost exclusively by working-class photographers for working class clientele, and as such have historically been overlooked in British photographic research. Sheila will explain where and of whom they were made and reveal why they are a vital document of the 19th century British working-class experience.

The event will be free to attend, but spaces are limited.