Henry Fox Talbot

Lore & Background

Talbot was born in Melbury House in Dorset, the only child of William Davenport Talbot and Lady Elisabeth Fox Strangways. Educated at Rottingdean, Harrow School, and Trinity College, Cambridge, he graduated as twelfth wrangler in 1821 and won the Porson Prize in Classics in 1820. He was elected to the Royal Society in 1831 for work on integral calculus and researched optics, chemistry, electricity, etymology, cuneiform decipherment, and ancient history. From 1822 to 1872 he communicated papers to the Royal Society, including mathematical and optical subjects.

Talbot invented a process for reasonably light-fast permanent photographs, the first made available to the public, though neither the first invented nor first announced. After Louis Daguerre's daguerreotype announcement in early January 1839, Talbot asserted priority based on experiments from early 1834. He exhibited paper photographs from 1835 at the Royal Institution on 25 January 1839 and communicated his process to the Royal Society. His early salted paper process used paper bathed in table salt and silver nitrate, requiring long exposures. He devised chemical stabilization to prevent further darkening, enabling positive prints.

The calotype (or talbotype) used silver iodide and a developing agent (gallic acid and silver nitrate) to reduce exposure to a minute or two. Talbot announced it in 1841 and licensed Henry Collen as the first professional calotypist. He received the Rumford Medal in 1842. In 1852, he discovered that dichromated gelatine becomes less soluble when exposed to light, a key step in his development of the photoglyphic engraving process, a forerunner of photogravure. His later work focused on photomechanical reproduction, creating the photoglyphic engraving process.

Reader's Guide

Talbot's significance lies in his foundational contributions to photography. His salted paper and calotype processes were the first to produce reasonably permanent photographs and allowed multiple positive prints from a single negative, unlike the daguerreotype. This negative-positive concept became the basis for nearly all photography for over a century. His patent, however, sparked controversy: he charged professional photographers up to £300 annually while lowering amateur fees to £4, and critics saw patenting as hindering scientific progress. Talbot defended it by citing his £5,000 investment. His work on photomechanical reproduction, particularly the photoglyphic engraving process, paved the way for photogravure, enabling mass reproduction of photographic images in ink. The Pencil of Nature, illustrated with original salted paper prints, demonstrated photography's artistic potential. His discovery of dichromated gelatine's light sensitivity later influenced carbon printing and holography. Talbot's legacy is that of a polymath whose inventions shaped both the technical and commercial development of photography.

Did You Know?

• Talbot was elected to the Royal Society in 1831 for his work on the integral calculus.
• He published The Pencil of Nature (1844–1846), illustrated with original salted paper prints from his calotype negatives.
• In 1842, he received the Rumford Medal of the Royal Society for his photographic discoveries.
• He discovered in 1852 that gelatine treated with potassium dichromate becomes less soluble when exposed to light, which he applied to his photoglyphic engraving process.