Advancements in Photographic Technology
The invention of a multi-lens camera with a repeating back made this possible. Using what is called a “four-tube” camera (with four lenses), the photographer could produce four separate exposures on one half of the glass plate negative and then shift the plate to take four more exposures on the other half. This multi-lens camera gave the photographer the ability to uncap all four lenses at once or each one individually, resulting in either eight identical images or eight separate poses. This allowed photographers to sell multiple images at a low cost compared to earlier processes. The negative would then be printed onto photosensitive paper, cut into eight individual photographs, and mounted to standard-sized card stock, creating a carte-de-visite (1860-1890), also known as a “CDV” or “carte.” These pocket-sized photographs, measuring in at 2 ⅜” x 4 ¼”, were a visual spinoff of the Victorian Era calling card and became widely used throughout the Civil War.
The multi-lens camera revolutionized the mass production and affordability of photographs, allowing more people to have their photographs taken than ever before.
