Practical Photography

West Yorkshires National Media Museumis showcasing a new photography exhibition entitled - Sunny Snaps: it is a collection of Beach and Street Photography throughout Britain. The images celebrate the lesser known photographers the British seaside photographer.

The commercial photographer, or ’smudger’ was as visible on the British seaside Punch and Judy or good old fish and chips, but you never see them recognised in photography books as some of the best photographers in their era?  These photographers were an integral part of society and provided us with many pictures of life at the beaches over the past century for the history books, memorabillia and nostalgia.

British Beach photography tells the story of the rise and fall of the typical seaside resort. Throughout the nineteenth century,the expeditions to the seaside once reserved for the wealthy became a popular holiday destination for the masses, smudgers or beach photographers would use mobile dark rooms to produce cheap ‘while you wait’ pictures for tourists.

As with all technology, cameras became more portable and beach photography became a lucrative business, photographers had their own ‘pitch’ and would sell family portraits, beach pictures and novelty pictures with props to day trippers.

As the popularity of holidays abroad increased and cameras became more affordable to the everyday person the seaside photographer became all but extinct.

Go to the exhibition in Bradford Media Museum in Gallery 2 and see the once loved beaches from all over Britain and the families who frollicked on them.

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