Early Lightning Photograph (Massachusetts,1888)

Wakefield, Massachusetts: np, 1888. First edition. Custom box. Very Good. ONE OF THE EARLIEST PHOTOGRAPHS OF LIGHTNING. This striking photograph by Alfred H. Binden (1837 England - 1892 United States) is among one of the earliest photographs of lightning. When Binden captured the image from his home in Wakefield, Massachusetts during a summer storm in 1888, he created a valuable tool for better understanding the natural phenomenon that was often referred to as "electric fluid" in that time.

The photograph was a sensation. It was exhibited in newsrooms and bookstores throughout the country where viewers were encouraged to examine its details with a magnifying glass. Contemporary news reports describe it as "a most interesting picture as showing...the [electrical] current has a sinuous or rotary motion, being twisted like a rope or ribbon during its progress to the Earth." Articles about the photograph circulated for the next few years and in 1892 The Boston Herald wrote that Binden's lightning photograph provided "proof of the wonderful power of photography to reproduce instantaneous effects". Binden's own obituary notes that the photograph "'attracted considerable attention for the particular clearness and definition of the flash"' and was seen by thousands of viewers.

Like Eadweard Muybridge's groundbreaking images of a galloping horse, Binden's image was valued for revealing the unexpected complexity of familiar things. During the late 1800's photography played an increasingly important role in understanding the natural world. Here, Binden magnifies the inherent abstraction of lightning by allowing multiple lightning strikes to be recorded in the span of a single extended exposure. The photograph itself was made possible by advancements in chemistry as by the late 1870s the sensitivity of photographic emulsions had increased significantly, allowing Muybridge, Binden and countless others to explore a new world of natural phenomena. Binden's ability to capture the fleeting moment when a bolt of lightning flashes is among the most notable in the field of 19th century photography.

Size of photo: approx. 5 7/8" x 8". With matte: 10" x 12".

Albumen photograph, flush on original matte. Housed in handsome custom presentation box. Taken in summer 1888, Wakefield, Massachusetts. Copyrighted A.H. Binden, 1888 on negative. Photograph in remarkably good condition with only one shallow crease near the top right. Residue from original adhesive in base matte around photo (hidden by over matte). A rare survival of a fascinating and historically important photo.