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EPS
Popular Meetings
Comments
-1860s
The
First Popular Meeting
The
first EPS Popular Meeting was held in George Street Hall in 1861.
The British Journal of Photography reported that:
"every
part of the hall was densely crowded by the Members and their friends,
nearly one-half of those present being ladies."
The
Second Popular Meeting
The
second Popular
Meeting in 1861 was held at Dowell & Lyon's large Hall, George
Street. It was reported that:
"The
Hall was quite filled with members and friends, a great number of ladies
being present. Mr Moule’s patent photogen was next exhibited.
A small quantity of a peculiar powder was ignited in the lantern-looking
apparatus in a receptacle for the purpose, and the light generated was
of such a nature as to admit of a photograph being taken with an
ordinary camera in little more than a dozen of seconds. Some
gentlemen from the audience then sat for their portraits"
Admission
Charge
Initially
there was no charge for admission to the Popular Meetings; but at the
EPS AGM in 1863 it was agreed that only members would be allowed free
entry, and a small charge would be made for others.
The charge was subsequently set at 6d.
Popular
meetings continued to be well attended.
In 1863 they were held at
St Cecilia’s Hall.
At
the Annual General Meeting in 1864, there was discussion as to whether
the public should be admitted free to Popular Meetings, or whether they
should be admitted , as in the previous season, by ticket at 6d each.
A compromise was reached;
it was agreed that one free ticket should be issued for each
Popular Meeting to each member, for admission of
a friend.
Mr
Pouncy and the PSS
One
of the rare occasions when the EPS and PSS (Photographic Society of
Scotland) publicly acknowledged the existence of the other was at the
EPS AGM in 1864.
The EPS Members received an invitation from PSS to attend a PSS
Popular Meeting on 13 December 1864,
to meet Mr Pouncy who would explain his carbon process.
Subjects
of Popular Meetings
At
about half of the Popular Meetings in the 1860s, lantern slides of
Britain were shown. At almost all the remainder lantern slides of
places abroad were shown.
Four
EPS photographers - Mr Davis, Mr Musgrave, Mr McGlashon and Mr Burns -
supplied
slides for Views
of Old Edinburgh in
1866.
George
W Wilson of Aberdeen provided the pictures for two lectures on Highlands
of Scotland and Land’s
End to John o’ Groats.
Magic
Lanterns - 1865
On
23 March
1865, Popular Meetings moved to 117 George Street. The first of the
dealt with the Construction and Application of the Magic Lantern.
The subject of the lecture was the
sources and scenery of the Niagara and St Lawrence Rivers - with
illustrations
Some
of the illustrations were opaque / others transparent - requiring the
use of two lanterns
Magic
Lanterns - 1869
There was further discussion of the Magic Lantern four years
later - a description and exhibition of Chadburn’s New Lantern.
Magic
Lanterns were to be the used to display lantern slides at Popular
Meetings for the next 30 years - initially by the oxyhydrogen light.
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