| This study considers The American Amateur Photographer (with a run 1889--1907) in the context not only of the history of photography and within the world of amateur photography in particular, but also the way in which the magazine, its editors, contributing authors (including subscribers) and photography reproduced in the magazine were germinal in the development and furtherance of photography as a field. The magazine did not simply report changes in photography, its uses, conventions, and its wide ranging dialectics; the editors and readers were direct participants in changing and creating work practices, equipment and processes, as well law, social and cultural perception, economics and art as and in relation to photography. A close relationship characterized the interaction between manufacturers and dealers as well as the clubs and societies in ways which encouraged the highest ethics and standards of quality for photography in all its dimensions.; Changes in business practices, the rise of professions and the introduction of "push button" photography all contributed to the shift in meaning and practice of amateur photography (which had never excluded paid work), and its decline as the pinnacle of photography.; Women were significant participants in the practice of photography from its beginnings and worked in the field at every level, from owning and working in studio photography, to writing, teaching, lecturing and as amateur photographers of note. While sometimes contested territory, women also participated significantly in the amateur clubs and societies which admitted them. The magazine was the first to carry a column specifically for women and encouraged them in the practice of photography for both work and pleasure.; Notable editors include F. C. Beach, Catharine Weed Barnes Ward, Alfred Stieglitz, Frank Roy (F. R.) Fraprie, John Nicol, M.D. John H. Janeway, M.D. was a major and important technical contributor to the magazine as was George Davison. |
