Since the advent of photography, certain locations have proved popular with landscape and architectural photographers.
One enduring ‘view’ is the skyline of Durham in North East England with its distinctive castle and cathedral dating back to Norman times.
Down the years, successive generations have placed their tripods in roughly the same spot and unfailingly produced a successful shot.
A popular location has proved to be Durham railway station, opened in 1857, and which today continues to offer train passengers a panoramic vista as they travel on the East Coast line.
During the late-1860s, Thomas Heaviside (1828-1886), Durham’s first professional photographer, produced this carte de visite as number 12 in a set featuring views of his home city.
Following in his footsteps during the early 1890s was the pioneering press photographer James Edward Ellam (1857-1920).
He was still an enthusiastic amateur when he visited Durham with his stereo camera and captured this 3D version.
Ellam was also a popular lecturer with photographic societies and this lantern slide taken from the same stereo negative offers greater clarity.
By the time architectural photographer Ursula Clark (1940-2000) visited Durham in the 1960s, she decided to choose a slightly different vantage point.
Whilst some of the buildings in the shadow of the castle and cathedral had visibly altered, the vista was still recognisable.
If you wish to spend time looking at these three images more closely, visit my Instagram account @pressphotoman where you can swipe between them and travel through time.
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