The Groome willow, Dorchester before 1890

This is an image titled "The Groome Willow, Dorchester" made by Henry Brooks. Photographs like this one are made with light, time, and a lot of industrial manufacturing. In the late nineteenth century, when this image was likely made, photography was quickly becoming democratized. New and improved materials such as celluloid film made it easier for amateur photographers to capture images of their surroundings. What do you think Henry Brooks wanted to capture by photographing the Groome Willow? Was it the tree itself, or the nature surrounding a house in Dorchester? Or was he more interested in demonstrating his mastery of the photographic process? Whatever the artist's intention, "The Groome Willow, Dorchester" is evidence of photography's power to capture a sense of place, while showing the skill and labor necessary to produce a photograph. This artwork reminds us that the value of a photograph resides not only in its subject, but in the materials, technology, and labor that make it possible.