Mrs. Herbert Duckworth, ("A Beautiful Vision") 1872

"Mrs. Herbert Duckworth, ("A Beautiful Vision")" is a 1872 portrait photograph by Julia Margaret Cameron. This image depicts a close-up of a young woman's face, her features softened by a slight blur. The subject is framed in an oval mat and the image captures a sense of introspective beauty, a trademark of Cameron's style. The soft focus of the photograph is attributed to Cameron's use of a large-format camera and a shallow depth of field, which gives the image a romantic, dreamlike quality. This photograph, now in the collection of The Art Institute of Chicago, embodies Cameron's distinctive approach to portraiture, emphasizing the inner life and emotional depth of her sitters.