This carte de visite portrait features a young girl wearing a plaid dress and holding a hoop and stick toy. The photographer of this photo is J. Ernest Forest and he operated a studio in Bordeaux, France. Advertising on the reverse of the cdv indicates that the studio won prizes at exhibitions in Bordeaux and Paris.This photograph is in good condition (see scans). A look at the top of the backside of the cdv reveals that this photo is likely a former resident of a photo album or picture frame. (SOLD)
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This original carte de visite photograph features a cute little girl sitting on a fur covered chair. Judging by the expression on her face, she is not sure how to interpret the situation she finds herself in. The photographer of this cdv image is Henri Heil. He operated a studio in La Ferte-Bernard, France. This carte de visite is slightly bowed but in overall good condition (see scans).
The pretty young woman seen in this carte de visite portrait, is named Anna Lesian. An inscription on the reverse of the cdv reveals her name and the year (1890) that the photograph was taken. The photo was taken at the studio of A. Liebert, in Paris, France. The Getty Museum, located in Los Angeles, California, as well as other fine museums, have photographs in their collections by Paris photographer, Alphonse J. Liebert (1827-1913). Many of his Parisian subjects were actresses. Perhaps Miss Lesian is one of those actresses. Mr. Liebert has an interesting story. He was a photographer in Nevada City, California (1857-1862), and later, operated in Paris (1863-1890’s). He was born in France. He became an officer in the French Navy. He left the navy in 1848 to study daguerreotypy. He must have reenlisted in the navy because In 1851, he arrived in San Francisco, as a Lieutenant on a French ship. This was a time when there was much excitement about Gold mining. As a result, there was a mass desertion of the ship’s crew. The sailors joined the rush for gold. Liebert had in mind, his own venture. He and two partners decided to take on the project of refurbishing a steamship. They sought investors and hired workers to transform the ship. However, due to the partners inexperience, the venture failed. Liebert than tried gold mining but met little success. In 1857 he opened a photo gallery in Nevada City. He lost thousands of dollars after a fire in 1858. In 1859 Liebert ridiculed a former photography pupil of his, named Louis Celarie, in the press. This started a bitter professional feud. Soon after, Liebert announced that he had won a medal at the state fair. Unfortunately, there was no evidence to confirm this claim. The competition between Liebert and Celarie was fierce. Each offered special promotions to best the other. By 1861, Liebert triumphed, evidenced by the sale of Celarie’s studio. About a year later, Liebert sold his photo gallery. By 1863, he had returned to France and opened a gallery specializing in tintypes. Liebert closely identified with his photography experience in America, and as a result, he named his Paris gallery “Photographie Americaine”. That very name can be seen on the reverse of this CDV. Liebert began to write photography articles and books, and ultimately, invented a prototype solar camera. In 1867, Liebert had a problem with the law. He was sentence to two months in prison and levied a fine of 200 francs. He was charged for the intent to distribute banned post mortem photographs. These were not photos of some random person. Instead, they were images of Emperor Maximillian, who had been executed in Mexico. Liebert ultimately did exhibit these photos. Liebert was becoming more and more successful. His photo gallery was so lavish that a reviewer for the British Journal of Photography wrote that it was “worthy of the smiles of the ‘God of Light’, and a repository for some of the best productions of the photographic art”. In 1879, Liebert’s gallery was the first studio to utilize electric light. By 1880, he was considered to have the most impressive photo studio in Paris. This carte de visite portrait has excellent clarity and is in very good condition (see scans). 
A young child and dog pose for their portrait at the photo studio of Dietrich and White in Chemnitz, Germany. On the reverse of the cdv, photographer White is further identified as “Joh Carl White”. Chemnitz is a city in eastern Germany. To be more exact, it is located in Saxony. 
Paul Metzner & Sons studio took this carte de visite portrait of a pretty young woman. Her dress is lace trimmed and she is wearing earrings and a necklace. The photographer is located in Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland. The city is located in the Jura mountains and is just a few kilometers south of the French border. This cdv is in good condition (see scans).
This carte de visite photograph features a dashing young man with an imposing mustache. He is elegantly dressed in formal clothing. The photo was taken by the Beckel studio in Zurich, Switzerland. The cdv photograph was taken sometime shortly after 1895. The date is apparent because the reverse of the image advertises some of the awards received by the studio. The last award listed is from an exhibition in Glarus (Switzerland) in 1895, revealing that this image was created after that year. This carte de visite photograph is in excellent condition (see scans). 
This carte de visite features a gentleman in some sort of uniform which includes a cap and sash. He appears very “official”. Is he a military veteran? Is he a train conductor or a law enforcement officer? The photographer of this image is F. Steffen. He operated a studio in Erlangen, Germany. The city is located in the Bavarian region of Germany. The Cabinet Card Gallery has another photograph by Steffen in it’s collection. You may view the image by placing the word “Steffen” in this site’s search box. This cdv photograph is in very good condition (see scans).
This cartes de visite features a pretty young woman posing for her portrait at the Heron studio in Montlucon, France. She is well dressed and well coiffed. She appears to be holding back a full smile. Her eyes are bright and engaging. Preliminary research yielded little information about Monsieur Heron. The Cabinet Card Gallery exhibits another photograph by Heron. That image is a photo of a bride and groom. It can be seen by entering the name “Heron” in the search box. Montlucon, the studio’s home, is a town in central France on the Cher River. Adolphe Heron (1865-?) was born in Rotterdam, Netherlands. He got married in Paris (1887) and at that time he was working as a photographer there. He began working in Montlucon in 1893. This cdv photograph is in very good condition (see scans).
