Robertson used the wet-plate collodion photographic process invented in 1851. With this method he produced a glass negative from which beautifully detailed prints of his works could be produced.

For 40 years the Abdullah brothers photographed the people of Istanbul, its landscapes and various political and social events. The images were then collected into albums to illustrate the monuments, history and culture of Istanbul.

Felice Beato (1825–1903) was photographic assistant to Robertson. The photographs were processed using the wet-plate collodion process.

A technique Robertson used frequently in his works is the inclusion of one or more human figures in the foreground: indeed, this is something of a trademark of his work.

There were two main reasons for the use of figures in Robertson’s work: first, figures were used as a means of creating a more naturalistic scene; second, the figures provided one or more reference points for viewers, giving them an idea of scale and the dimensions of the scene as well as the size of elements contained within the frame.

This overpainted photograph is an important work from the standpoint of the history of photography. In every sense it is a coloured counterpart of two other portrait photographs by Robertson.

The photograph operated as a tool that it was thought could have a moral influence upon those who viewed them and had the ability to bring viewers closer to the locations of holy events.

The Orientalist studio photographers often placed female models in local dress within oriental decor.

Robertson sometimes overpainted his photographs with watercolours. His photographic works are concerned primarily with the city’s historical monuments of which he took a series of close-up views.

Robertson’s photographs of landscapes and monuments were usually printed in a 25cm x 30cm format.

A frequently employed device in Robertson’s Istanbul photographs is the inclusion of one or more human figures in the foreground.

James Robertson is the first photographer of Istanbul known to have taken 360-degree panoramic photographs of the city. The first panorama, which was taken in May 1854 from the Beyazıt Tower of the War Ministry, consists of 12 separate photographs.

The print is part of an album of different photographic views of Istanbul taken by the Abdullah Frères’ studio. The studio was run by three Armenian brothers who, in 1880, opened a headquarters in Istanbul.

A portrait with the subjects wearing typical Turkish costume. Their apparently easy pose and the setting are in absolute harmony with Orientalist aesthetics.

The Abdullah brothers were announced as the official photographers of the Ottoman Palace. Their early photographs of Istanbul were made for the palace archives.

Pascal Sébah, a pioneer of photography and a fine technician, worked in Istanbul. His reputation as a pioneer is seen in his well-organised, carefully lit compositions, the effective poses of his subjects and attention to detail, as well as the excellent print quality of his photographs.

The Abdullah brothers initiated the art of photography in Turkey. For 40 years they photographed the people of Istanbul, its landscapes and various political and social events. The images were then collected into albums to illustrate the monuments, history and culture of Istanbul.