Photochrom or photochrome prints are color prints created from a black-and-white photograph. These images were mass-produced between 1890 and 1910, typically in the form of postcards. Below is a collection of photochromes showing harbors around the world. A second page shows postcards that focus more on sailing boats and steamers.
I consider the image below a classic example of good composition for landscape photography: an interesting foreground is combined with the main topic in the middle while the buildings keep the background relevant. The contours of the hills in the distance add to the atmosphere.
Look at that spectacular sky! Saint-Malo is a port city in Brittany, in France’s northwest.
For Hamburg I added the very colorful first image specifically because of that dramatic sky.
The old and the new together on one image, with a steamer pulling a sailing ship into the harbor (or harbour, since these are British ships).
The composition of the postcard below is pretty funny as it gives the impression that the ships are locked up in this tiny harbor.
I love that there is a printing company located in the harbor of Algiers in the picture below. It is a bit difficult to see on this low resolution image but that white building in the centre is Imprimerie Jourdan.
There aren’t that many photochrom postcards showing paddle steamers. These are the ships powered by a steam engine that drives paddle wheels to propel the craft through the water. This was the predominant way of propulsion for steam-powered boats in the early 19th century. When these postcards were printed in the late 19th century the more efficient screw propeller had already taken over.
Can’t get enough of these historic photos? Check out additional photochroms of North America, England, Ireland and the European continent.