The First Birthday Party Photo, it doesn’t look really happy …

The First Birthday Party Photo belongs to the album of the family Dillwyn Llewelyn. John Dillwyn Llewelyn was a botanist and photographer who owed his early introduction to the invention of Photography to his wife, the inventor’s first cousin Emma Thomasina Talbot. The photo belongs to the First Family Album, Until Proven Otherwise, realized by Emma Charlotte DL’s daughter. The photos of that album were taken by different member of the family.

The First Birthday Party Photo is taken to celebrate Emma’s birthday (the 16 years old girl on the right set on the chair with a dark skirt). It’s the 23rd of September 1853 and Willy, Thereza, Lucy, Emma Charlotte, Johnny and Elinor pose in front of their estate Penllergare in Wales. 

The group photo has been taken with a great attention of the pose: they compose a kind of dynamic triangle, like an arrow pointed down on the left. To our contemporary eyes it looks more like a funeral photo, because none is smiling and looking to the camera. The reason of this apparently sadness is related to the long exposure, a huge prevention to the capture of open eyes and smile. From this birthday John Dillwyn Llewelyn took every year photos of his family’s birthday.