Gezicht op top van Mount Hoffmann in de Yosemite Valley before 1868

This photograph of the summit of Mount Hoffmann in Yosemite Valley was made by W. Harris. It's an albumen print, a process involving paper coated with egg white to increase its sensitivity to light. The image's material quality has a direct impact on its appearance. Albumen printing yields fine detail and a distinctive sepia tone, which here captures the stark grandeur of the rock formation. The process involved meticulous work – coating the paper, exposing it to the negative, and then developing the print. In a sense, the photograph is a manufactured object as much as it is a natural one, the result of skilled labor, and chemical manipulation. Photography in this era was also tied to wider social issues. As Yosemite became a national park, images like this played a crucial role in promoting tourism and shaping perceptions of the American landscape, with all the political and economic implications that this entailed. So remember, when you look at any photograph, you're seeing the result of a material process, not just a reflection of the world.