Up the Valley, North Dome in Center, Sentinel on Left 1861

Carleton Watkins made this albumen print, 'Up the Valley, North Dome in Center, Sentinel on Left,' using a process that seems archaic to us now, but which was state-of-the-art in its day. Albumen printing involved coating paper with egg white and silver nitrate, then using a negative to expose the image to sunlight. The process demanded meticulous work, from preparing the glass plate negatives to the final print. The tonal range in this print is extraordinary, with deep blacks in the foreground grasses giving way to the sun-drenched, monumental rock formations. Watkins was not just documenting a place; he was instrumental in constructing an idea of sublime, untouched wilderness. His photographs, including this one, were presented as both scientific records and aesthetic objects, contributing to the growing environmental movement and ultimately influencing the creation of Yosemite National Park. Watkins’s work demonstrates how even a seemingly straightforward medium like photography can be deeply enmeshed with social and political forces.