One of New Zealand's leading mountain, landscape, flora and portrait photographers was Charles Beken.
He was the son of Thomas Beken and Eleanor Hurst born 11 September 1859 on board the immigrant ship "Zealandia" which sailed London 11 August 1859 - arrived Lyttelton 12 November 1859.
He was the son of Thomas Beken and Eleanor Hurst born 11 September 1859 on board the immigrant ship "Zealandia" which sailed London 11 August 1859 - arrived Lyttelton 12 November 1859.
The photograph below is one of Bekens which appeared in "The Flora of Mount Cook - A Handbook by Arnold Wall", (The Lyttelton Times Co., Christchurch, 1925). Many others grace the publication.
It was during the 1907 International Exhibition at Hagley Park in Christchurch that Beken got to know the West Coast doctor, and photographer, Dr. Ebenezer Teichelmann. They formed a .life-long friendship. Beken died 1 December 1944 aged 85 years. Beken's photos are spread amongst Te Papa, The National Library and Canterbury Museum.
I offer a word f caution for those researching NZ mountaineering history. Late last year while assisting the staff at Hokitika Museum identify some unmarked photographs in their extensive collection, I came across a number of superb photos taken by Beken. I can identify most photographs taken by Ebenezer Teichelmann, and in most cases, those of Henery Newton.
But where it becomes confusing is in that era, photographers shared photographs with one another. This was normally done to assist others to put together a more comprehensive lantern slide presentation.
But where it becomes confusing is in that era, photographers shared photographs with one another. This was normally done to assist others to put together a more comprehensive lantern slide presentation.
When examining photographic collections in Hokitika Museum last year I noticed how collections get mixed up. Teichelmann and Newton shared photos freely with each other. W.A. Kennedy was a friend of Teichelmann and a good photographer too. In fact, he sorted and annotated the doctor's collection and displayed them in albums. I picked up one of two mistakes in his captioning. Then you find photos of H.M ( Merle) Sweeney from Hokitika in other collections. I also found photographs taken by H.E.L Porter too.
But today with digital images, it even gets more confusing. If you are interested in reading more about Charles Beken, and viewing his photos go to an excellent blog, http://canterburyphotography.blogspot.co.nz/20…/…/beken.html These photos have been reproduced with their permission.
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