Rufus Choate

Albert Southworth was an American daguerreotypist and pioneer of photographic portraiture in the 19th century. Working in Boston from the 1840s onward, often in partnership with Josiah Johnson Hawes, Southworth refined techniques for capturing detail and tonal subtlety in portrait daguerreotypes at a scale and quality that set a standard for the medium. His meticulous hand-tinting and innovative use of lighting established daguerreotype as a serious alternative to painted portraiture. This profile will be expanded as more verified source material becomes available.