Anna Atkins

Atkins used cyanotype photography to record botanical specimens directly, arranging algae on light-sensitive paper rather than relying on a drawn likeness. The illustrated Dictyota dichotoma sheet, dated about 1853, makes the approach visible. John Herschel's photographic process supplied the means; her botanical choices and patient printing supplied Photographs of British Algae. A scientific recording problem helped shape a remarkable photographic book.