Stéréo-Éditions F. Meiller was founded by Fernand Meiller and was located at 71, Boulevard Lamoureux and it also had a shop at 39, Rue Gracieuse in Paris. It was a very prominent seller and publisher of World War I stereoviews. The company published and sold 45 x 107, 6 x 13 glass slides and stereocards. The stereoviews were sold under their own brand and delivered in their own cardboard boxes. In addition, as a publisher it probably also supplied stereoviews to other sellers who resold the images, whether or not under their own name. 45 x 107 glass stereoview with paper label by Stéréo-Éditi ..read more

The Alignements du Petit Ménec is a smaller site and less impressive, but it’s located in the woods and not surrounded by fences. You can walk around freely between the stones without seeing anyone. A nice rustic place to just sit and think for a while. It’s my last day in Carnac. I enjoyed my staying and I’m happy with my photos. Tomorrow I will be heading for Normandy ..read more

The battery on the beach at Leffrinckoucke was initially a disappointment. The concrete bunkers were heavily painted with graffiti so it was impossible to shoot good images. I really hate graffiti because the (most of the time) ugly paintings are very distracting from the actual subject I want to capture. I walked a little further and my eye fell on some small concrete structures, which probably have been observation posts. They were very photogenic and my mood changed immediately. The soft light was perfect and I was able to create some good images ..read more

Today my journey to Normandy and Brittany begins. The main objective is to photograph the imposing megaliths of Carnac. I will follow the route along the Atlantic coast so that I can also photograph a number of Atlantikwall fortifications. The first stop is Feldbatterie Bamburg near Middelkerke. It’s an interesting site because the battery is still almost intact. The bunkers are located in a nature reserve and are unfortunately surrounded by fences. The light was also very hard due to the bright afternoon sun. Nevertheless, I am very pleased with this image of a bunker that was blown up when t ..read more

The soldiers are part of La Section Photographique de l’Armée. This photography unit of the French army was established during the First World War in 1915. The SPA consisted of five different units. The soldiers in the photo are part of the technicians who were responsible for developing the negatives that were taken by the photographers at the front. At the end of 1917, the technical unit consisted of 58 people and was led by Lieutenant Marcel Jougla. He was a member of the Jougla family that produced photographic negatives and papers. Interesting detail is that these Jougla products were als ..read more

Related post: A. Mattey Stereoscopes ..read more

When I arrived most of the fog was already gone. This dolmen is located in a beautiful landscape, but I couldn’t capture the atmosphere I was looking for. After some fruitless attempts, I decided to go home and return another time. As I walked away and looked back, the sun broke through and the light was scattered by the mist. I chose an 85mm lens to isolate the dolmen and capture it against the background of the trees ..read more

The photo is a 13 x 18 cm gelatin silver print, dated March 21, 1916 and taken at an altitude of 2000m. Fort Saint-Michel is in the upper right corner. The battle of Verdun had started exactly one month earlier on February 21, 1916. The great destruction, as can be seen on later aerial photos, is missing from this photo and the fort is still intact. The photo was taken by an airplane of the French Escadrille M.F. 63. This unit was founded on August 24, 1915 and was allocated to the fortified city of Verdun from October 1915. From March 2, 1916 it was stationed in Souilly, southwest of Verdun ..read more

It’s a 1,5 hour drive from my hometown to the dolmens in Drenthe. There was a possibility of fog at dawn and I decided to take the chance. I woke up at 3am and at 4am I was heading for Drenthe. Fog in the summer usually disappears quickly after sunrise. I drove to Anloo and after a short walk I arrived at hunebed D11. A thin layer of fog covered the fields and disappeared after an hour. I’m very pleased with this image. It was worth the trip and getting up early ..read more

For a brief introduction about Smith, Beck & Beck, I refer to my post about the company’s book stereoscope. At first glance, this stereoscope looks like a multi viewer, but in fact it has more in common with a handheld stereoscope mounted on a base plate. The base plate folds into its storage box which serves as a stand. Stored in the box, the base plate of the viewer becomes the cover and two locks hold the assembly together. The stereoscope is suitable for 8,5 x 17 cm stereocards or glass transparancies. A mirror can be placed in two brass arms to illuminate the glass stereoviews. The vi ..read more