Carte de Visite (CDV)

The carte de visite format was a very popular way to capture and share posed portraits, so the most distinguishing attribute is the subject matter and the size, about 2.5 × 4 inches. There may also be a small imprint from the photographer’s studio on the front of the print. Later versions sometimes included ornate branding from the photo studio on the back. These photo were often albumen prints mounted on rigid cards that were exchanged among friends and visitors. CDVs of French Emperor Napoleon III, Abraham Lincoln, and Ulysses S. Grant helped popularize the format. They were arguably the first “celebrity” photographs and people even collected and displayed them in albums in their Victorian parlors.

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