The Nightwatchman’s Story

The Nightwatchman’s Story, March 1915. Photograph by Frank Hurley

There are some photographs that just stand out from the masses of images available online. The images by the Australian photographer Frank Hurley do just that.

The Guardian's excellent gallery of newly digitised images from Ernest Shackleton’s 1915 Endurance expedition really are an superb example of old photography being digitally scanned to reveal new detail.

There can be no doubt that Frank Hurley was a very talented photographer, although he regarded himself as primarily an artist rather than simply a recorder of events. 

He would go on to produce some powerful composite images during World War One, mixing images to add more drama, gaining criticism from some about documentary authenticity. 

The arguments about what makes a fake photograph raged on then as well as now.

A few years ago i visited the RRS Discovery in Dundee which Hurley had been aboard for the British Australian and New Zealand Antarctic Research Expedition (BANZARE) from 1929 to 1931.

The darkroom onboard ship was fascinating to see although very small. It was no bigger than a cupboard. I imagine it was very cosy with the door closed!

The Guardian's gallery of excellent Frank Hurley's images can be found at:

https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2026/jul/23/hed-lie-down-in-front-of-the-moving-ship-a-fresh-look-at-ernest-shackletons-endurance-expedition