“This is an ambitious and complex book, addressing a neglected area of photographic discourse and scholarship. Edwards sets out in very clear terms the methodology and ambitions of his project and delivers a rich and rewarding analysis of the ideological conditions that framed the rise of photography in Victorian Britain.” —Russell Roberts, Head of Photography & Senior Curator of Photographs (National Museum of Photography, Film & TV) “The Making of English Photography is based upon close readings of key nineteenth-century photographic journals, particularly The Photographic News, which was the most important of the numerous publications sponsored by the photographic associations of the day. Edwards’s vigorous attention to this extensive literature forms an invaluable contribution to art history’s grasp of the development of photography.” —Ellen Handy CAA Reviews “This is an important book. Edwards makes connections between Victorian photographs and the social and cultural transformations of machine labor that future scholarship will need take into account.” —Joanne Lukitsh Victorian Studies “Perhaps the greatest service this book provides is to enable and encourage departures in the intelligent directions its author has chartered for us here.” —Douglas R. Nickel Art Bulletin “One can hardly dispute any of the arguments Edwards puts forth in the book; the labor of meticulous research is not only clear at the level of the sentence, but the arguments are nuanced and very finely wrought.” —Zahid R. Chaudhary British Studies “Edwards’ book is extremely well written, and there is definite energy in his use of analogy and the methodological exactitude of his research.” —Sarah James Art History