Remarkable 1860s carte de visite depicting two women in matching dark dresses, posed in a studio with a large format bellows camera on a tall wooden tripod. Each woman holds part of the camera in a commanding gesture, suggesting not merely a novelty pose but genuine involvement in the photographic process. Pencil inscription on the mount reads, “The Bonny Sisters,” and the verso bears the imprint of A. Denison, Ottawa, Ohio.

Female photographers were exceedingly rare in the mid-19th century, and images showing women with cameras are almost never encountered in the CDV format. The present example is a compelling and possibly unique period view of women actively engaged in early photography.