Street Life in London

Street Life in London was a 1877 publication of a collaboration between the radical social journalist Adolphe Smith and Scottish photographer John Thomson. It was published by Sampson Low, Marston, Searle and Rivington, in London. == Synopsis ==

The book gives the reader an insight into the daily lives of working class and poor Londoners. It is arranged around photographs by Thomson with accompanying text by Smith. The texts are brief, but include detail, including information from interviewing the photograph's subjects. Subjects include flower-sellers, chimney-sweeps, shoe-blacks, chair-caners, musicians, dustmen and locksmiths. == Reception ==

Street Life in London is considered the first or at least one of the earliest examples of social documentary photography. The book described its aim "to bring before the public some account of the present condition of the London street folk, and to supply a series of faithful pictures of the people themselves." == References ==