The photo used in this print was taken from The Northwood Collection which is owned by John Edmonds, proprietor of the web site www.northwoodcollection.net.nz and FarNorthPhoto Ltd. John's grandfather is Richard Alfred Northwood, who was one of the three brothers that took these historical black and white photos.

The photos in the Northwood Collection are in a digital format and were scanned from original Northwood photographic glass plates or prints. All of this photographic material shows some signs of age. This can range from fading and scratches to cracked and broken glass plates. The main problem found is the breaking down of the photo chemical coating which then shows up as tiny blotches or even worse as "blooming". All of the photographic material has this last problem in varying degrees.

John Edmonds has not only been acquiring these photos over several years but he has developed restoration techniques for them. Each photo restoration can take up to two hours but the results are startling in their clarity. The restored photo shows what the photographer saw in great detail and at the same time displays a slice of history.

John has been working on identifying the photo locations, the naming of the people and the events in the photos. There is a computer database available now where if a name is typed in it is possible to bring up associated photos. For further information on this contact can be made by going to the web site below and also more photos from The Northwood Collection can be viewed there.