It’s magic: a short history of magic lantern collecting in the PHSC community

# What the post covers

The PHSC blog entry "it's magic …" (Aug 8, 2026) explains a small corner of photographic history: magic lanterns and lantern slides. It's a short, factual post that ties a historical image and a collector's interest to an older PHSC journal issue and describes how members can access related material.

# Who and what are central

Professor M. Lindsay Lambert of Ottawa is the named collector. His collecting focus is on lantern slides — the small glass images that were used in magic lanterns. The post uses one of his lantern-slide portraits as the cover shot for PHSC issue 28-2.

Editor Lansdale provides a brief explanatory note in the journal: collecting photographic hardware can demand a lot of storage, especially large studio cameras and stands. Lantern-slide collecting takes up less space and invites a different challenge: fitting found pieces to photographic history. Lansdale's comment appears on the inside cover of issue 28-2.

# Where to read more in PHSC

Members can read Lambert's article on pages 12 and 13 of the PDF for issue 28-2. That PDF is included on the free members-only DVD/thumb drive. The post gives a direct membership call-to-action: joining or renewing is described as easy and inexpensive, with an email address provided for membership questions (member@phsc.ca).

# Membership and events mentioned

The PHSC site lists membership options and how to join or renew. It also publishes a schedule of events and meetings: monthly meetings (usually third Wednesday by Zoom/Eventbrite, January–June and September–December), several auctions and fairs during the year, and a trunk sale. The post repeats the broader site practice of posting news, membership info, and resources for collectors.

# Why this matters to a reader interested in photographic history

# Quick practical next steps

• If you want the Lambert article, join PHSC or contact member@phsc.ca for access to the members-only DVD/thumb drive.
• Check the PHSC events listings for auctions, fairs, and trunk sales where lantern slides or related materials might appear.

# Bottom line

The blog post is a concise pointer: it uses a lantern-slide portrait as a cover image to connect a collector's practice to PHSC's archival resources, and it tells readers where to go within PHSC to read more.