F. Benedict Herzog

b. 1859 — d. 1912

F. Benedict Herzog American, about 1859-1912 Felix Benedict Herzog, a patent attorney, inventor, and pictorial photographer known for his elaborate, multifigure images, was born in New York City. An 1881 graduate of Columbia University, Herzog invented many electrical devices, telephone accessories, and improvements for telephone switchboards, including a police call system. Notices of his activity as a photographer appear in the years following 1900. In 1904 he joined the Camera Club of New York and in 1905, 1908, and 1910 took part in members exhibitions there. Five of Herzog's images were reproduced in Camera Work in October 1905 and January 1907. In 1905 his photographs also were displayed at the Lewis and Clark Exposition in Portland as well as in two international exhibitions. Two years later his work was discussed in The Century Magazine (May 1907) and Wilson's Photographic Magazine (December 1907). Noted for his great skill in handling drapery and posing groups of models, Herzog maintained a studio on upper Broadway where he created idealized compositions such as The Tale of Isolde, The Banks of Lethe, and Two Maids of St. Ives. Working in what critic Christian Brinton called the "grand style," Herzog often drew upon literature for his subject matter and sometimes combined negatives to achieve the desired effect in the final print. M.M.