TUTTLE AND CO.'S PHOTOGRAPHIC STUDIO.

Br Voice-Ha"wkins.

The enterprising gentlemen comprising the firm of Tuttle & Co. took the people of Melbourne by surprise some five years ago. Since then they have established studios and galleries in the principal cities of Australia. By careful attention to, and despatch of business, the elegance and attractiveness of their rooms, and the splendid finish of their work, they have earned a wide-spread reputation on the island continent, and lead the van there in the photographic art. The studio and gallery in Upper Queenstreet has been completed under the supervision of Mr George (one of the leading, partners of the firm), and beneath his eye the elegantly-decorated vestibule, waiting and operating rooms, have been perfected, and now command the admiration of theirnumerous patrons. The entrance to these handsome premisesis by the whole width of a richly-decorated [ vestibule, immediately on a level with and facing the footway. The floor is tessellated, after a neat design in bright-coloured encaustic tiles, and the walls are ornate with rows of elegantly-mounted show carSte, containing specimen photographs of colonial and other celebrities, including many frames of well known Auckland people, in different styles. From the vestibule you ascend by a broad staircase to suites of waiting and dressingrooms, and the operating rooms above. The general waiting and ladies' dressing rooms are very elegantly furnished and decorated. Brussels carpets cover the floors, while expensive metal papers line the walls.. The ceilings are pricked out in neutral tints,, and the mirrors, lounges, and furniture are of the latest aesthetic and English art designThe retiring rooms are fitted with lavatories and every requisite convenience. Exhibited on an easel is a coloured photograph on porcelain of Miss Maggie Knight ; dief d'ouvre,. a work of fine art, the artist being an Auckland lady of whom the firm are justly proud. The operating room is a capacious apartment, about 50 feet by 20 ; the walls and ceiling are painted in very bright colours. A great portion of the roof is of glass, and the blinds are so managed that any shade of light may be obtained. The camera is one of the latest American patents, and is fitted with a lens by ' Dalmeyer,' the best known maker int the world. This room, besides being supplied with all the various and numerous accessoriesof an operator's requirements, is furnished with some of the choicest works of art in backgrounds procurable in America, and specially painted for this studio. Attached 1 to this department is a dark room — chemical, enlarging, and copying room. Mr Henderson, the skilful operator who> has charge of this department, is from the well-known house of Bradley and Rulufson, of New York, where he was chief operator ;. while the firm is at the head of their profession. This gentleman is well supported by a. staff of twelve skilled assistants, including artistes from Europe and America. You now proceed by a flight of stairs ta the ground floor, where is the laboratory, and which is immediately at the rear of thevestibule. This is a large, roomy chamber,, and is provided with every convenience for the use of the workshop, as well as for the comfort of the employees. In this room the printing, enamelling, and retouching work is executed. There are long shallow wooden contrivances where the chemical matter iswashed off the prints, shelving for storing; negatives, racks, and all sorts of paraphernalia for the expeditious working of the business. There is a stove in this laboratory which conveys by means of pipes an equable heat all through the rooms during the cold winter weather. The firm have already made a great impression on the Auckland people by the splendid finish of their photography, and have undoubtedly a prosperous career before them in New Zealand.