The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-09-19
eREwsoME PaoFoaRAPHY.
A New York Experts Singular spe-
cialty. ave.
From the New York Press.

From the New York Press.
Oscar G. Mason is the most expert hos
pital photographer in the country, and a
photographer for fun. He may be found
six days out of seven in the skylight of
Bellevue hospital. A vacation he would
consider a flippant thing, suited to young
boys and women who have nothing to do.
He has New England face and a patri-
archial beard, and has held his position
for a quarter of a century. Photography
is a hobby, an art and a JOY forever with
him.
Although he gives Bellevue the dis
tinction of being the only hospital in the
country which has a photographer of its
own. he has never been paid penny Tor
his services He never asked for remun-
GRAFTON, and if it were offered TO him he
would refuse.
Mr.. Mason was once as great an expert
in astronomical photography as he is now
in surgical photography. He began the
study of that while he was head photo
grapher for some of the big studios up
town Then he devoted all of his time TO
it for while until one day he got a di-
vorce from the old hobby and took on a
new one-the photographing of surgical
operations and hospital scenes. He went
to the Bellevue authorities and they
agreed to give him nest up in the sky
! light where he and his strange instru-
ments might live in the seclusion as long
as he desired
He hadn't been in the hospital long
when he thought it would be good plan
to photograph all Of the unidentified
bodies at the morgue. Since 1868 he had
| photographed the face of every arrival at
! the death chamber down at the river
front. Sometimes, after two or three
| years have passed, relatives of the un-
| fortunate have found out how friend
disappeared by seeing his features upon
one of the gruesome cards in the cabinet
which is kept in the morgue office
When an eminent surgeon wants some
pictures of an operation for a medical
work he goes to Mr.. Mason who has been
so long in his present occupation that he
is something of a surgeon himself The
most wonderful portraits of the brain
ever made were done by him 1t is quite
impossible for laymau to appreciat to the
difficulties which he has to encounter max
ing photographs of an operation Blood
Is the hardest thing TO photograph real
istically. The picture for the surgeon
must show everything in manner as
true to the real as possible, so that other
surgeons and students may unders tand
the case by looking at the picture. There
is little time for posing when a patient is
under the knife, and the skill of the pho
tographer must be the skill Of dizziness
and not of elaboration.
To accomplish all of these things has
been the constant study for quarter of
a century of the portly, white-haired old
gentleman, who is always very busy, al.
ways good-natured, and receives scores of
medical bigwigs in his skylight studio.
Just how such genial old gentleman
with such twinkle in his eye can take
delight in so grewsome an occupation,
when he might make a great success, and
money as well, taking pictures of good
looking and well-dressed persons, is a
wonder to the surgeons themselves.
Doubtless, If Mr.. Mason had become a
writer of fiction instead OF photographer
he would have been a realist of drier
stamp than Zola.