Photographs | National Library of Australia (NLA)

Photographs

Showing 1 - 12 of 71 results
Painting of chrysanthemums

Ellis Rowan, Chrysanthemums, ca. 1890, nla.gov.au/nla.obj-138089294

Australian artist Ellis Rowan primarily worked in watercolour and gouache, and is best known for painting Australian native flowers. She caused a stir at the 1888–89 Centennial International Exhibition in Melbourne when her painting Chrysanthemums won First Order of Merit and Gold Medal. This similar painting, depicting the same type of flower, is a more recent addition to the Library's vast Rowan Collection, the bulk of which was acquired for the nation for £5,000 in 1923.

Pictures

Our rich and varied Pictures collection focuses on Australian people, places and events, from early European exploration of the South Pacific to contemporary events.

Information article
Action shot during a netball game as a women jumps up to prevent another from scoring

Rachel Bach, New South Wales player Jayda Grant preparing to shoot during the inaugural First Nations Netball Tournament, Melbourne, Victoria, 2024, nla.gov.au/nla.obj-3433581878

Photographs of the inaugural First Nations netball tournament

View photos from Australia's inaugural First Nations netball tournament, now in Trove.

Blog
Collection guide
Jones Collection

Negatives, transparancies, photographs, books, serials, personal papers and oral history interviews related to motorcycles, races and vintage cars.

Collection guide
Frank Hurley and Masly Williams looking towards Jerusalem

Frank Hurley, Frank Hurley and Maslyn Williams Looking Out Over the Kidron Valley Towards Jerusalem, Mount of Olives, Palestine, 1940?, nla.gov.au/nla.obj-151339245

Hurley Collection

Over 10,000 black and white negatives and colour transparencies, about 1000 exhibition prints, several photograph albums, a group of stereographs, plus maps, diaries and personal papers.

Collection guide
Collection guide
Ingram Collection

Photographs, programs, cast lists, souvenir booklets, invitations and ephemera relating to Australian ballet, plus personal papers of Geoffrey Ingram and Edouard and Xenia Borovansky.

Collection guide
Collection guide
Johnston Collection

Over 13,000 negatives, transparencies, and photographs of cattle stations taken between 1951 and 1961, as well as 52 British Hydrographic Office charts and maps of Australia and the Pacific and personal papers of Johnston.

Collection guide
Collection guide
Humphery Collection

About 6500 lantern slides, glass negatives and photographs, mostly of Australian ships, especially sailing ships.

Collection guide
Natasha Maimbo, a young woman of colour, standing in a mechanical engineering lab with pictures of telescopes behind her.
Celebrating women in STEM

New collection material online reveals stories of Australia’s women scientists.

Blog
A group of people at dusk standing beside small telescopes and pointing at the sky.

Philip Gostelow, Amateur astronomers gazing through telescopes into the night sky during the Murchison Astrofest, Western Australia, 17 August 2013, nla.gov.au/nla.obj-153314469 

Exploring the universe: Australia’s history with astronomy

Look to the stars with stories and collections that tell Australia's role in space exploration.

Blog
Collection guide
Hertz Collection

Books, pamphlets, photographs, posters and a small number of maps relating to war and aviation.

Collection guide
Collection guide
Ledgar Collection

421 photographs taken in the period 1858–1910 in Victoria, New South Wales, Tasmania and South Australia, mostly of public buildings, street scenes, rural scenes and events.

Collection guide
Photo of women from the dance group Bollydance Dipti in pink costumes taking a selfie in a crowd

Aishah Kenton, Bollydance Dipti dancers taking a selfie at the Indian Film Festival in Federation Square, Melbourne, Victoria, 17 August, 2024, nla.gov.au/nla.obj-3428627828

Indian Diaspora in Australia documented through photography and oral histories

We asked Australians with Indian heritage to help us build our collection and these materials are now online. 

News article

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