Seven Members of the Eynard Family

Jean-Gabriel Eynard took care to pose these Eynard family members in such a way as to create a casual portrait. Sophie Eynard, seated in profile at the center, anchors the photograph, evenly balanced by two adults and one child on each side. The daguerreotypist himself, the third head from the left, peers out between the boy in a diagonally striped smock and trousers and Sophie Eynard, who holds her child's hand to keep him from squirming. Despite the careful arrangement of figures, Eynard achieved the overall effect of a spontaneous, almost playful grouping. The closeness between the families could be guessed from their tight proximity.