Rochester Savings Bank employees

In 1877, while working at the Rochester Savings Bank, George Eastman decided to travel to Santo Domingo with the aim of purchasing some property there as an investment. He needed to document the property in some way. He could bring along a reputable artist to draw the property he planned to buy, or he could learn photography and document it himself. He chose to take lessons from a local photographer and became so intrigued by the process that he canceled his trip and invested the money he had saved on more chemicals and photographic equipment.