In 1863 Samuel Bourne (1834-1912) arrived in India. He had left his job as a Nottingham bank clerk in order to develop a new career as a photographer. Bourne undertook three treks to Kashmir and the western Himalayas in 1863, 1864 and 1866, during which he photographed his surroundings extensively. He began his second trip, during which this photograph was taken, in March 1864. It was to be a nine-month expedition through the Kashmir region.

Throughout his travels Bourne wrote about his first impressions of the places he visited and these writings were published in the British Journal of Photography. Of Chamba (Chumba), he noted: “I left in a few days for Chumba, a small independent state belonging to the Rajah of that name. I found here three Europeans – the English resident at the Rajah’s court, the Government Conservator of Forests, and a missionary, all Scotchmen. They received me very kindly, and during my stay we all dined together two or three times a week, and spent some of those pleasant evenings which are characteristic of Englishmen (in which I of course include Scotchmen) when a few of them meet together, no matter in what corner of the globe it may be.
The appearance of Chumba is very picturesque. It is situated in the heart of the mountains, whose grassy slopes wore quite a pastoral aspect, and reminded me of the English lake district minus the lakes. The houses creep up the sides of the mountain, at the foot of which is a beautiful level of green or maidan, about 500 years long by 200 wide. This was formerly the choughan, where the ancient game of “hockey on horseback” was played. The game is still played in some parts of Northern India and Ladakh. Below this, at a distance of some 1,500 feet, runs the Ravee, a considerable river descending rapidly from the snows above. Chumba is a stronghold of Hindooism; though not a very large place, there could not be less than fifty Hindoo temples in it.” Bourne, S, Narrative of a Photographic Trip to Kashmir (Cashmere) and Adjacent Districts, The British Journal of Photography, 2 November 1866, p.524

Towards the end of the 1860s, Bourne established a partnership with fellow photographer and Englishman Charles Shepherd (fl. 1858-1878) and in the space of a few years Bourne & Shepherd became the pre-eminent photographic firm in India. By the end of 1870 they had three branches, in Simla, Calcutta and Bombay.

Samuel Bourne’s ability to combine technical skill and artistic vision has led to him being recognised today as one of the most outstanding photographers working in India in the nineteenth century.