Beattie's Studio in Cat & Fiddle arcade Hobart was once the place to go for portrait photography, weddings and special events. From the 1930s when the Stephenson family bought it until 1993 when the doors closed, there were over 100,000 photographic sessions. Each session might consist of a number of photos. A wedding might be 100 photos or more.

All the negatives were retained by the studio and have now been deposited with the Tasmanian Archives, Libraries Tasmania. Sadly, a few succumbed to fires, floods and chemical break down and hence are lost forever. From the late 1950s onwards, the film and storage methods had improved and virtually all of those negatives are still on file. Prior to 1955, it can be hit or miss.

If you want to view and/or order copies of your Beattie's photos, please contact Libraries Tasmania. If the negatives still exist, they would be happy to help. 

There are three ways to contact Libraries Tasmania:

online chat

research request form

telephone 6165 5538 

Here is a link to the Libraries Tasmania’s Help with research and finding information page and a link to the catalogue information for the Beattie Negatives.