Collections

The Museum's diverse collections encompass some of the best, most significant and important visual material to be found anywhere in the world.

Our collection of photographs contains key images by the most influential photographers of our time including Julia Margaret Cameron, Anna Atkins, Martin Parr and Eve Arnold, and includes the world's first negative and the pre-eminent William Henry Fox Talbot Collection. In 2003 we acquired the world famous Royal Photographic Society Collection.

The Museum's extensive collection of photographic technology contains equipment from early photography to current innovative practice. It includes The Kodak Museum Collection: a major collection of equipment which tells the story of popular photography.

The Cinematography Collection comprises equipment relevant to the filmmaking process. It includes equipment by eminent pioneers such as Auguste and Louis Lumière, Robert W Paul, Charles Pathé and Charles Urban, and unique and important objects such as the Le Prince cameras, the Varley camera, the Marey Chronophotographic equipment, apparatus by Freise Greene, Birt Acres and examples of an early Edison Kinetoscope and Kinetophone.

Television is strongly represented and incorporates an unrivalled collection of objects relating to the history and development of television: John Logie Baird's 1923 experimental apparatus, a diverse range of television receivers, the Thames Television camera collection and a major archive of television commercials.

Photography Collection

Iago by Julia Margaret Cameron

Photography Collection
Explore an online selection of the Museum's extensive Photography collection.

Television Collection

Bush TV22

Television Collection
Explore an online selection of the Museum's extensive Television collection.

The Commons

The Commons on Flickr

The Commons on Flickr
The National Media Museum displays some its collections on Flickr as part of The Commons project. You're very welcome to view the images and add comments to the selections.

Contact Us

If you are interested in arranging a visit to Insight: our Collections and Research Centre, or just have an enquiry about our collections, please contact us