Composite photographs are made by cutting the image of various individuals from separate portraits and pasting them together onto a painted or photographed background.
During the second half of the 19th century, photography required its subjects to pose for relatively long periods of time. This made it difficult for photographers to assemble several people and keep them still long enough to create a group portrait. Composite photography enabled photographers to overcome the technological limitations of the day. The Notman studio in Montreal produced several of these composite photographs, occasionally grouping together as many as 300 different subjects.
Find out how a composite photograph is made: Gallery
