Early photography was a bulky, finicky endeavour – and an exciting one, at the cutting edge of technology. A major collection of daguerreotypes, stereoviews, early cameras and what used to be called photographic ephemera has just been bought by the Archive of Modern Conflict’s Toronto outpost. The 20,000 items of the Matthew R. Isenburg Collection cost $15-million (U.S.) – the highest sum ever paid for a single hoard of 19th-century photo materials. The London-based AMC mostly displays its holdings through handsome publications, though it’s said to be planning a display facility in Toronto. Here’s a peek at some of its latest acquisitions