Many of the Titanic photographs and motion pictures that are used in television documentaries are actually stock footage from her sister ship, RMS Olympic. Very few photos and motion pictures exist of Titanic, especially those that were filmed on-board the ship. The largest collection of on-board pictures that portray life, activities and several distinctive areas of Titanic during its maiden voyage were taken by a passenger, that was experimenting with his latest new gadget.
Father Francis Brown, a Jesuit priest and amateur photographer extraordinaire, boarded Titanic in Southampton and finally disembarked at the last European port in Cobh (Queensland), Ireland. As the story goes, his superior had ordered Father Brown off of the ship at Cobh and therefore saved his life. Father Brown was a very likable man who was able to take pictures all over Titanic. Even Captain E.J. Smith allowed this young priest to take his picture. Father Brown's pictures of life on board the ship during this voyage were tremendous. After the ship sank, his pictures taken aboard Titanic were the most sought after pictures in the world. Father Francis Brown lived until 1960 and he was able to polish his photographic skills into a fine art. His collections of photographs depicting life during the early twentieth century is considered the finest by any Irish photographer. Before his death, he was highly regarded as one of the finest photographer of the century!
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