Photographic Archives

The California State Parks Photographic Archives consists of a core collection of over 200,000 images in the form of slides, negatives and photographic prints. In the last 10 years, an additional 150,000+ images have been transferred from various sources. The collections cover a broad range of California subjects including the history of the California State Park System, California's cultural and natural history, recreation, transportation, mining, geology, architecture, agriculture, plants and animals.

The core collection includes approximately 30,000 images in the form of 35mm slides. The bulk of the collections are in the form of negatives and prints. To obtain more information about our Web site or to make an appointment to visit our facility please contact our office.

The Photographic Archives is open to the public and staff will assist with reference requests. Due to limited staffing, all visiting researchers must make an appointment prior to visiting the archives. All inquiries concerning the image collections should be in writing and should contain the catalog number or a sufficient description of the image to allow reference staff to clearly identify the nature of your request.

Please contact the Photographic Archives to schedule an appointment. A completed letter of intent, payment of applicable cost recovery fees, and a signed usage contract must be on file prior to the shipping of photographic materials or electronic files on CD/DVD. 


Be sure to check out the Photographic Archives Exhibit Gallery. Currently, we are featuring the work of one of our past Senior Photographers, Robert "Bob" Mortensen.  Click here to jump to the Gallery.