Robert Howlett Robert Howlett Robert Howlett (born 3 July 1831 in Theberton, Suffolk, and died at 10 Bedford Place, Campden Hill, Kensington, London on 2 December 1858), was a pioneering British photographer whose pictures are widely exhibited in major galleries. Howlett produced portraits of Crimean War heroes, genre scenes and landscapes. His photographs include the iconic picture of Isambard Kingdom Brunel which was part of a commission by the "Illustrated Times" ) to document the construction of the world's largest steamship, the SS "Great Eastern". He exhibited at the London Photographic Society and published "“On the Various Methods of Printing Photographic Pictures
Marc Isambard Brunel and Sophia accompanied him. Brunel spent 88 days incarcerated. As time passed with no prospect of gaining release, Brunel began to correspond with Alexander I of Russia about the possibility of moving with his family to St Petersburg to work for the Tsar. As soon as it was learnt that Britain was likely to lose such an eminent engineer as Brunel, influential figures, such as the Duke of Wellington, began to press for government intervention. The government granted £5,000 to clear Brunel's debts on condition that he abandon any plans to go to Russia. As a result, Brunel was released