Photographic Conference 1893

Well this is a gem. A photo of the attendees at the Photographic Conference in Victoria in 1893. On the far right front row is my Great Grandfather Mathew Wall.

When I viewed this image on zoom I was intrigued to see that he is holding a cricket bat and it has his name and the name of his business "Shadow Katchers" boldly displayed. Could this be his attempt to advertise his business around the cricket clubs of Melbourne??

They're certainly a dapper lot and it's lovely to see the old camera in the foreground. I would love it if a Blipper could enlighten us as to the make of the camera.