"Shoot now, ask questions later," says Lisa Hunter, collections manager at the Dundas Museum and Archives.

What's this? Violence at our local museum? No.

Ms. Hunter uses these words to describe the contemporary approach to photography as opposed to that of earlier picture-taking methods.

"With the ease and affordability of digital cameras, and home computers to edit, store and view our hundreds of personal images, it is easy to forget that photographs were once special, rare and unique," said Ms. Hunter.

Ms. Hunter, archivist Sandra Kiemele and collections assistant Roberta Bailey, have created an exhibition called A Thousand Words: Photography in Dundas, a review of what photography might have meant to earlier generations.

The exhibition presents a collection of photographs, from eerily detailed, formal Dageurreotype portraits, to tiny, spontaneous snapshots taken in the 1950s.

The photos are presented alongside cameras and other photographic equipment, including a rare Victorian studio portrait chair and a statue formerly used in a local photography studio.

The exhibition also explains the evolution of photographic techniques and styles, as demonstrated through the work of early Dundas photography studios. A remarkable fold-out album, showing members of the Lesslie family, and a presentation of early glass slides, from Grafton & Company, are just two highlights of the exhibition.

Contemporary views of Dundas can also been seen in a companion exhibition of local photographers who have entered the museum's first annual photo contest. Winners will be announced on Saturday, May 24 as part of the museum's Definitely Dundas! event.