We came here hoping to see Eastman cameras and exhibits on how he came to invent them. But all that was there was his mansion with gardens and an art gallery of ugly paintings that had nothing to do with him. The mansion and gardens were lovely for sure but not what we were looking for. It was an immaculate mansion. He didn’t give any of his money to his family but instead to a university so he could be remembered which I thought was stinky. There is a cafe which is very clean with new age type food like goat cheese but it had carrot cake. It’s sleek, modern but didn’t interest us. Others seem to like it.

And maybe that is my fault. While the old pictures, mansion and garden was beautiful and interesting I was surprised that no history of the cameras over the years and more of the technology history over the years. Great for the artist or photographer buff, but lacking for technology inclined.

The George Eastman House is a wonderful photography museum with the added charm of seasonal floral displays. We visited to see the “Dutch Connection,” and it was truly delightful — a beautiful arrangement of flowers accompanied by organ music that created a lovely atmosphere. Although the exhibit was small in scale, it was thoughtfully curated and visually stunning.I especially enjoyed photographing the flowers against the elegant backdrop of the historic mansion — particularly the striking elephant head mounted in the grand hall. It made for such unique and memorable compositions.The house tour itself was an added bonus, and the photography museum was fascinating. I loved exploring the evolution of cameras, from early historic models to displays featuring Nikon and Kodak cameras through the decades. It was both inspiring and educational — a must-visit for photography enthusiasts.

We went on a very rainy day, so this was a nice haven. The museum/galleries have antique cameras and the day we went, photographic exhibits. The galleries only took us about 30-45 minutes to tour, and in my opinion, not all that interesting. We started to do a guided tour of the home, but because we were pressed for time, we broke from the group and finished on our own, which you can certainly do. You can use your phone to scan the codes and several rooms have a short 1-to-two-minute description. I was a little disappointed that more rooms in the home had not been restored. You visit most rooms on the first floor (except the kitchen, which is used for other things) and only Eastman’s mother’s bedroom suite on the second floor was renovated. The remaining rooms on the second floor are exhibit areas. The third floor isn’t on the tour and I’m not sure where Eastman’s suite of rooms was located (maybe it is the children’s area or maybe on the third floor). They have a small gift shop and a nice café (though we didn’t eat anything). On a nice day, I suspect you can stroll through the gardens. Is $22 a little steep for what you see? Maybe, but there are not many museums these days that charge less.

Family visiting so we decided to visit George Eastman Museum and took the House tour. Tanya, our guide, was excellent. Kept the group interested and asked questions as well as took questions in each room visited. Afterwards, we enjoyed lunch at Open Face. Free parking, free tour as part of our admission, beautiful grounds and a great tour learning about George Eastman and Kodak history.