John Wheeley Gough Gutch was a British surgeon and editor. He was also a keen amateur naturalist and geologist and a pioneer photographer. Gutch studied William Fox Talbot's calotype process and began conducting his own photographic experiments with chemist Robert Hunt in 1841. In 1851, Gutch gave up his medical practice to become a messenger for Queen Victoria and began photographing the cities he visited on diplomatic missions. During a trip to Constantinople he became seriously ill, resulting in permanent partial paralysis that ended his public service career. While undergoing experimental treatments in Malvern, Gutch turned to photography as a cure for his melancholy.