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$45 negatives have been identified as multi-million dollar originals.

An American collector has become an overnight multimillionaire after a set of glass negatives he picked up at a garage sale turned out to be genuine Ansel Adams works.

Californian Rick Norsigian, bought the plates for $US45 a decade ago.

Now they have been authenticated and are valued at $US200 million.

Mr Norsigian's lawyer Arnold Peter said the authentication represented a number of challenges. "There is no definitive authority charged with authenticating photographs and unlike a painting there is no signature linking the work to the artist," Mr Peter said.

The specialists assembled by Mr Norsigian all backed the claims.

$US200m Ansel Adams originals bought at garage sale.

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