Photography in the Studio and in the Field
Photography
has always been a popular hobby because it offers many different areas
of experimentation. But amateur photography has always been divided into
the masses and advanced amateurs. Back in the 60's the masses were doing
black and white photography. Advanced amateurs where experimenting with
color which was still complex and difficult. Then as color became easier,
the masses moved into color while the advanced amateur photographers moved
into high end black and white. And that may be the beginning of Ansel
Adams's widespread fame. Today, the masses are into digital pictures and
obsess about Photoshop™, while the diehards have moved into alternative
processes like wetplates, platinum, palladium and albumen prints.
I
would never want to give up digital photography. It makes production of
these catalogs and books so much faster, but after using Photoshop™
for more than a decade, I find it anything but exciting. The early chemical
methods of photography are so much more interesting. It's like the difference
between a Boeing 767 airplane and a biplane.
In 1887 there were no personal cameras. The handheld Kodak was yet to be marketed. The only people producing photographs were professionals and fanatic amateurs - simply because photography was not easy and automatic like it is today. You were deemed to be "advanced" if you merely tried to make pictures.
Estabrook
brought out this comprehesive book describing photography as it existed at
the time: the cameras, the processes, the formulas, the secrets of manipulation.
And it's a fun book.
If you want to move beyond the obvious, (and if you don't, I have no idea why you read this catalog) then this is a photography book worth having.
In
the first part you are introduced into "subbing" glass, preparing collodion
for making wet plate negatives like Garnder and Brady did, or for making tintypes.
You get details and formulas for the developer, fixer, and intensifier.
In 1887, the new modern gelatin dry plates were the rage because they were so much more convenient. You'll get details on "cooking" your own emulsion, coating plates (an art in itself), the developers in use (usually pyro), fixers, clearing baths and more.
You get details on sensitizing albumen paper, making your print, toning, spotting, mounting and all the rest. You get lots of engravings of cameras, lenses, print frames, camera stands, head rests, posing chairs and the other details a professional might need for protraits.
Part II covers field photography. Since gelatin dry plates freed the photographer from carrying around a nasty, corrosive silver nitrate bath, outdoor photography was not only easy but a lot more fun to do.
You
get the latest advice on handling dry plates, putting them in plate holders,
and exposing them. You get more engravings of detective cameras, satchel cameras,
view lenses, drop shutter, Prosch's popular shutter, Eastman's negative paper,
printing on albumen, collodio-chloride, and a section on cyanotypes, uranium
prints, and more. You even get details on "bicycle photography".
This is a great book, not easily found. The price here is a small fraction of what I had to pay to get an original. If you're curious as to how the old boys made pictures, this is a good place to start. It's practical advice, chemical formulas, hardware (still available from collectors and dealers), and artistic hints and tips. With 32 pages of great advertising. Fun book. Get a copy! 5-1/2 x 8-1/2 softcover 272 pages
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