The Evolution of Photography: With a Chronological Record of Discoveries, Inventions, Etc., Contributions to Photographic Literature, and Personal Reminescences Extending over Forty YearsWerge, John, active 1854-1890
History
The Evolution of Photography: With a Chronological Record of Discoveries, Inventions, Etc., Contributions to Photographic Literature, and Personal Reminescences Extending over Forty Years
Werge, John, active 1854-1890
Photography -- History
The "Tintype" is now being largely practised in America, and is fitted
into an envelope or slip, carte-de-visite size. The slip is formed of
paper, with an aperture to show the picture, and a flap to fall over it
as a protector. I had some of these shown to me a short time ago. The
tintype is only another name for the ferrotype or melainotype, which is
a collodion positive picture taken on a piece of tin or iron, coated
with black japan on the front, and a varnish on the back, to prevent the
metal from acting on the bath. The carte-de-visite form of the tintype
fitted in the envelope or holder is a very good and ready way of
supplying all portraits wanted in a hurry, and its adoption might be
found very serviceable to many photographers in England. The American
examples that I have seen are very brilliant and beautiful, and, to my
mind, next in delicacy of detail and richness of colour to the long
discarded but ever beautiful Daguerreotype. I must admit, _en passant_,
that the Americans always excelled in producing fine, brilliant
Daguerreotypes, and it is much the same with them in the production of
glass positives, ferrotypes, or tintypes.
The spirit of photography in America and Canada is admirable. Mr.
Notman, of Montreal, has long been doing some excellent cabinet pictures
representing out-of-door-life, pleasures, and pastimes. Now Mr. Inglis,
of Montreal, also produces most beautiful carte-de-visite and cabinet
pictures of indoor and out-of-door scenes, such as drawing-rooms,
libraries, &c., with suitably arranged and occupied figures in the
former, and boating, bathing, and fishing parties in the latter. Some of
these pictures have recently been shown to me. They are all very fine
examples of photography. The tone and quality of some are beautiful.
Many of them are admirably arranged, and exhibit considerable knowledge
of composition; but some of them, particularly the interiors, are sadly
at fault in their chiaroscuro. They possess no dominant light, or, if
they do, it is in the wrong place, leading the eye away from the
principal object. In most cases the lights are too scattered, giving a
spotty and flickering effect to the picture, which is painful to look
at. With his out-of-door scenes Mr. Inglis is more happy, and probably,
from his antecedents, more at home. For example, the "Boating Party" is
very happily composed, embracing the double form of angular
composition--the triangle and the lozenge--and just a little more skill
or care would have made it perfect in its lines. The whole scene is well
lighted and got up. The boat, foreground of pebbles, stones, shrubs, and
trees are all real; the water is represented by tin-foil, wet black
oilcloth, or something of the kind, which reflects the forms and colours
of objects placed upon or above it. The reflections seem too sharp to be
those of water. The plan adopted by Mr. Ross, of Edinburgh, is the best.
That gentleman has a large shallow trough fitted up in his studio with
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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