any questions in regard to photograph matters will be willingly answered by the editor of this column, and we should be glad to hear from any of our club who can make helpful suggestions.
a new process for sensitizing paper.
in the american annual of photography for 1896, mr. e. w. newcomb tells how to make vignettes with an atomizer by spraying the paper with a sensitive solution. this seemed such a clever idea that the editor made a trial of the method, and found that many artistic effects could be produced in this way which could not be made by any other process either of printing or sensitizing the paper.
the sensitizing solution can be applied so as to obtain any form desired, and paper thus prepared may be used in many different ways not possible with a paper which is coated all over evenly.
the atomizer must be of hard rubber—both tube and stopper—as metal either corrodes or injures the sensitive solution. the spray must be so fine that it is almost a mist, and the atomizer should be tried before purchasing. clear water will do to test the fineness of the spray.
the first experiments should be made with the blue-print solution, as this is not only cheaper, but easier to prepare and handle, and when dry it shows just where the solution has been applied. pin the paper by the corners to a smooth board, set it in an upright position, and holding the atomizer perhaps a foot away from the paper, direct the spray to the place on the paper where the heaviest printing is intended. squeeze the bulb gently, so that the solution will not soak into the paper, and at the edges, where the solution must be applied lightly in order to produce vignetted effects, hold the spray farther away from the paper. by a little practice one can soon make any shaped vignette desired.
if any member of our camera club is looking for some new way of making prints for gifts, here is a suggestion: cut plain salted paper in sheets 8 by 10 in. in size. take an 8 by 10 in. card-mount, and cut out a square from the centre, leaving a margin 1 in. wide on one side and at the top and bottom, and on the other side a margin 1? in. wide. over the corners of this mat paste triangles of paper in the way that corners are made for desk-blotters, pasting the edges down on one side, and on the other leaving the paper free from the card-board, so that a sheet of paper may be slipped under the corners. take a piece of plain paper, slip it into the mat—the corners holding it in place—turn it over, and hanging or fastening it against the wall, spray it with the sensitive solution in the places where you wish to print pictures. the mat made of card-board protects the edges of the sensitive paper, and makes a nice wide margin. half a dozen sheets sensitized, printed, and bound together with an attractive cover, either made of rough paper or some fancy card-board, will make a pretty gift for a friend, and something that will not be duplicated. to make a more elaborate present, select some familiar poem, easily illustrated, choose negatives which will make appropriate pictures for it, print, wash, and dry the pictures, then with french blue water-color letter the verses of the poem in the clear spaces left on the paper. if a little taste is used in arranging and printing the pictures, putting them in different places on the sheet, one can make a very artistic little booklet. the side of the paper with the 1? in. margin is the edge for binding. if a touch of gold is given to the lettering the effect is more striking. small cakes of what is called water-color gold may be bought for 10c. or 15c., and is the kind used for lettering on paper.
this way of sensitizing paper will suggest many ideas for decorative work, such as menu-cards, letter-heads, calendars, mats for pictures, etc. the blue-print solution is the simplest to use in preparing paper in this manner, but the same result may be obtained with other solutions. the formulas given for tinted sensitive solutions in previous numbers of the round table could be used, and many delicate and attractive tones be obtained. prints made on paper sensitized with a spray instead of being applied with a brush have the appearance of wash drawings.
sir knight hugo kretschmar sends a number of negatives and asks what is the matter with them. he explains that they were taken with a no. 1 kodak on a day when the ground was covered with snow, making an exposure of ten seconds. the trouble with the negatives is that they are much over-exposed. ten seconds is a long time to expose a plate even on a dark day, and when the snow is on the ground the exposure should be instantaneous, unless plate and lens are both very slow. the best time to make snow pictures is early in the morning or late in the afternoon, when the shadows are long. if a slow plate is used, make an exposure of two seconds, and develop as for a time picture. the camera which sir hugh asks about is a good camera for a cheap camera.
sir knight w. d. campbell, 420 fifth st., brooklyn, n. y., asks if some member of the club living in st. louis, mo., will send him a view of the part of the city which was destroyed by the tornado. in return he will send a good picture of the ocean greyhound campania.
sir knight william merritt, rhinecliff, n. y., wishes to exchange some interesting views taken at rhinecliff, n. y., for some views taken in central park, new york city. will some of our new york members write to sir william? he would also like to exchange scenery photographs with any of the members of the club.
any member who does not receive a response to his request for prints may have the same printed again, after a reasonable length of time.
