New Voiglander 16x20 Lens For Wet Plate Project, KANATA Portraits

Got my beauty Voigtlander 16x20 format 1886 brass lens today. The lens complete with flange, lens hood, lens cap and lens board is in remarkable condition for a 134 year old piece of glass! I wonder what wonderful images she has made during her lifetime? I hope she (got to give her a name) has a few good photos left in her. The plan is to use the kens as my main portrait tool on my 16x20 Chamonix camera for the 10-15 year long Canadian KANATA project. I AM VERY EXCITED BY THE POSSIBILITIES!

"Ain't Photography Grand!!"

Note* The lens is a Voigtlander 655mm (24.5 inch) F6 
Note** Thank you Ross for packing the lens so well and shipping it to me today from Vancouver via UPS Express. Looking forward to seeing your wet plate work and your studio the next time I am in Vancouver.
Note** One of the joys of learning wet plate is the people round the world who help you, Kurt in Italy, Ross in Canada, Dale in Canada, Luther in the USA, Quinn in the USA, Anton in the USA, Shane in the USA, Brandon in the USA, Alex in Australia etc.

Voigtlander 655mm (24.5 inch) F6 

Jack Sleeping After Doing Meth

This is Jack he fell asleep in his, under the freeway shack, soon after smoking meth with a water pipe. I photographed him 4 or 5 times in 2019. I need to go back and learn more about his life, and make more photographs of him, if Corona ever ends. What has happened to him in this virus world?. He lived alone except a for another drug using friend, and was missing a finger on his left hand. He almost never spoke and only sarcastically replied 70 when I asked him his age. He seemed all used up at a younger age and would often just stare for hours into the distance. , if Corona ever ends. What has happened to him in this virus world?. He lived alone except a for another drug using friend, and was missing a finger on his left hand. He almost never spoke and only sarcastically replied 70 when I asked him his age. He seemed all used up at a younger age and would often just stare for hours into the distance. If you notice, ironically, Mickey Mouse is watching him

Jack 70?, Sleeps in his shack after doing Meth. THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE UNDER THE FREEWAY,  Klong Toey Slum, Bangkok, Thailand 2019

Quotes:Mahatma Gandhi

"I'm always amazed that men should feel themselves honored by the humiliation of their fellow human beings."

"When I am sad I remember that all through history the way of truth and love has always won."

Some More New Edits "Shades Of Grey: Fine Art Photography" Online Magazin

Some more edits for the coming issue of "Shades of Grey: Fine Art Photography" online magazine.

Dom 58, THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE UNDER THE FREEWAY, Klong Toey Slum, Bangkok, Thailand 2019

Lavah, THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE UNDER THE FREEWAY, Klong Toey Slum, Bangkok, Thailand, 2019

Vee 40, THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE UNDER THE FREEWAY, Klong Toey Slum, Bangkok, Thailand 2019

Quote: Mahatma Gandhi

"An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind."

Quote: Quinn Jacobson (Artist , Educator)

"The number one cause of death in photography in the 19th century was explosions!"

More Gear In Wet Plate Trailer

Loaded more gear into more the trailer including new 1000 ml laboratory bottles, Acetic Acid, Potassium Bromide, Potassium Iodide, Ferrous Sulfate, Denatured Alcohol, various Laboratory glassware, scales, my favorite ambrotypes and a 16x20 Silver box.

Some older (2010-2012) chemistry from Bostick&Sullivan.

Some original ambrotypes for inspiration. The winged art work will probably be the KANATA (cross Canada ambrotrype project) logo.

What my LED RED safelights look like. The lights were recommended to me by an online wetplater friend. They run off 4 AA batteries (for how long?).

Temp parked storage. Got to figure out a drive-alble version.

Most everything in the trailer is second goods, picked up on the cheap. The 5000ml Silver storage bottle is new.

Thinking of not putting red filter material on the windows but instead velcroing black cloth on the side window, the door window and the roof vent. I need complete darkness in the trailer at times so I can load traditional (more light sensitive) film.

8x10 box, with a e larger I might use to do contacts with (from film not wet plate negs).

Will clean all my laboratory glassware with distilled water next week before use. Each item will be labeled for one chemical use to prevent cross contamination, that goes for the funnels as well.

3 coolers for the chemicals (reduces smell in trailer). The table is for outdoor support of trays etc (have 2 of these) and the big metal sink thing I got free (damaged in shipping), will use it on the trailer table top to control liquid mess.

Quote: Anton (Artist)

"Light favours all things at certain times."

I Love Ambrotypes Talk

Had a rather animated discussion with a Facebook friend about wet plate. All the wet plate guys constantly speak of how tough things are to do in wet plate. They are the experts I guess, but I find the negative talk, to negative at time. Prefer to see the beauty of what will happen in my wet plate future, not the negative nelly stuff.

Here is one of the comments I wrote him about why I love wet plate photography.
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Gerry Yaum But what I fell in love with is Ambrotypes is how the subject looks to BE ALIVE INSIDE THE GLASS..a 3d illusion of life...almost like you could speak to them...I found that so fascinating, so absolutely beautiful, compelling, wonderful, stunning..all those big great words...I have a bunch of Ambrotypes I got from Japan that I find especially enthralling. Probably made way back when 1880s? 1890s? that glass has these people in them, CAUGHT INSIDE THE GLASS LIKE THEY ARE ALIVE STILL!!!...that is the reason I am doing all this to try to do my own versions of that MAGIC FEELING..

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Japanese Ambrotype Link From The Blog

Japanese women ALIVE INSIDE THE GLASS

Moving Chemicals To My New Darkroom Trailer

Got my first shipment of Collodion chemistry today. I placed Calcium Carbonate, Glacial Acetic Acid, Pottasium Bromide and Pottasium Iodide. I had a bunch of chemistry from before that I also took to the trailer from darkroom #2, including Ferrous Sulfate, Everclear grain alcohol, laboratory bottles of previously made Silver Nitrate, etc. 

Also got a bunch of glass beakers and other lab type bottles (all sizes in darkroom #1. I will pick up on the weekend and bring to the trailer. I wonder how good the old Silver Nitrate is (2012), and if it can still be uses. Also got a bunch of funnels, one funnel per chemical. Everything needs to be cleaned thoroughly. Waiting on some sticky velcro I need to light proof the trailer. 

My plan is to simplify as much as I can and standardize. I do not want to test and test and test some more. I will start with 2 Collodion types and then quickly (2-3 years after starting) choose one that works and stick with that if possible. Just as I do with film, always shooting Tri-x. Will try to mix some POE BOY COLLODION (want to try an non Cadmium, reduced Ether mix, for cost and safety) and QUINN'S QUICK CLEAR (probably my final choice).
Been planning this for years, it is exciting to have everything finally coming together. Soon can make some images!!! Or more likely crash and burn, following a bunch of mistakes. Part of the learning process thou, one brink at a time builds the grand cathedral!! "Ain't Photography Grand!!"

Some Bostick & Sullivan Silver and some I mixed up myself back in 2012. One of these has a badly screwed up PH. The big 5000 ML container is for silver later on when I am doing the big ULF plates. I think I might have one more of these large containers somewhere. Got to track down some of this stuff which has been in storage for many years.

Everclear Grain Alcohol available at Alberta liquor stores at $36.95 a bottle for 750ml. Wet Plate photography uses a ton of this stuff. I might try to use Denatured alcohol instead, ordered some of that from Dale in Nova Scotia (second Collodion chemical order).

Ferrous Sulfate, 8x10 silver nitrate box (also have new never used 16x20 box in storage). 4x5 plates for alum-tin types (have 3 more like this one), also some 8x10s that I need to track down. Beakers, filters, cotton balls, suction cups etc. The idea is to use suction cups for all the glass, smaller now, bigger later.

Old distilled water, vinegar, mixed developer, fixers etc.

The lab style stand will be used to hold large funnel (still need to buy) when I am doing all the required filtering (which is done often).

Glacial Acetic Acide, Pottasium Bromide, Potassium Iodide, Calcium Carbanate. Hope I bought the right chemistry! First try at this, there are bound to be some mistakes along the way, still learning all this chemistry stuff. Will no doubt eventually find the cheapest sources for the right chemicals here in Canada as I will be buying this stuff for a lot of years in the future IF everything goes right. The Calcium Carbonate is used to clean glass. The Potassium Bromide/Iodide is used in POE COLLODION, The Glacial Acid in the developer (can also use Vinegar which is a diluted form)

All the snow is gone now and the trailer is staring to TICK TICK TICK. I am so happy I bought it last year from Les, now things can move forward in an orderly fashion. I hope I can overcome things, hearing lots of you cannot do this and that from folks. Got to follow my heart, and work my lazy ass off and see there that goes. That philosophy has always worked foe me in the past, too old to change now!

Final Payment Made On Voigtlander 655mm (24.5 inch) F6 Lens With Chamonix Lensboard And Custom Lenscap

Made the final payment (5th or 6th over many months) on my Voigtlander 655mm (24.5 inch) F6 with Chamonix lensboard and custom lenscap (1886 lens). The plan is to use it as my main portrait lens for the coming KANATA photography project. The lens will be used in combination with my Chamonix 16x20 to create ULF Ambrotypes (photos on glass). Always wanted a vintage brass lens for my 16x20, finally was able to buy one. I am excited about shooting this beauty in the years ahead.

Note* One good thing about these old brass lens is the resale value is very high. I should be able to get my money back, maybe a bit more when I resell the lens later in life. Cost of the lens with lenshood, lensboard and shipping was a very high $4350 CAD. It took me about 4 months of smaller payments to pay for the lens. Really struggled to buy this baby, but I think it will be worth it in the end, hope hope!!

Note** One added note on this lens. It was made in 1886 and Canada became a country in 1887. That sort of fits, and tells the story of Canada from then to now. KANATA will be Ambrotypes (pictures on glass) of the present told using tools and techniques of the past (wet plate collodion dates back to 1850s, this lens to 1886).

Update* Will need to get a lens support device from Chamonix for this lens, or it is libel to be ripped off the front standard and go crashing to the ground. I am also looking into a extension board to allow closer focusing or a second bellows to allow very close up work. Might be getting some metal waterhouse stops (f-stops) made eventually for the lens, thou that might not be necessary.

Lens in Vancouver coming from the sellers studio home, for shipping!

Voigtlander 655mm F6 Lens

Lens mounted to sellers 20x20 Chamonix (mine is a 16x20)

Sample portrait 1 made by the Seller

The lens mounted to the sellers 20x20 Chamonix camera. My camera is a 16x20.

Sample photo 2, close up detail of sharpness. I might get a second bellows for my 16x20 allowing for tighter compositions during portraits and still lifes

Sample photo 1 with scale of subject

Darkroom Trailer Build

The works starts to turn my new-used 14x7 cargo trailer into a working wet plate and film darkroom trailer. I will use this unit for the KANATA cross Canada photography project. Will spend the spring setting it up and the summer and fall working in it to learn the basics of wet plate collodion photography. I ordered $900 CAD of poisonous, carcinogenic and explosive wet plate collodion chemistry two days ago. Here is what the trailer looks like so far. It is getting a bit congested, I will need to streamline what I put in the trailer so I will have adequate work space.

Update* I got the red strip LED safe light working in the trailer tonight. It runs off a 4 AA battery switch I hooked onto the lights. I need to get some sticky backside velcro to stick the switch to the wall, allowing me to remove the switch and change out the batteries as needed.
I wonder how long they will last? How many hours of light will I have per 4 batteries? Am happy with this type safe light set up so far, will see if the brightness is right later. Too bright lights could lead to fogging, too dark makes it difficult to work.

First time I opened the door to the trailer since the fall. It was nice to get inside again, hook up the power and turn on the tunes while I worked!

The yellow unit on the bottom is the used generator bought for the Trailer last fall.

The idea behind the cooler is this. I was thinking that it might help control some (not all) of the smell and escaping gases from mixed Collodion and or Collodion and the Iodizer. The idea would be to keep those chemicals in the cooler(s).

The sink was bought last fall also. The idea is I want to be able to hook the drain and faucet to active lines if possible. If not I would use the sink with water bottles and with a drain going into a storage tank.

Shelf, plastic drawer unit all held in place with wire. Everything bought second hand at Goodwill, including the chairs. The bird winged statue might become the logo for the KANATA project, seems to fit the themes.

On the suggestion of an online friend I am trying a long line of red LED lights as safe lights. You can see them on the wall of the trailer, attached them last fall. The lights have still not fallen, become unglued, a good sign!

I bought a little on off battery power switch that I will try attaching. Here's hoping this will work!

Thinking of screwing the enlarger into the table to allow it to stay in its position while I drive. The rest of the table top things will need to be set up when the trailer is being used and taken down while driving.

The trailer has a furnace (upper left of photo), not to be used when doing Wet Plate work, as it might be an ignition source.

All kinds of boxes for camera gear. Not sure what I will take and what I won't. Need to minimize this area.

Chain on wheels. I have 3 different locking systems on the trailer to prevent theft.

Spare tire. I wish I had 2 spares as some of the areas I will be driving to will be very remote and very tire destructive. Might have to buy a second spare at some point.