Painted Up the Laboratory Stand!

They should look good for a while, then revert back to rusty

Sweet Dreams!

Hung up my recentl thrift store purchased Ansel Adams “Oak Tree”. One of my fav Adana photos. So now when I sleep I have Ansel to the right of me and Gauguin to the left A nice way to drift off.

Hopefully my friends will help me dream of making art!

Photo Idea: Speed Ambrotype Portraits

Was thinking of something a bit unorthodox on the way home from work today. I am preparing to do my first Ambrotype portraits. To that end, I have new portrait lens I want to try, Schneider Xenar 300 and 360mm F4.5s (nice bokeh). I have a Honda generator to shoot remotely with my 4800w Speedotron flash and an extension for my camera bellows, allowing me to shoot closer.

The idea is to do 2 Ambrotype portraits seconds apart, then to use the portraits in a single work diptych image or as individual portraits.

With wet plate, the work is usually done very slowly, one image at a time, maybe 30 minutes apart. But if I had 2 silver baths, and 2 plate holders. I should be able to expose 2 images close together and I should be able to do the work before the plates dry out (wet plate gives you a 10-20 minute window to create, depending on humidity and temperature).

This system would allow at least 2 portraits to be recorded with non patient sitters, and would also allow for quick more spontaneous Ambrotypes with sitters that do not give you time to shoot. Lets say your photographing a famous person and that person only gives you 5 minutes. With this system, you could get off at least 2 relatively quick shots before they left.

More thought needed on this. Not sure how practical it would be. Of course there would be more cost to buy the extra silver tank and the extra holder. 

Will think on it, and get some feedback from my Facebook wet plate friends.

Autobiography Thought

 Note* Published late.

New Wide Angle Lens for the 11x14 Chamonix Camera

I shot 11x14 plates all day at the plant. I am using the new 300mm Schneider Xenar f4.5 Lens. I was surprised it had the coverage to handle 14x14 (slight vignetting). I now have a wide-angle lens for the 11x14 camera!! Something I have been looking for! It could become my main lens for the camera.

A lovely little lens, probably requires a new lens board.

Simplification the Key

For me it came down to simplification. 

Wet plate is hard enough already without a additional 10 000 variables. Too many wet plate photographers create their own problems by jumping about like a drunken Jack Rabbit. Trying this, doing that, never satisfied, always unsure. 

SIMPLIFICATION and STANDARDIZATION is the key. Make a plate you like, then stick to that, same everything after that. If you simplify and standardize, everything becomes easier.

Make plates, not tests!

Note* My friend Kurt M, helped me with this concept!

I Can See in the Dark!

Used the Costco red headlights, for the first time, in the darkroom the last 2 days, I accidentally lost my normal darkroom safe lights during some trailer darkroom renovations. The headlamps were far superior. I can now see the development much better and the dark door side of the trailer where I load plates is much brighter!

I should have been using the headlamp years ago! Maybe faster and more efficient darkroom work (I can see in the dark), led to a higher output of good plates. Love this new tool. 

Had another bit of luck yesterday, with this headlamp magic. A bit of fate happening here. After years of waiting and requesting to photograph the plant, all went right over the weekend.

Tired me on day two, on the plant shoot

Love my 2 New Lens

I bought the 2 Schneider Xenar lens, a 300mmand 360mm 4.5 for making portraits (f 4.5 bokeh). But all of day one at the plant I shot the 360mm and all of day 2 at the plant I shot the 300mm (f32). On Saturday I thought I would just shoot the 360mm for 1 plate, to test it, but never put it back in its storage bag.

Go figure! Who would have thought it!

I received the lens after extremely fast FedEx shipping from the States only on Friday. 1 day before the shoot. They came with beat up but usable Deardorff lens boards. It was a plug and play very lucky thing for me!!! If they work as well making portraits, these will be 2 of the most important lens for the project.

Love the lens already!

Schneider Xenar lens, a 300mmand 360mm f4.5 

Fell Asleep in a Chair!

I was so tired after the 2 day plant shoot, that last night,  I fell asleep in my reclining chair for 6 1/2 hours (130am to 8am). I was too tired to even get up to pee or to climb into bed. I held it, till I heard a fire truck outside at 8am. Then I went outside and put away some plates that were drying. Now in bed needing more sleep! I work security tonight.

Note * If I ever get access to photograph the plants in Fort MacMurray, I will need to pace myself. Maybe 3-4 weeks shooting (those plants are massive)! With a day or 2 of rest between each Ambrotype making day. It would be a major undertaking, probably the biggest and most difficult of the project.

6 More Cement Trays Needed!

I basically ran out of trays to store wet plates in on both the Saturday and Sunday shoots at the plant. I will need to buy 6-10 extra trays and set them up with the separation cork, aloiwing the trays to be stacked with wet Ambrotypes inside-

I am surprised how easily some of the plates are coming now. Over the 2 days at the plant they were coming out fast and easy with few mistakes. Things have come a long way since I bought the darkroom trailer 5 years or so ago and was making shitty 4x5 tintypes.

More mass produced plates require more trays! 24x24 inch and 35x35 inch Ambrotypes seem possible today.

Transporting Wet Ambrotypes

Transporting the Ambrotype water trays home for washing, drying and varnishing.

Videos: At the the Plant Second Day

The second day went well.

Second Day at the Plant

After only about 6 hours sleep (washing plates from the previous day till 2330 hours), I was back at the plant for day 2 of Ambrotype making. I shot 11x14 plates all day using the new 300mm Schneider Xenar f4.5 Lens. 

A good day, lots of plates made by 11am, then the heat set in, rising to 30C in the trailer.

Videos: At the Plant Day 1

First Day at the Plant

Well after much hope and many requests over many years, I got to shoot wet plate images at the plant today. The plant where I have been a security guard for 28 years. Here are the results of day 1. I shot 14x14 inch plates using m new 360mm F4.5 Scheider Xenar Lens.

I sweat like crazy all day. Drank 6 2-liter bottles of water and still was very dehydrated by the end of the day.

Gerry Collodion, 11x14 Chamonix Camera, Vinegar Developer. Temps rose to 33C later in the day creating artifact issues.

Stack and Borg like area of the plant

View from across the water pond

The Beast

A ton of plates made

Got My Wetplate Portrait Lens

Got the Portrait lens today.  I hope to use for 8x10 and 11x14 Ambrotype Portraits. Am hoping the F4.5 will create a nice bokeh (the aesthetic quality of the blur produced in out-of-focus parts of an image).

The lens came with Deardoff boards which fit my 8x10 Deardorff (Eddy) and my 11x14 Chamonix cameras. A nice bonus. I need to figure out the lens caps yet

Schneider Xenar 300mm and 360mm F4.5 lens.

Note* Found a lens so that kinda works for the 360mm. Also got a Bach on the last trip that will protect it.

Note** I might give the lens a go tomorrow when shooting at the plant.

Video: Preparing For Big Plant Shoot

Preparing for the big 2 day industrial shoot at the plant. I fixed my leaning sink (for now) and redid all the windows. I simplified things by removing the magnet strips and ruby lith and taped on light proof black plastic.

Bought Me 2 Wet Plate Portrait Lens!

I have been trying to avoid spending money on more camera gear. I caved thou and bought 2 lens, 2 lens specially to do wet plate Ambrotype portraiture. 1 lens is to capture head shots on an 8x10 inch camera and 1 is to do the same on a 11x14 camera.

I found a wet plate photographer, Engelbert Vissher, on Facebook whose work I admire. After some help from him, I am getting the same lens (Schneider Xenar 300mm F4.5 lens),   he uses. I love the bokeh and look of his imagery, hope this works for me as well!!

Note* The 360mm should allow me to create the same effects in the larger 11x14 and 14x14 formats.

Note** The lens being attached to Deardorff lens boards will work both with my 8x10 Deardorff and 11x14 Chamonix cameras. Having the boards included will save over $100 CAD.

Note *** I bargained the price down as much as I could, made lower offers, combined shipping costs.  I still need to figure out the lens caps.

Photograph by Engelbert Visscher

Schneider Xenar 300mm F4.5 lens COATED in barrel on deardorff board #9527

US $325.00

 

Schneider Xenar 360mm F4.5 lens COATED in barrel on deardorff board #9526

US $650.00