how to make a wet-plate camera?

[gaoandre]

greeting!everyone!

I'm a new guy from P.R.China who want to use wet-plate camera(as i try my best to make me understood), and i've a short experience of using sinar 4*5 camera.

i want to build a new wet-plate wood camera next month（i'm a carpenter） and as i can't find either the camera model nor the guide book, could anyone help me with the information or article about "how to make a wet-plate camera", or the design or blueprint of the camera?

best wishes!


gaoandre

 

[ChasBosio]

Hi:
Try searching wet plate cameras on ebay.
There is a book by Otto Dippold
Good luck

Charles

 

[Jadedoto]

I find old wooden film holders are quite easy to modify to wet plate work. You may want to register and look at this forum: http://www.collodion.com/

Have fun with wetplate. It's addictive!

 

[Discoman]

well, google should turn up sources of how to build a wet-plate camera, and stories (usually with photos) of people who built their own.
mostly, the back and plate holder will be the difference between wet-plate and other cameras due to ground glass needing to be in the same location as the film/plate. most everything else will be the same.
google books might turn up copies of Hasluck's Photographic Notes as well as Photographic Cameras and Accessories. both books were written by Paul Nooncree Hasluck. both provide valuable infomation rgarding building cameras, shutters, and other accessories.
Photographic Cameras and Accessories talks about partial plate, whole plate, studio plate, and ferrotype cameras.
Photographic Notes shows how to build a plate holder and darkslide along with shutter designs.

 

[smieglitz]

Otto Dippold's book is what you need. It is about $40 USD and appears on ebay frequently.

But you can get a pretty good idea of what to do here:

(there was a url link here which no longer exists)