Is anyone else making wet plate pinhole photos?

Hi All,

I've been making a few wet plate pinhole photographs (ambrotypes), but I am very new to the process and could definitely use the wisdom of someone who has been doing this for a while. My main questions are:

1. How long do I have to expose and develop the plate? I'm putting the plate into a custom made pinhole camera and exposing for 2-3 minutes before developing. Is this pushing it, or do I have much more time?

2. How do you clean the plate? I have had trouble with the collodion lifting off of the glass. I have read that this happens when the plate is not clean enough, but also that it happens when the plate is *too* clean. Is that possible? I have been cleaning with a mix of alcohol and calcium carbonate powder, followed by an alcohol only cleaning. Any tips?

3. Where can I find ruby-tinted glass?

Thanks in advance,

peri

If you haven't already found it, www.collodion.com/forum is a good place to ask #2 and #3. I can't remember if there have been any pinhole wet-plate images discussed over there. WRT #2, knock down the edges of the glass with a file or stone and then sub them with an albumen wash.

But I would venture to guess that your exposure would be too long for the plate to remain viable in the camera. A zone plate collodion might be a better bet. Or use a considerably larger pinhole that the "optimum" size that comes from the usual calculations.

I have just been looking at that collodion forum looks like they may have some good stuff there BUT! when try to look at anything all i get is

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a sample image

Thanks for your reply. I have actually had some success making images. Here is a sample one:



-peri

periclimenes said:

...
1. How long do I have to expose and develop the plate? ...

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You may be able to extend the time by using more ethanol in the formula in place of any ether called for. The ether is going to evaporate more quickly. Try adding a little alcohol to some of your working collodion solution but not so much that the water in the hooch precipitates the nitrocellulose.

It also appears that some salts (e.g., sodium iodide and sodium bromide) may cause the collodion to dessicate more rapidly giving you less time to work. Which formula are you using?

periclimenes said:

2. ...I have had trouble with the collodion lifting off of the glass...Any tips?

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Q-tips. And roughening the edge and subbing with albumen. You only need to edge-sub the plate going in about 1/8" to give the collodion something to adhere to better.

It may not be how you are cleaning the glass at all. A collodion formula with cadmium salts has a tendency to lift from the plate and require subbing.



The above is a ruby ambrotype on purple glass shot using a collodion containing cadmium and sodium salts. The large white streaks forming along the top and right edge are from the collodion becoming impervious to processing due to the collodion drying out rapidly. You can also see the thin border around the plate which is the albumen edge-subbing.

periclimenes said:

3. Where can I find ruby-tinted glass?

Thanks in advance,

peri

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Stained-glass stores, Hobby Lobby, and lots of internet mail-order places carry ruby red and deep purple satined glass. Google for Spectrum cathedral glass.

I'm using cadmium bromide and potassium iodide in my collodion. I'm not sure what you mean by edge subbing. Would you please explain?

Also, how do I rough the edges?

Thanks in advance...

My guess is the cadmium bromide is causing the film to lift. The albumen subbing should take care of it.

Buy a whetstone or obtain some coarse sandpaper to roughen the side of the glass plate. Just run the whetstone (or sandpaper) along the edge of the plate at about a 45-degree angle about three or four times per edge. You are sanding down the sharp edge of the glass (i.e., the corners running width- and lengthwise between the plate's horizontal surface and the thin vertical side). Make sure to get the corners and do all eight edges. You should wear a respirator mask when doing this because fine pieces of glass will be chipping off the plate and you don't want to breathe those in. (Silicosis is a nasty disease caused by prolonged exposure to silica dust.) Goggles/glasses are probably a good idea too.

Once the edge has been prepared, take the white of an egg and put it in a small bowl. Have a bit of distilled water in another bowl (or bottle cap). Wet a cotton swab ("Q-tip") with the water then dip it into the albumen. Take the swab and hold it against the edge of the glass plate. Run it down the edge so the cotton comes in about 1/8" onto the surface of the plate. You will essentially be painting the edge of the glass with egg white. Go around the perimeter of the plate using additional albumen as needed. Let the albumen dry. I usually prepare a large batch of plates ahead of time, first cleaning and then subbing them, and then I store them for later use. I also typically mark the backside of the plate with a china marker because the albumen is very difficult to see once dried.

Another approach is to sub the entire surface of the plate with albumen (or some chemical made for this purpose like a silane compound- Bostick and Sullivan sell one, I think). Take the white of an egg and beat it thoroughly into a half-liter of distilled water. Filter the that solution to remove any froth and store it in a jar. Pour the solution on the glass plate as if you were pouring collodion and then drain it back to the jar. Dry the plate on a paper towel while propping the plate subbed side down and slightly off vertical against a wall or box. This will help prevent dust from settling into the albumen.

Good luck with the latter approach. The edge-subbing approach is quick-and-easy, much less messy, and dust is not a problem. I much prefer it to subbing the entire plate surface.

brucej said:

I have just been looking at that collodion forum looks like they may have some good stuff there BUT! when try to look at anything all i get is

Access Denied
Sorry, only members with sufficient permission can access this page

and when i try to register

Sorry, new registrations are currently suspended, please check back again later

Click to expand...

Quinn Jacobson locked down the registration form because of spam. I think he gets an email when somebody tries to register. Otherwise see if you can find an email for the forum-master or webmaster for the page. That will get to him and he will enable your account.