"Memoirs of a Photochemist" by Dr. Fritz Wentzel
This book, published in 1960 on the imprint of the American Museum of Photography (Library of Congress #59-14970), details the extraordinary life of one Dr. Fritz Wentzel as he pursues a his life's work in photograpy from his graduation from University in the early 1900's in Germany, through the 1950's with such companies as NPG (Neue Photographische Gesellschaft), Gevaert and Ansco.
There are many interesting plates and discussions of early production of bayrta papers, trials of acetate based film as early as 1909, tales of the problems of choosing a suitable gelatine for emulsion making, observations on Lumiere Autochrome Color plates, etc. ; a treasure trove of historical information.
No, its not a new book but I certainly can recommend it for interesting reading and, if you are lucky, it can be found fairly inexpensively on a used/rare book dealer's shelf or on a search of www.abebooks.com or similar search engine for used books.
Here is a short bio of the man (I see they sell prints, so I will state that I have no personal interest in the site); http://www.mastersofphotography.com/Directory/fwentzel/fwentzel_bio.html
Keep your eyes open for this slim volume at used book stores.
This book, published in 1960 on the imprint of the American Museum of Photography (Library of Congress #59-14970), details the extraordinary life of one Dr. Fritz Wentzel as he pursues a his life's work in photograpy from his graduation from University in the early 1900's in Germany, through the 1950's with such companies as NPG (Neue Photographische Gesellschaft), Gevaert and Ansco.
There are many interesting plates and discussions of early production of bayrta papers, trials of acetate based film as early as 1909, tales of the problems of choosing a suitable gelatine for emulsion making, observations on Lumiere Autochrome Color plates, etc. ; a treasure trove of historical information.
No, its not a new book but I certainly can recommend it for interesting reading and, if you are lucky, it can be found fairly inexpensively on a used/rare book dealer's shelf or on a search of www.abebooks.com or similar search engine for used books.
Here is a short bio of the man (I see they sell prints, so I will state that I have no personal interest in the site); http://www.mastersofphotography.com/Directory/fwentzel/fwentzel_bio.html
Keep your eyes open for this slim volume at used book stores.
