Chapter Two: Pre-Digital Photographic Technology

Wet Plate Collodion was invented in 1851 by Frederick Scott Arthur and this process was utilized throughout Europe and North America until approximately 1880. The use of wet plates had several key advantages that were not previously available at this time. It enabled photographers to develop images in greater detail, produce limitless copies ,as well as negative photographs. Wet Plate Collodion was a significant development in pre-digital photographic technology. Overall, the process was much more efficient than the processes that came before it, for instance, daguerreotype and calotype. The Wet Plate Collodion process involves many key components: cleaning and preparing the plate, flowing the plate, sensitizing the plate, exposing the plate, developing the plate, printing and fixing the plate. Although this process had benefits at the time, it was very extensive, precise, and even has the potential to be dangerous for the photographer. It required a significant amount of portable equipment and was tremendously time sensitive. As a result, Wet Plate Collodion was eventually replaced by dry plates, a much more convenient process. However, surprisingly, even with the digital technological advancements in today’s society, the Wet Plate Collodion process seems to have been rediscovered and is used by some individuals. It is still utilized today because the end product is usually a glossy albumen print: red/brown/purple in color.

It is beyond astonishing to me just how much digital photographic technology has evolved since the conclusion of this Wet Plate process. I cannot comprehend the vast transformation to using a cell phone to take a picture. I took the image of my friends at the Big E (below) using my iPhone 4 camera and although I do not have a hard printed copy, the end product was instantly viewable on the screen for everyone to look at. If I wanted to, this could easily have been printed out too. The entire process from start to finish took less than one minute total. Timeliness is one of the many benefits of digital technology, it is not time sensitive and if I was not satisfied with the image, I could simply retake it without investing a great deal of time and effort. Additionally, the only equipment I needed to take the photograph was the phone itself, if I did then go on to print it out, I could simply plug in the USB lead to my computer and hit print. Whereas, the wet plate process relied predominantly on portable dark rooms to develop images and these required a lot of equipment. Furthermore, a cell phone camera does not require the use of any chemicals, for instance, silver nitrate to sensitize the plate and potassium cyanide to fix the plate. Lightning and exposure are two other fundamental differences, if lighting is inadequate, you simply turn the iPhone flash on, however, you do not have this luxury with the wet plates. Moreover, the Wet Plate process must be exposed to sun light for a certain amount of time. It is crucial that the photographer carefully pays attention to this as over-exposure has the potential to ruin an image. This step is not necessary when taking a digital photograph.

Overall, the digital revolution has changed the face of photography and photojournalism forever, I do not think we will ever go back. In my opinion technology will just continue to expand and grow and become more and more efficient. Today, taking photographs is quick, easy, and convenient and can be achieved using any cell phone camera. Obviously, the quality of the image does depend on the quality of the lens and camera being used. Yet, it is no longer a hassle that requires an abundance of equipment that has to be transported in a special trailer each time you want to take a photograph. With the media in today’s society, photojournalists have to act quickly and sometimes think on their feet to get “the” shot before emailing it to their editor to publish. There is no time to prepare the plate, sensitize, exposure and develop it. The key to being a successful photojournalist is spontaneity. You should always keep your eye out for a potential photograph no matter where you are, even if you are just carrying your cell phone. Ultimately, images help to sell the newspapers and magazines and sometimes you have to act quickly in order to get your image published before someone else does.

 
This is the digital photograph that I took:

This image demonstrates a step in the Wet Plate Collodion Process:

Photo by France Scully Osterman

Image Source: http://www.f295.org/symposium2008/?page_id=68