The Moving Picture World (1908)

THE MOVING PICTURE WORLD 73 habit, or environment, which have a tendency to influ- the frame is held the stronger the light works, and the ence us to do what others around us are doing. more the half-tones are printed through like clear glass, In truth, a lantern slide is merely a print on a glass coming up in the finished slides as black shadows where plate instead of on paper. It is no more and no less; but gradation shows plainly in the negative. the fact that the emulsion is coated on glass enables Development is carried on precisely the same as with after manipulations which are necessarily impossible with a negative. The image should appear in about a minute, prints on paper. One can readily see how much the and development should be over in three or four minutes. beauty of a picture can be enhanced by local reduction, If exposure has been correct, the high lights will stay intensification, toning and other manipulative processes white throughout development and will come out clear which are known to every worker, Moreover, the beau- glass after fixing. ties of a colored slide are much more pronounced than When one considers developers, there is always one to the beauties of a colored print, and a slide once properly be relied upon. That is the one which is recommended made is as near permanent as it is possible for anything by the manufacturer of the plates you are using. This photographic to be permanent. development formula is made up to do its best work Lantern slides can be made two different ways. One is upon the chemicals in the emulsion of that particular by contact, exactly the same as a print is made on paper, plate. Any amateur can be assured of reasonable suc- and the other by reduction in a camera especially made cess after a few experiments if he follows the directions for the purpose, or in the regular camera which is used that come with the plates. Here is a formula which the for making negatives. No opinion is ventured here as to writer has used for years with success. It is made for the qualities of the slides made by these processes. Each correctly exposed plates and will turn over-exposure has its advocates; but no one will deny that the contact black almost instantly. Consequently care in its expos- method has special attractions for the amateur, in that it ure must accompany its use. doesn't require expensive or complicated apparatus. But * the amateur should endeavor to master both processes. w«it-iUM*«»M IM tmine By so doing he can use all his best negatives, while by ffiSkESSSL* X«'«^.'.H 5 SSn* the contact method it is impossible to get more than a v^l^^JS^ £ fSS small part of the negative on a slide plate if the negative w °ter p0taSSlUm % f™* s used is more than 4x5. Some of the most famous slide makers, like Professor Elmendorf, never use a camera B. larger than 4 X5, but they make their negatives with spe- Sulphhite of soda 2 ounces daily made and very expensive lenses. Caustic soda 100 grains For the present only the contact method will be con- Water .. to 20 ounces ' The "first consideration is to get it in your negative. For use, take equal parts of A and B. The image will Unless a negative is technically good it will not yield a appear in a minute, or a little less, and development will good slide. There must be good gradation, but the nega- be complete in two or three minutes. Before putting m live must be sufficiently strong to yield a clear cut print, the fixing bath, rinse off the developing solution by al- Otherwise the slide will be dead. Further, the high lights lowing water to run on the plate .for a minute. in the slide must be clear glass, and the heaviest shadows There are numerous fixing baths, but plain hypo, about must be more or less transparent. Otherwise the shadows one to four, is perhaps the best if the slides are to be re- will be merely black patches on the screen. Between these duced or toned afterward. An acid bath hardens the two extremes must be as good gradation as possible, film so it is difficult to do anything with it once it is al- otherwise the picture on the screen will be merely black lowed to dry. And the fact that the slide is covered with and white patches—a soot and whitewash combination a sheet of glass protects the film from injury, even if it which will satisfy no one. For these reasons it is easy to is not hardened with alum and acid. Lantern plates fix understand how essential it is to get it in the negative. much more rapidly than negative plates, but they ought A negative from which slides are to be made must be to be permitted to remain in the fixing bath at least ten fully exposed and adequately developed. It should be minutes. . - . strong, but not too clear in the shadows. If it is, the After removing from the fixing bath they should be slide will be without detail in the shadows and much of washed for a full hour in running water and set away the charm will be lost. to dry in a cool current of air free from dust. When In making slides by contact, select the negative and dry they are ready for mounting. To keep them away place it in the printing frame exactly as in making a print from dust is important. A speck of dust on the plate will on paper. Place the lantern plate upon it, film, to film, be magnified in the lantern until it forms an unsughtly Clamp down the back and expose the same as making a blotch on the screen. print. The only difference is in the time of exposure. In mounting, much latitude is permitted. This opera- Lantern plates are slower than negative plates, and, for tion is arranging a mask on the film side of the plate, plac- a negative having the characteristics mentioned, from ing a cover glass over it and binding it all the way around six to twelve seconds six feet from an ordinary gas with passe-partout binding. In the size and shape of burner will be sufficient. Generally eight seconds will be the paper mask there is opportunity for bringing out the found a fair average. Glass negatives will usually re- most artistic features of the picture. Professional slide quire a second or two less exposure than films, due, per- makers turn out slides with the pictures all the same size haps, to the fact that the film has to be backed with glass, and shape, but a pleasing variety can be introduced in and it takes the light a bit longer to penetrate both glass masking which will add to the attractiveness of the pic- and film and make its impression on the emulsion of the tures on the screen, slide. These paper masks can be bought in boxes of two If held closer to the light a shorter exposure will suf- dozen or more each, and on one side in gold or silver trac- fice. But it will be found that if the frame is held six ing will be seen the outlines of various shaped openings, feet or more from the light a softer and better graded There is usually one ready cut in the middle of the mask plate will result. The reason is that the closer to the light which will outline a good picture. If the maker wishes