SCIENCE-GOSSIJ'. 



PHOTOGrEAPHIC WAVE STUDIES. 



WE have had submitted to as a number of very' 

 beautiful carbon enlargements of photo- 

 graphic studies of the sea under various aspects. 

 Some of these exhibit the ocean greatly agitated, 

 and others with silver moonlight effects. They are 

 the work of Mr. F. H. Worsley-Benison, a gentle- 

 man who has made this branch of artistic study a 

 success. 



These photographs exhibit remarkable judg- 

 ment in selecting the exact fraction of a second of 

 exposure, which can have been attained only by 

 much practice. Those who have given attention 

 to this division of photography will remember the 

 natural' hesitation which precedes the proper 



they constitute, especially in the largi-r h/.i--. v<t\ 

 effective picl ares; 



We understand that the views were taken from 

 Atlantic rollers on the West Coast of England and 

 Wales, and one can easily imagine in one photo- 

 graph the boom of the waves on the massive rocks, 

 and the shriek of the accompanying wild wind. 

 In another, where there is only sea tumbling boldly 

 on to the sandy beach, we see the gulls dwarfed 

 by the size of the waves: this also is an effective 

 picture. Another, with a couple of heavy rocks in 

 the foreground, shows the wavelets of a sea in quieter 

 mood. The distance is relieved by a few •• white- 

 horses," or, as the French children call them, the 



Photographic Wave Study, by F. H. Worsley-Benison. 



moment for operating with the instantaneous 

 shutter. The ever-varying waves present con- 

 stantly changing pictures, each in itself sufficiently 

 good, but one is always hoping for a better. Thus 

 photography of the rough sea is one of the most 

 exciting sections of the art. 



Mr. Worsley-Benison's studies are reproduced in 

 colours suited to seascapes. They are in delicate 

 green tints, relieved by grey. Being enlargement- 

 printed direct from large negatives, the full effect 

 of detail is retained, as well as the natural crispness 

 of the general effect. In size the specimens before 

 us vary from 1-1 in. x 10g in , and 24 in. x 18 in., 

 to oil in. x 21 in. It will thus be understood that 

 Jan. 1901.— Xo. 80, Vol. VII. 



4i little sheep. - ' In this picture one observes the 

 sharpness of the detail in perfection. One of the 

 larger photographs, marked " Westby Series. K." 

 is a really splendid piece of photographic art. It 

 represents the ocean breaking savagely on some 

 rocks at the right, with the water of a receding 

 meeting the incoming wave. It is wonderfully 

 sharp and effective, the foreground and the far 

 distance appearing equally within focus. 



Moonlight effects are charming, and several of 

 the couple of dozen or so photographs sent show 

 wild rock scenery, such as the Stack Rocks in 

 Pembrokeshire, with their multitude of bird 

 inhabitants. 



1 



