164 



RECREATION. 



HOW MUCH GOLD. 



In your issue of September, '99, is a com- 

 munication on the subject of the combined 

 bath for photos, which lays down the hard 

 and fast rule that 231 square inches (one 

 dozen 4x5 prints) are the limit of the area 

 that can be successfully toned with a grain 

 of gold. This is a sample of the loose and 

 illogical directions with which the amateur 

 has everywhere to contend. Take, for in- 

 stance, 2 prints of a given size, one a dark 

 interior or portrait, with dark background, 

 and the other an outdoor snow and water 

 scene, with light sky. Is it not evident the 

 latter print will be nearly all white when 

 finished, that the whites will not have re- 

 quired any gold or other toning material, 

 and that in consequence it may not have 

 weakened the toning bath 1-10 so much as 

 did the dark interior? 



A combined bath will do curious and 

 cranky things, and until the reasons are 

 discovered one will at times think all baths 

 are fakes; but when properly worked some 

 of them seem to give permanent and brill- 

 iant prints. Not long since we had occa- 

 sion to tone what amounted to about 40 

 4x5 gelatine prints, out-of-doors views with 

 rather dark foregrounds. We used only 

 one grain of gold, toned them quite dark, 

 and they came out very well. 



The next time we attempted to do some- 

 what less work with a like amount of gold, 

 but divided the prints mto 2 lots when ton- 

 ing, with the result that the first lot were 

 all good and the second all poor. We don't 

 work them that way any more. 



The Ka-Korser-Ko, Limited, 



Minneapolis, Minn. 



similar way. You "doctor" each plate, and 

 have no risks at all. Your outfit is simple. 

 A handy way to use hypo is to have a 

 saturated solution on hand and dilute with 

 wat:r when wanted for use. 



A. B., Belmar, N. J. 



SCIENTIFIC DEVELOPMENT. 



While not claiming entire originality, I 

 venture to give a favorite formula for de- 

 veloping. Take dry pyro, one small mus- 

 tard spoonful (about 2 grains) ; water, one 

 ounce; saturated solution of soda sulphite, 

 one dram. Mix in tray, place plate in this 

 solution, when pyro is dissolved. Next add 

 of a saturated solution of soda carbonate 

 (washing soda) say a few drops to begin 

 work — 10 drops will do for an ordinary ex- 

 posure — and continue to add more, drop by 

 drop, until the plate begins to develop. 

 Add, if necessary, a few drops (2 drops to 

 ounce of developer) of a saturated solution 

 of potassium bromide. You can develop 

 any exposure in this tentative way, dosing 

 each plate as its individual need demands. 

 This is a sure and simple method, and you 

 do not have any old oxidized pyro on hand. 

 I develop 3, 4 and 5 plates with only one 

 mixing of above developer. A simple hy- 

 dro developer can be made in a somewhat 



PLATINUM BATH. 



Please give me more information about 

 the platinum bath mentioned in Novem- 

 ber, 1898, Recreation. Is the prints after 

 being taken from printing frame, put di- 

 rectly into the bath, or is it first toned in 

 a gold solution? What is a saturated solu- 

 tion of citric acid? My druggist said he 

 did not know how to make it. 



H. W. Dixon, Minneapolis, Minn. 



ANSWER. 



To make platinum bath, take 2 ounces 

 saturated solution of citric acid, put into 

 it 15 grains of platinum chloride, lastly 

 add ,20 grains copper chloride. Shake the 

 whole until dissolved. This makes a con- 

 centrated stock solution. For toning, take 

 1 drachm of this to 15 ounces of water. 

 Put prints into this directly from print- 

 ing frame. This will give a platinum tone. 

 No gold or other toning is needed. Fix 

 and wash as usual. 



A saturated solution is the strongest 

 possible solution — as much of a given 

 drug as a certain quantity of water will 

 dissolve. A druggist who does not know 

 how to make a saturated solution of any- 

 thing soluble is a wonder, and should be 

 labored with by the Board of Pharmacy. 



HOME-MADE KITS. 



Take a piece of cardboard the size of 

 the plate for which your camera was made, 

 cut an opening in the center the size of 

 the smaller plate you desire to use, being 

 sure to measure from the center of the 

 cardboard. Cut a slit from each right- 

 hand corner of the opening toward the 

 same corner of the board. Take a piece 

 of heavy watch spring — you can get it 

 from the jeweler for the asking — that will 

 reach from one slit to the other, allowing 

 it to curve a little on the inside of the 

 opening. This forms a spring to hold 

 your plate in place. 



The kit is now complete. Put it in your 

 plateholder, insert your plates in opening, 

 pressing spring toward the 2nd; put in 

 your slide and you are ready for business. 

 By this method you can use any size plate 

 smaller than that for which your camera 

 is intended. Before using kits, lay off on 

 the ground glass with a lead pencil the 

 exact size of each kit opening, so when 

 focusing you can tell just what size to 

 make your object. 



W. B. Scott, Washington, Pa. 



