AMATEUR PHOTOGRAPHY. 



163 



printing a small negative on a larger sheet 

 of paper, and afterward tinting the sur- 

 rounding paper to any depth desired by 

 shading the printed part, and exposing the 

 edges. Instead of trimming down prints 

 that show a waste of uninteresting detail 

 around a small picture in the center, it 

 may be better to cut a mask to cover the 

 part of the print desired and then print 

 the margin to a suitable tint, possibly leav- 

 ing a small strip of white between. — Ex- 

 change. . * 



SOME CONVENTIONAL FALLACIES. 



I used to think that films were both hard- 

 er to develop and less handy to print from 

 than glass plates. Further experience with 

 films reverses this opinion. I also thought 

 it necessary always to use orthochromatic 

 plates and a color screen to get good color 

 values and cloud effects in landscape work, 

 until I discovered that transparent film had 

 orthochromatic qualities that can not be 

 surpassed. In addition to the acknowledged 

 advantages of lightness and portability, the 

 film support is superior to glass in being 

 free from bubbles, and in the fact that it is 

 not liable to crack or break. If the makers 

 of transparent film would meet dry plate 

 prices the dry plate would have to go. 



I used to think it more economical, and 

 handier as well, to develop Velox and other 

 similar papers with a brush instead of by 

 immersion, but I find I was mistaken, the 

 latter way being generally more satisfactory. 



When I first took up photography, I 

 naturally fell into the error of concluding 

 that a short exposure or an undertimed 

 negative required stronger developer than 

 one normally timed or over exposed. Of 

 course the reverse is true. For an under- 

 timed exposure or a snap shot, normal de- 

 veloper should be diluted with one to 3 

 times its quantity of water, and develop- 

 ment allowed to proceed slowly. 



I used to suppose that an ounce meant an 

 ounce^and a dram meant a dram, always. 

 Sometimes they do, but with experience I 

 learn that the strength of chemicals varies, 

 and that the only safe and reliable scale 

 of weights and measures in the photogra- 

 pher's dark room is the hydrometer. — The 

 Photo-American. 



DEVELOPING. 

 There are a number of suggestions as to 

 developing which should be thoroughly 

 studied and carefully followed, to insure 

 good results. Prints may be developed by 

 immersion, or the developer may be ap- 

 plied with a tuft of cotton or a brush. If 

 working by the former method, the devel- 

 oper should be put into a tray somewhat 

 larger than the size of the paper you are 

 using. To the right of this place a bath of 



water in any convenient receptacle, and 

 next to that the tray for the fixing bath. The 

 prints should be immersed edgewise, face 

 up, in the developer, and they should be 

 evenly covered therewith at once to insure 

 uniformity of development. 



To develop by the cotton or brush 

 method provide yourself with a pane of 

 glass a little larger than the print to be de- 

 veloped and pour the developer into a cup 

 or tumbler. After the paper has been ex- 

 posed, place it face up on the glass, 

 thoroughly saturate the cotton or brush 

 and pass it quickly over the surface of the 

 print, applying the developer evenly and 

 abundantly. The image will appear 'grad- 

 ually, if the exposure is right. If your 

 print flashes up quickly and at once grows 

 black it is a sign you have over-exposed in 

 printing or that you need more bromide in 

 your developer. If under-exposed, your 

 print will, on the contrary, develop slowly 

 and it will finally be found weak in im- 

 portant parts. — Velox Manual. 



AMATEUR PORTRAITS. 

 To attempt portraits of his friends is 

 one of the most insidious temptations of 

 the amateur photographer. To all who 

 contemplate such a use of their cameras 

 Punch's famous advice "don't" applies. 

 The reasons are legion. To tackle such 

 a task is to subject the strongest friend- 

 ship to the severest possible strain, and, 

 even when a large measure of success at- 

 tends the effort, it must not be expected 

 that the model will be satisfied. The mod- 

 el of the amateur is a much more exacting 

 critic than the model of the professional. 

 Because he is a friend he thinks he can 

 take greater liberties and say nastier 

 things. An 'amateur I know did his best 

 a little time ago to take a portrait of a 

 friend, and he really secured an excellent 

 likeness. What was the result His friend 

 almost tore his hair with rage because he 

 had been made to look "so old." The 

 model in question confessed to 60 y2ars, 

 and the photograph certainly did not make 

 him look any older. No, the professional 

 photographer, with his retouching, has so 

 impressed people with the idea that it is 

 the business of the camera to make models 

 look 10 or 20 years younger than they are, 

 that the amateur, as he values his own 

 peace of mind, will cry off all invitations 

 or temptations to take his friends. — The 

 Traveler. 



A SINGLE SOLUTION DEVELOPER. 

 Over a year ago I read in Recreation 

 a formula for a one solution developer. I 

 made up a quantity and found it superior 

 to anything I had before used. Now I 

 have lost the formula. Will you kindly 



