AMATEUR PHOTOGRAPHY. 



32; 



ent kinds on the market; among them the 

 photographer can choose that which best 

 suits his immediate purpose. 



He will be well advised if before using 

 it in the field he makes a series of careful 

 tests to give him a clear idea of the ex- 

 tent to which the screen increases the ex- 

 posure necessary. This is an important 

 point, because great discrepancies are 

 found between the increase as stated by 

 the maker and that actually required by the 

 screen. 



Tests are best made in duplicate, in the 

 middle of the day and just before sundown. 

 Considerable difference will often be found 

 between the 2. 



A good general idea of the behavior of 

 a color screen with any particular make 

 of -plate can be obtained by selecting some 

 ordinary landscape subject and exposing 

 one plate on it in a series of strips, pushing 

 the shutter of the slide in between each ex- 

 posure. Such a stop may be inserted as to 

 make exposure thoroughly manageable, say 

 f/32 or f/45. The exposures to the differ- 

 ent parts of the plate, each of which should 

 be double the preceding, may be so ar- 

 ranged as to bring the correctly exposed 

 part somewhere in the middle of the series. 

 Thus, if 2 seconds would be about right, 

 then 5 / 2, 1, 2, 4, 8 and 16 seconds may be 

 given. Immediately afterward a second 

 plate should be exposed, but with the color 

 screen interposed. The exposures in this 

 instance may also double, the middle ex- 

 posure being as nearly as possible as many 

 times the correct exposure without the 

 screen as its maker recommends. 



Thus, in the case given, in which 2 sec- 

 onds was about right without the screen, 

 we should give, with a screen which the 

 maker claims requires 4 times the exposure, 

 2, 4, 8, 16, 32 and 64 seconds. The 2 plates 

 should be developed side by side in the 

 same dish for the same time, fixed, washed 

 and compared. They will show at a glance 

 the exact effect of the use of the screen so 

 far as prolonging the exposure is con- 

 cerned. — Photography, London. 



♦PHOTOGRAPHING A CHIPMUNK. 

 In taking the photo entitled. "Meddling 

 with Danger," I had a few interesting 

 experiences. I tried nearly every day 

 for more than a week before I could get 

 the chipmunk in the act of going into the 

 trap. I set the trap and baited it, then 

 set my camera up about 4 feet from the 

 trap and covered it all with leaves and 

 branches except the lens. I had a tube 

 about 20 feet long. I lay down and covered 

 myself partially with branches, leaving an 

 opening to look through. After waiting 

 an hour, without getting the chipmunk 

 where I wanted him, I exposed a plate to 



♦Seepage 258. 



learn the correct timing. The next day 

 I came and after \]/z hours' wait, succeeded 

 in getting the chipmunk in position. 

 I went home much elated, to find on de- 

 velopment that the picture was many 

 times under exposed; being a different 

 kind of plate, but supposed to be the same 

 speed. I was then determined to get that 

 chipmunk's picture and I kept going 

 every day. Sometimes he would come 

 out and run all over the wall without 

 going near the trap. Then he would sit 

 motionless in one position 15 or more 

 minutes, but not where I wanted him. 

 He became suspicious of the pile of branches , 

 as I was so cramped I w r ould sometimes 

 have to move. 



Once, after a long wait, he came out 

 and was working my way, when along 

 came a big stray cat. In went chippy 

 with a chirp and didn't come out again 

 that morning. I didn't say anything, 

 but I wished I had my rifle for that cat. 

 Once a few crows discovered my conceal- 

 ment, and in 5 minutes no less than 25 

 were flying around, darting down to see 

 what the trouble was and making an 

 awful racket. 



One night my trap was stolen and I 

 found it beside the road, broken, about 

 half a mile distant. I repaired it and 

 still had hopes. The next night the 

 trap was gone for good and I had to make 

 a new one, which I carried back and 

 forth with me. While lying in wait I 

 made the acquaintance of a red squirrel 

 and a blue jay, which I saw every day. 

 Finally, one day after waiting 2^ hours, 

 and being nearly frozen, I managed to 

 squeeze the bulb and get the picture of 

 which you have copies. I find much 

 more satisfaction in this picture than in 

 one which is easy to get and where there 

 are no obstacles to overcome. 



Harry G. Higbee, Hyde Park, Mass. 



SUGGESTIONS. 



Red spots on platino paper may be 

 removed in 2 ways. If they are not bad, 

 incline a tray slightly, lay the print with 

 the streak or spot toward the incline. 

 Place a lump of hypo on it and, with your 

 finger, a few drops of w T ater on that. Keep 

 it moving occasionally and the spot will 

 gradually be eaten out. The other, and 

 perhaps best w T ay, is to make a weak 

 solution of cyanide of potassium, and 

 remove by either applying locally or 

 immersing. If you have a print too dark, 

 cyanide makes an excellent reducer. If 

 the solution is strong it will work on a 

 trifle after it is removed to the water. 

 This should not affect the permanence 

 of the print, as it only eats off the metallic 

 platinum or gold. This process is in- 

 tended to be used after the print is fixed. 



Cyanide of potassium is an excellent plate 



