AMATEUR PHOTOGRAPHY. 



325 



quarters of Frederick K. Lawrence, sec- 

 retary of the present Salon exhibition, and 

 an expert in enlarging small negatives and 

 making bromide enlargements. I recom- 

 mend this firm to Recreation's Western 

 readers for fine goods and fair treatment. 



If you have failures and have made fruit- 

 less search every other where, look to your 

 tripod. Many tripods are so lightly con- 

 structed, on the demand of amateurs afoot 

 and cycling, who are figuring to reduce 

 weight, that they are not even fit to hold 

 a hand camera. To such may be directly 

 attributed many of the double objects 

 and failures otherwise unaccounted for. 



Gelatine papers are the best for prints 

 to be reproduced by the photogravure 

 process. Print as deeply as you dare, tone 

 up well, and mount, no matter if the prints 

 look as if they would step off the card. 

 They will not look that way when they 

 have passed through the photogravure pro- 

 cess. 



On page 346, Wilson, in his "Quarter 

 Century in Photography," says, "Those 

 who use commercial dry plates, should 

 develop them as instructed by their manu- 

 facturers." In looking for ways to ma- 

 terially better your work, don't forget this. 



"Bromide of brains is one of the most 

 valuable and least used of all the requisites 

 for an 'immature' photographer." 



— Thomas Pray. 



SOME USEFUL HINTS. 



H. F. STREEGAN. 



I strongly condemn the use of the com- 

 bined toning and fixing bath for gelatine 

 chloride papers. The results are not per- 

 manent. To those who choose to use gela- 

 tine papers I recommend the following 

 working formula: 



First Washing — Ten minutes in several 

 changes. 



Hardening Bath — Soak the prints 5 to 

 10 minutes in alum, 1 ounce; common 

 salt, 1 ounce; water, 20 ounces, keeping 

 them moving the whole time. 



Second Washing — Ten minutes in sev- 

 eral changes. 



Toning Formula — Stock Solution, No. 1: 

 Sulphocyanido of ammonium, 100 grains; 

 water, 10 ounces. 



No. 2: Sodium sulphite, 10 grains; 

 water 10 ounces. 



No. 3: Chloride of gold, 15 grains; 

 water, 15 ounces. 



For toning, take 2 ounces of No. 1, 2 

 and 3 and make up to 20 ounces with 

 water. 



The prints should be withdrawn when 

 there is just a trace of warmth in the 



heaviest shadows on looking through the 

 prints. On the surface they will appear 

 overtoned, but this will alter in the fixing 

 bath. 



Third Washing — Five minutes in several 

 changes. 



Fixing — Hypo, 3 ounces; water, 20 

 ounces. Fixation is complete in about 10 

 minutes. 



Final Washing — At least 2 hours in run- 

 ning water or many changes. 



Special Note — Do not use any excess of 

 sulphocyanido or sulphite over quantity 

 mentioned. 



One of our greatest photographers has 

 said, Don't attempt to go farther until you 

 can produce a good negative and a good 

 print from it. Don't flatter yourself you 

 are a good photographer, or have finished 

 your education, when you can do both. 

 Here lies the fatal barrier over which few 

 seem able to step. There is a world be- 

 yond, without attaining which the student 

 is only an imperfect experimenter. What 

 a book can teach is only a means of art. 

 You have to use that means for the pro- 

 duction of pictorial effect, a labor which 

 takes you into the higher regions of art. 

 and which, when you become thoroughly 

 interested, will increase your delight in 

 photography. 



Fix silver prints fully 20 minutes. The 

 bath, which must be made fresh for 

 every batch of prints, should be 3 ounces 

 of hypo to one pint of water. Probably 

 more prints have faded through imperfect 

 fixation than from all other causes com- 

 bined. The prints must be kept constantly 

 moving during the operations of toning 

 and fixing. In the case of toning the ne- 

 cessity for this will be at once apparent by 

 uneven toning; in the case of fixing it 

 will be apparent later. Wash prints well 

 before toning. Eight or 10 changes of 

 water will be none too many. 



At frequent intervals the camera bellows 

 should be examined for pin holes or weak 

 spots, through which light may enter. 

 Cover the head with the focusing cloth, 

 lift out the ground glass screen, wait 2 or 

 3 minutes, to allow the eye to become ac 

 customed to the darkness; then get some 

 one to move a lighted candle all around 

 the bellows, and any leaky places that mav 

 exist will be readily discovered. 



Lenses should be kept in a little wash 

 leather (chamois) or canvas bag. To pre- 

 vent fungus, the glasses should be smeared 

 with vaseline, which can readily be pol- 

 ished off when the lens is required for use. 

 Keep lenses, when not in use. in a dry 

 place and protected from strong light. It 

 has been proved that light has darkening 

 action on the finest lenses, thus making 

 them slower. 



