AMATEUR PHOTOGRAPHY. 



485 



with other papers. The development is un- 

 der perfect control at all times. Unless the 

 correct exposure is given with the other 

 papers, the image will either flash up and 

 blacken before the print can be removed 

 from the developer, or it ..will require pro- 

 longed development, in which case the pa- 

 per becomes stained. This is not the case 

 with Yinco. Then there are no freaks to 

 contend with, such as are found in at least 

 one of the others. 



I make a mixture of water, 5 ounces ; sul- 

 phite of soda crystals, y 2 ounce ; commer- 

 cial acetic acid, 3 ounces ; powdered alum, 

 y 2 ounce. Of this mixture \ add 2 or 3 

 ounces to each quart of hypo solution. This 

 hardens and at the same time clears the 

 film on plates, films and papers. It also 

 admits of longer use of the hypo solution, 

 as it does not discolor so rapidly. 



For preventing halation at windows I 

 find Acme halation destroyers all that can 

 be desired. They consist of a sheet of pa- 

 per cut to negative size, coated on one side 

 with an opaque substance which is only 

 necessary to moisten with a sponge or rag 

 and squeegee on the back of the plate. This 

 may be removed by soaking in water be- 

 fore development. 



To A. H. Harlow I would give the fol- 

 lowing advice : Never touch the face of 

 your ferrotype plates under any circum- 

 stance. Keep them clean. Allow all prints 

 to dry over night, and the next day, or at 

 any future time, soak them in clean water 

 until they are limp. Place on the plate 

 cover with a blotter, avoiding undue pres- 

 sure on any particular spot, and roll out 

 the water between plate and print. Stand 

 aside to dry, when the print will come off 

 and not stick. Greasy fingers coming in 

 contact with the plate cause prints to stick 

 and when once they stick they will con- 

 tinue sticking until the plate is thrown 

 away. 



Frequent advice is given to amateurs to 

 make their own developers. To those who 

 wish to do so, I give the following hints, 

 and I have made developers and sold them 

 for years : Buy only the best and purest 

 chemicals. Never buy sulphite of soda in 

 bulk, as it is sure to be coated with sul- 

 phate. Buy it in bottles of one pound 

 each and in a dry state, it being twice as 

 strong as the crystals. Do not make up a 

 large quantity at one time unless you put 

 it in small bottles, as whenever a portion is 

 taken out of the bottle its place is taken by 

 air and it is then apt to discolor. Don't 

 use chemicals of any kind over and over, 

 thinking to economize ; you can't do it. 

 Each chemical will do so much work and 

 no more. Many dense, slow printing nega- 

 tives are made so by using an exhausted 

 developer. Such negatives should be re- 



duced to save time, if a large number of 

 prints are desired. 



Here is a me; hod of intensifying which 

 works well and enables one to get a good 

 vigorous print from a negative which be- 

 fore treatment would yield but a poor one. 

 Dissolve one dr. bichloride of mercury in 

 7 ounces water ; and 3 drams potassium 

 iodide in 3 ounces water. When completely 

 dissolved pour the iodide solution into the 

 mercury solution until the red precipitate is 

 completely dissolved. For use, dilute with 

 water, full strength, and flow over the 

 negative. This may be done dry or the 

 negative may first be soaked a few min- 

 utes. When the proper density is reached, 

 wash, and the deposit will turn yellow. 

 Remove the yellow by flowing with a 5 

 per cent, solution of hypo, and give a 

 final washing. Should some of the yellow 

 color remain, it will not affect the print- 

 ing qualities of the plate-. Try it off an 

 old plate, and you will be astonished at the 

 result. C, Bethlehem, Pa. 



A CAMERA FOR THE BEGINNER. 



In selecting a camera, the beginner 

 should determine to have the best he can 

 possibly buy. Nothing but disappointment 

 comes of having poor instruments and ma- 

 terial. Needless to say, choice should be 

 made from among the makes advertised in 

 Recreation. In size, unless some special 

 class of work is designed, the 4x5 camera 

 recommends itself as the best for general 

 use. The outfit is not burdensome to carry 

 about, supplies can be procured for it in al- 

 most any town, and the expense of operat- 

 ing it is comparatively small. Negatives 

 of this size are convenient for both en- 

 largement and reduction ; they are large 

 enough to be satisfactory in and of them- 

 selves, yet not so large as to be incon- 

 venient of manipulation in the darkroom 

 and printing processes. 



While the press-the-button box cameras 

 are convenient for some kinds of picture 

 taking, they have serious limitations. The 

 bellows type of camera is far the best. The 

 bicycle styles, by reason of their compact- 

 ness and portability, are desirable; though 

 the double extension box styles, by reason 

 of their great bellows capacity, may well be 

 considered. A bellows draw of less than 

 15 inches is undesirable and should not be 

 accepted ; the longer the draw the greater 

 is the capacity of the instrument for doing 

 things, consequently the greater the satis- 

 faction in it. 



By all means let the camera be provided 

 with reversible back: the rack and pinion 

 focussing arrangement, swingback, vertical 

 and lateral movements of lens support are 

 also desirable features. Above all things, 

 a good lens and shutter are essentials to 



