PHOTOGRAPHY 



X. 



strength of the solution, you look at the 

 plates every fifteen minutes or half-hour un- 

 til they are done. You may not believe it, 

 but you will get far finer average results 

 from your negatives than by the old method 

 of tray development. The negatives will be 

 cleaner, crisper and not so dense as you are 

 apt to get them when developing by hand. 



COLOR-PRINTING. 



Two or three months ago, I wrote about a 

 color-printing process which had been put on 

 the market and which gave really interesting 

 results with very little labor. There is now 

 another simple color process at the disposal 

 of the amateur, which, if correctly worked, 

 will give very nearly true reproductions of 

 color. This process, which is now being ex- 

 ploited, is called "Solgram" by the inventor, 

 and a little explanation of its working will 

 probably interest. Strictly speaking, it is a 

 three-negative process, but two negatives can 

 be used, or even one, though with one nega- 

 tive the results are not so perfect as to color, 

 but the manipulation is, of course, easier. We 

 will suppose you are using one negative only. 

 This should be made on an orthochromatic 

 plate. The printing paper, as bought, is coat- 

 ed with a red solution, on which the first 

 print is made. The print can be examined 

 from time to time during exposure, and when 

 a faint image appears it is removed from the 

 frame and washed with cold water, a piece 

 of cotton soaked in water being used to rub 

 the surface of the paper and remove the 

 color. This first print will give you a bril- 

 liant red image which must be thoroughly 

 dried first, before proceeding to the next step. 

 When dry, the paper is coated with a solu- 

 tion of a blue print powder which comes with 

 the paper. The solution is brushed lightly 

 over the red image and the paper allowed to 

 dry. The print is then placed on the nega- 

 tive a second time, care being taken to regis- 

 ter the image over the negative. This can 

 be done easily, as the red image is quite vis- 

 ible through the blue coating. Print as be- 

 fore and then wash in cold water for five or 

 ten minutes, dry and coat the paper again 

 with a solution of the yellow powder accom- 

 panying the paper. After drying, you print 

 behind the negative for a third time, allowing 

 the print to become well tanned, and then 

 wash again in cold water, and your print in 

 colors is finished. Simple, is it not? 



The finest results are obtained with the 

 use of three negatives of the subject, which 

 should be made with a green filter before 

 the lens for the first or red coating, a red fil- 

 ter for the second or blue coating and a vio- 

 let filter for the third or yellow coating. It 

 would take too long and be somewhat too 

 technical to describe the reasons for using 



these filters, but for those who have patience 



and use infinite care this last method will l>- 

 an interesting study. 



LOADING PLATE HOLDERS 



Editor Recreation : 



I see in a recent issue of your magazine 

 an article in regard to loading plate holders 

 in the dark, in which you state that all plate 

 makers pack the dry plates film side to film. 

 I have been using the "New Record" plates, 

 and they are all packed with the film side 

 up ; that is, all that I have used. My method 

 of loading dry plates without a ruby light 

 is as follows : Take a pin or needle, or 

 other sharp-pointed instrument, and make a 

 short scratch near the edge of the plate, say 

 one-sixteenth of an inch from the edge. 

 Try both sides of the plate ; on the film side- 

 it will stick, but on the glass side will slip 

 off very easy. The scratch will not hurt the 

 negative in any way if made near the end 

 or side of plate, as the printing frame takes 

 off a margin of about one-eighth of an inch. 

 If this method is of any use to you you may 

 publish it. 



Rannie Smith, Preston, Minn. 



A DEVELOPER FOR SOLIO 



Editor Recreation : 



Could you kindly let me know a good de- 

 veloper and fixing solution for solio paper. 

 I like this paper, as I have had 'better luck 

 with it than with others, and always used 

 a combination fixing and developing solu- 

 tion put up by a large photo supply com- 

 pany in Nassau street, but the pictures I 

 took two years ago, and of which I think a 

 great deal, are fading. I keep moving the 

 prints until they are a deep chestnut-brown 

 and then put them in a vessel large enough 

 so they do not lay in one heap and let a 

 small stream of water run on them for one 

 hour. Then I dry them and mount them. 

 Should I get other paper (or some other 

 brand) and a different solution, or is there 

 something I can put into the solio combina- 

 tion to keep pictures from fading? I always 

 use fresh paper and solution. Will send 

 some pictures to Recreation shortly. Hoping 

 you can help me out, and thanking you in 

 advance, I am, 



Edwin Hauck, New York City. 



NOW, YOUR TURN 



A Wisconsin man has invented a rat 

 killer made of 76 per cent, corn meal, 19 

 per cent, dynamite and 5 per cent, of glue. 

 The mixture is rolled into balls and a little 

 cayenne pepper placed in the centre of it; 

 when the rat sneezes he is blown to pieces. 

 This mixture is not effective on mice be- 

 cause they do not sneeze hard enough. Such 

 genius is worthy of a native son of Kansas. 



