Natural Science News. 



VOL. I 



ALBION, N. Y., MAY 25, 1895. 



No. 17 



Natural Science News. 



A Weekly Journal Devoted to 

 Natural History. 



FRANK H. LATTIN, Editor and Publisher, 

 ALBION, N. Y. 



Correspondence and Items of Interest to the 

 student of any of the various branches of the 

 Natural Sciences solicited from all. 



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Photographic Suggestions. 



Recognizing the fact that the 

 camera is becoming an important 

 feature in the collector's outfit. I 

 trust that a few words to the be- 

 ginner on photography in the Nat- 

 ural Science News will not come 

 amiss. 



After having selected your out- 

 fit, the next consideration is the 

 dark room. If you have no place 

 to make a regular dark room the 

 cellar will do very well in summer. 

 In fact I have developed plates in 

 a cellar in weather that would ren- 

 der an upper room simply impos- 

 sible to work in without ice — on 

 account of the heat fogging the 

 plates. Every care should be taken 

 to make it perfectly light tight. A 

 perfect dark room should be sup- 

 plied with running water, a good 

 safe light, means of ventilation to 

 carry off poisonous acid fumes, 

 sink, etc. 



The best as well as the cheapest 

 means of obtaining a good safe 

 light, is to take a box about 12 in. 

 square and 18 in. tall, make a frame 

 door (similar to a screen door) 

 and cover it with red or orange 

 paper, double. The box must be 

 provided with a hole in the top and 

 some in the bottom or back for 

 ventilation. Use an ordinary lamp 

 inside. By fitting a common stove 

 pipe over the hole in the top, and 

 extending it out of the dark room, 

 you have an automatic ventilator. 

 If the amateur has that happy fac- 

 ulty for "making things" he can 

 make trays, for a few cents, equal 



to those sold for $2.00, as follows: 

 Make a box with sides two or three 

 inches high of any convenient size 

 and line it with common white oil 

 cloth carefully folded at the cor- 

 ners, and tacked on the top edges 

 of the sides. 



After making the exposure the 

 most important point is develop- 

 ment, and one cannot be too care- 

 ful if he wishes to secure even 

 moderate results. Chose one pro- 

 cess, and stick to it. Do not keep 

 changing formulae, dry plates, pa- 

 per, etc., but take some standard 

 formulae and work it until thorough- 

 ly acquainted with it. That is the 

 quickest way to succeed. 



The market is filled with new 

 developers, but pyrogallic acid 

 holds its own, and seems likely to 



A good 



for some time to come, 

 pyro formula will be 

 every box of dry plates, 

 are all practical. The 

 lies in the manipulation. 

 Remove the plates 



found in 

 and they 

 difference 



from 



the 



plate holder, dust carefully with 

 camels hair brush ( or if you have 

 no brush you can make a scraper 

 by taking a piece of thin wood, 

 with a straight edge, and covering 

 it with velvet. Use this carefully 

 and you will not be bothered with 

 the little spots called"pin holes.") 

 Place the plate in the developing 

 tray and flow quickly from side to 

 side with developer. The tray should 

 be kept covered from the light ex- 

 cept when examined. If a proper 

 exposure has been made, the im- 

 mage will gradually appear, and 

 then take on the density desired. 

 The proper way to judge of density 

 is by transmitted light, but when 

 you get used to your plates you 

 can tell when they are fully devel- 

 oped by the outlines showing on 

 the back. 



After fixing in the hypo bath 

 until it clears — or the white disap- 

 pears from the back — wash in sev- 

 eral changes of water for two or 

 three hours, or in running water 

 for half an hour. If it then ap- 

 pears thin with no opaque black 

 parts it has not been fully devel- 

 oped. This is just where most 

 beginners get left. In case of 

 over-exposure it will seem to flash 

 up quickly with a general lack of 

 brilliancy. A few drops of a solu- 

 tion of Bromide of Potassium (j4 

 oz. to 5 oz. of water) added, will 

 keep it back, if not too badly over- 

 exposed, in which case better throw 

 it away and try again. 



For normal exposure use cold 

 developers in summer and warm 

 in winter. After developing, the 

 developer is then called old. For 

 the next plate use old and new 

 mixed, three parts old to one part 

 new, or mix old and new in pro- 

 portion to the expesure, remem- 

 bering that the old works slower, 

 giving more contrast. 



Under-exposed plates develop 

 slow, lack detail, and give great 

 contrast. Use more alkali and less 

 pyro. 



Volumes have been written on 

 this subject, and every one who 

 has had a year or two of exper- 

 ience has a favorite formula which 

 he will assure you is the only cor- 

 rect one to use, but the foregoing 

 will — I hope — set each one to think- 

 ing it out for himself, and practice 

 will make perfect. 



Printing. 

 Now a few words as to papers, 

 as much depends on proper print- 

 ing from good or poor negatives. 



Very pretty pictures can be made 

 from strong negatives on blue pa- 

 per, and it is very inexpensive. 

 One yard 27 in. wide, cut to any 

 size, will be sent by mail, prepaid, 

 for 25 cents, by the Obrig Camera 

 Co., New York. 



In order to secure the finest de- 

 tail silver paper should be used. 

 There are three distinct kinds, 

 Albumen, Gelatine and Collodion. 

 Albumen paper should be freshly 

 sensitized and fumed with amonia 

 before printing. It will keep fresh 

 only two or three days. Silvering 

 it will be found to be a difficul ttask, 

 and I would strongly advise any 

 one to use the new and popular 

 aristo and other papers rather than 

 have anything to do with silver- 

 ing- 

 Gelatine paper has many disad- 

 vantages, and nearly always re- 

 quires a hardening bath. 



Collodion paper — the kind that 

 does not curl — will be found to be 

 the most satisfactory, and is easily 

 worked. It comes ready to use ex- 

 cept it should be trimmed before 

 printing. If a number of prints 

 are to be made from 4x5 negatives, 

 it is best to cut the paper to 3^x4^ 

 before printing, then no trimming 

 will be required. 



Please bear in mind that I write 

 this with the sole aim of helping 

 beginners, and although it appears 

 to weaken an article by giving 

 preference to certain firms I would 

 have been well pleased to have 



