Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1864-04-26

Perhsps no man receives 50 many bless
ings on the one hand, and so many curses
on the other, as the photographer. One
set of men are delighted with his achieve
menls and lsud him fereely, another no
less disguised, and think him the most
unapprecistive Of mortsl5, If you sre
handsome man, reader, and your picture
attests the fact, you belong to the former
class. II however your photograph tells
you that you are by no means handsome,
YOU rank yourself with the most enthusi-
astic OF the latter. AS, however, ALL
whether handsome or ugly, are more or
less interested in the methods and achieve
meDts Of the art, we give to our readers
the following facts respecting its history,
and the method Of workiDg-the result Of
an hour spent in one Of our best galleries;
ITS NAME AND GENERAL CHARACTER.
The name photography literally means
sun-drswing, the word coming from the
two Greek words, Phos meaning light, and
graphic, meaning to paint or TO draw. In
general sense, it is the art Of impressing
the images Of camera obseura on plates.
The camera is an apparatus, in which the
images o. objects, received through dou-
| BILE convex glass, are distinctly exhibited
on white surface at the focus of the glass
within q chamber darkened. That the art
of photography is now one Of vast import
snoe, all believe. So directly, indeed, does
it bear upon the old established forms Of
printing and engraving, arts Of the very
highest value and importance, so rich is it
in its present achievements, and so prom
| ising in its future attsinments, that
scarcely any amount Of energy and time
spent upon its study can be said TO be
wasted.
1 ITS HISTORY.
Tie improvements made in the srt since
its origin have been wonderful. At first
va had but dim image on the silver
plate, now we have the exact and brilliant
photograph At first We had but single
miniature, obtained at a sitting Of painful
and almost interminsble length, now we
have the means Of multiplying to any eI-
tent from the hslf-dozen TO the gross. In
stead of the single and imperfect minia-
ture, q picture can now be produced equal
ling in most respects the best engraving.
A landscape, ife-siEed portrait, any OBJ
iect may now be had in sill its natural
beauty at an expense comparatively
trifiing. The fret germ Of the art is
perhaps presented in an experiment Of
Priestly, who caused some chloride Of sill
yer to be put in q glass bottle, and then
put around the bottle a piece Of dark pa
per in which letters had been cut with q
pen knife. This he placed in the sun,
when he found that all the portions Of
chloride on which light had fallen through
the letters, turned black, while those pro-
tected By the dark paper retained their
whiteness unimpaired. Afterwards, in
1865, Seheele, q Swedish chemist, made
some experiments to discover whether il
is some special color Of light or light in
the aggregate, which produces this result
Certain rays were found BY him to occs-
sion the changes spoken Of, and were
called chemical rays, and sfterWsrdi from
the power discovered TO inhere in them
deoxidizing rays.
But no definite attempts at photograph
ing were successfully made until 1902
when WedgswOod, an Englisbmsn, sue
ceeded in an imperfect effort. He obtain
ed an image by projecting the shadow o.
the object on paper, which he had dipped
in a solution Of nitrate Of silver. NJ
image, however, Of any character vss pro
duced in the camera until some yesri
later, when Niepce, q Frenchman, success
fully executed the work. In 1929 thii
artist became associated with Daguerre
who had lsbored for some time 70 product
the same effect, but their combined eforti
failed at that time to attain the desired
end.
THE DAGUERREoTYPE.
.L.,4 +;na bouavar affair fba daafI
Of Niepee, Dsguerre discovered the process
which now bears his name. In 1889, tht
dagusrreotype, with the process requisite
for taking the same, was made knsWn t
the world. The sensation produced VA
immense. It is said that never was th'
; interest manifested in this discovery by
the lovers Of practical art, surpassed bJ
, interest in any practical discovery eVei
before made. Artists Of reputation en-
braced with enthusiasm the new art anC