Daily Honolulu press. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1886, 1885-10-07
PHOTO MECHANICAL.
THE SYSTEM EXPLAINED BY ONE
OF ITS exPoNeNTS
How Art Serves Commerce Making Plot
nres of Public buildings, Bridges,
and Merchandise = Tracing
Architectural Drawings.
Chicago News.l


change, and observed the taking Of sevsra
sectional and full-sized views of the large
trading hall by the two partners in pho
Geographic firm. The process was a long and
tedious one, as the artists made many eff
forts before they reached the best possible
results Tho reporter was invited TO call
and see the pictures when finished and did
80. After admiring the proofs from the
negatives he had seen taken, he entered In
TO conversation with the partners, who gave
him large amount Of information concern
Ing their branch of the Photographic art
ut is popularity supposed" said one Of
them, shat the ordinary portrait rhoto-
graphers who take work in our line do the
work themselves But this is misconcep r.
ton, as IL requires special training and diff
ferent appliances to produce the finest wor,
In our speciality
3Wbat constitutes the greatest number Of
these special ordersp
Our work is everything outside the ordi-
nary portrait line, and even in that we do
agreat deal Of enlarging by the negative
and condenser systems Our main work.
though, Is public buildings, monuments
bridges, interiors, open-air views, contrac.
ton work for magazines, catalogue cuts
are made, and architectural tracngs We
present to the perfection of what we call
the photo.mechanical system. by which we
will be able TO print photographs from a
single plate as rapidly as Autographs are
now turned OUT
"Will you please illustrate the various
systems aud methods you have mentionedl"
1.-THE main system Is, Of course, the usual
camera work on plates, more or less sensi.
tized, but a simpler process l. great desid-
eratum In our business. When we have to
get negatives Of interiors IL takes from one
and half to four minutes to get a properly
toned specimen, II OF all large. The instan-
taneous process has only been adapted to
small work, so far. Look at this proof of
the board Of trade hall You will see that
the minute hand Of the clock seems to have
about seven points. These points indicate
how long the camera was uncovered--it was
just three and one quarter minutes And
unsteadiness In the instrument or anything
moving in the hall during that time would
have blurred and destroyed the negative.
This will explain the many attempts we
had to make before satisfactory result
was obtained.
ut often happens that the best point of
view for an interior negetive Is a dark or
otherwise unsuitable spot, when it takes
much longer and is far more troublesome.
In making open-air negatives 1t does not
take nearly so long, but the chances of in
corruption or motion are so great that we
often have to make as many attempts as
In indoor work. The work we like best as
Tar a. beauty of result as compared with
the amount Of work Is concerned Is monu-
mental and bridge work. Notice this pict-
ure we have just printed You notice how
sharp every angle OF the stone seems--how
you can see the light as 1t is duly reflected
from the white surface. Such picture as
this can only be taken under tho most fav-
orable circumstance. With the camera
we do most OF the office work, also. Here is
q case Of boots and shoes, sample. for the
TALL trade, we have been at work on for one
Of the largest shoe manufacturers In the
city. Here are the portraits from which
the catalogue cuts will be made"
After the reporter had admired the shoe
pictures, which were really fine work, he
asked IL they often had commissions at
distance from the city.
"Oh, yes; we frequently 60 long distances
My partner returned about ten days ago
from Henderson, KY, where We photo
graphed the new railway bridge. the long
est of tho kind in the world. We have been
sent into every western state, and some of
the eastern and northern one, We do not
care much for these commissions as we
have to take so much care of our lenses
while In transit
How are those tracngs OF house plan,
and machinery madel"
"Tney ara done by sun photography with
out the aid of the lens or camsra We take
sheet OF plain white paper and coat 1t on
one side with salts of iron After it is dry
we tack it on a board and over it the
original architects design on tracing paper
1t Is then exp lssi to the sun, aud in about
fifteen minutes the pencil mark, of the trac-
ing are tran ferred to the coated sheet and
appear In white lines, the remaining por-
tion turning blue, as you see From
single tracing we can take any number OF
copies required. We do great deal In the
way Of enlargins figure photograph aad
views by process some what similar After
tho paper l. prepared with a secret prepara-
ton OF our own, We put the small copy in "a
frame; at the middle distance we place
ray condenser, and at the end the prepared
paper Tor the enlarged copy. The whole is
then exposed to the sun, and when the work
Is completed IL has the appearance of a
iight-toned crayon portrait. These when
touched up with cnalks or water colors
make elegant pictures.c Large sums have
been paid for them by people who thought
they were genuine crayon or portrait work
lney chh DO hlaue any size by lengthening
the distance between the copy aud the pre-
pared paper"
"If it would not be detrimental to you l
should like TO know what the photo-me
chanical system is, and how Ii works"
swell, il is hardly u secret Many OF us
all over the country aud IN Europe are try
ing TO perfect this system 1t consists of
making the negative with a raised surface.
In addition to the usual chemicals and In
place OF some OF them we mix quantity of
gelatine with the solution with which we
cover the glass plate to receive the negative.
When the negative Is com petsi the gelatine
II found to be slightly raised above the sur
face of the glass. The plate then soaked
In water for some hours, which swels the
gelatine and makes it much more promi
nent. These plates can then be placed In
an ordinary photographic press. and, when
treated with an ink especially manufact-
ured for the purpose, from 1900 to 1000
copies can be printed. | have from an ex-
ceptionally fine negative printed 5000
copies The great defect in the process at
present Is the fact that when the gslatned
negative Is soaked in water ii destroys to a
great extent tue sharp outlines 20 reanisits
In a fine picture There f. fortune Ia
store for the one who discovers how to COM
binea maximum swelling OF tho gelatine
with n minimum change of the angles as
printed. When this Is done Ii MAY possibly
work complete change in the photo
graphic world"
Toriuring the Trotters.