Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1886-06-30
AMATEUR PHOTOGRAPHY.
A Highly Popular Amuscment-The Small
Cost of Outfits.

Cost of Outfits.
at is astonishing" said dealer in
Photographic materials to n reporter,
show much can be accomplished by to-
tally inexperienced amateurs in the art
of photographing, with little taste and
judgment. The introduction of tho
gelatino-bromide dry plate has so rcvo-
lutionized photography that but little
knowledge Of il is essential. OF course,
il is scarcely to be supposed that success
should always attend ones first efforts,
but rapid progress can generally be
made by old or young, lady or gentle
man, who may manifest the slightest
disposition to excel. Unlike the old wet
plate, this new process has the advan-
tage of admitting much wider latitude
of exposure-that is to say, the actual
time which the sensitive plate may now
be subjected to light, though still i'm!
portant, is far less so than by the old
collodion process, and the subsequent
operations are free from the former
objections of complexity, uncer-
tainty and stains. The apparatus and
chemicals required are also few and in
expensive, and there is nothing which
the vericst tyro in chemistry can not
readily master. This is why amateur
photography has of late become SO pop
ular, and so great is the demand that
we make special instruments and pub
lish special catalogues on the subject.
Young people buy them for amusement,
and men of family buy them to take pict-
urcs of their homes and surroundings.
Nor is such camera in any sense q toy.
All are practical working instruments,
sional photographers. They are adapted
for landscape and outdoor groups, and
in = good light require but seconds
tims 20 make picture. But in buying
the amateur should not forget that he is
not going to make an experiment. Sue
cess is assured II the directions arc fol-
lowed. Thousands have succeeded with
only the ordinary amount of brains and
some with less than is allowed to man.
kind generally. The chief advice have
to offer is, when you buy, buy as good
an outfit as you can afford. With a
cheap instrument you can do good work,
but with better instrument you can do
better work more easily"
What do some of the amateur out
fits cost?"
'For 81 you can buy a mahogany
camera, for making pictures vertically
or horizontally, measuring four or five
inches, with one double plate-holder,
fine single acromatic lens, improved
tripod and carrying-case, with an extra
double dry plate-holder. The entire
weight of such an equipment is only s
1-2 pounds. From that they run up to
S25, S37, $40 and $50, according TO the
quality and size of the camera. For n
developing outfit with the Sl1 equip
ment, that is 4x5 picture, the cost is
1925. In this you want pocket ruby
lantern, dozen dry plates, two devel-
oping trays, several bottles of chemi-
calls, tunnels, tiltcrlng paper, scales and
weights and few other articles. This
includes every thing necessary for de-
veloping dozen negatives. One OF
the newest things in this line is the de-
tectivc camera. II is focused once for
all by means of ground glass which
slides in the place to be occupied by the
double dry plate-holder for objects of
the focusing lever on the top of the
camera is marked for each distance.
After this the ground glass may be en-
tircly dispensed with, rs il is then only
necessary to estimate the distance of the
object to be photographed and move the
focusing lever to the mark correspond
ing to that distance, when the
camera will obviously be in
focus. The small lens serves
to throw the picture on piece OF
ground glass on the top of the camera.
thus showing the position of the image
on the plate. When the picture appears
in proper position on the ground glass
ii is only necessary to touch the button
on the right of the camera and the ex-
posture of the plate is instantly made,
its development being afterward accom-
plished in the ordinary manner. An
other novel and most ingenious little in
strument and one that supplies want
matte photograph shutter. This is
long rubber tube, connected with the
camera, the end of which the operator
holds in his hand and by which the lens
is exposed and capped. 1t has been re-
marked by eminent photographers that
the arrangement is most useful one in
enabling persons to be photographed
without being aware of it. The efforts
in this direction hitherto nccessitated
the operator being close TO the camera.
but here we have an instrument which
permits him to be in any part of the studio
he plcases. Many have experienced the
difficulty of taking childrcn's portraits
with the proper amount of profile, but
with this instrument all difficulty van
ishes and the operator may be by the
side of the child and attract its atten-
ton in any direction.-M Y. Mail and