Akron daily Democrat. [volume] (Akron, Ohio) 1892-1902, 1900-11-16
Within Two Days Is Guilty OF Over
Exposure.

The meetings of the Akron Camera
club are not dry, scientific discussions
of optical questions which only men
and women who have acquired a large
amount of technical knowledge OF
photography can understand. On the
contrary, matters are discussed in
very entertaining as well as instruc-
tive manner and not infrequently con-
siderable wit and humor are introduced
to liven matters up a little. The fol-
lowing paper, read by John G. Frank
at the last meeting of the club is full
of interest to cameraists in general,
and we reproduce it here:
OVER EXPOSURE.
Exposure is a Photographic term, and
primarily has no reference to exposure
of ones ignorance, but ultimately that
is about where it lands MS. Over-eX-
posure means too much exposure, and
for all general purposes may be said
to be of two kinds, viz: that which
results from the want of correct judg-
ment, and that which results from the
want of common horse sense. Briefly
of the second class first:
That camera enthusiast who loads
up with a fifty exposure film and
shoots the whole thing off in two days
and a night is guilty of over-exposure
for which no penalty that the photo
graphic code can inflict is too severe.
Likewise the young man who fires at
nothing but the girl who is dearest to
his imagination and thus libels her;
likewise the maiden always on the
qui vive for cute pictures and who
makes four snaps of her girl chums
because the first three may not be good.
But why multiply examples when
! Conscience makes towards of us
ALL" Doubtless it would be sugges-
tive employment if we of camera club
fame were to count up the photo
graphic negatives which we really
prize and which we preserve as
worthy of something approaching i'm
mortality. and were then to carefully
place them alongside the heaps of
countless hundreds of good plates we
have purchased, exposed, soaked in
developer, bathedin hypo, sent through
the deluge, and finally consigned to
the ash-dump. But of course, this is
not the most PLEASANT thing to think of,
and we pass to the next sort of over
exposure that which results from er-
ror of judgment in calculating the ma
thematical, optical and philosophical
concepts. which, together chemically
sure
To produce a Photographic negative,
daylight is required. This is the sine
que non. This last phrase Is not the
name of o new developer, but a Latin
phrase signifying without which not
or something of that sort. 1t Is a
faithful saying-one of our own-but
worthy of all acceptation that too
much daylight through your rapid
rectilnear is the surest way of knock
ing the daylights out of a plate. When
finished, negative should not have
the appearance of having been deve-
loped in asphaltum paint.
nut IOTlulidtely, IL Is not uilllCull W
avoid over-eXposure. We need only
observe care--care in respect to some
forty-nine or fifty details. We first
make mental note of the month, day
hour and minute in which the camera
is set up. and. then figure up the in
tensity of the light, making proper al.
lowance for the time required TO make
the calculation. 1t is to be noted that
the sun is gradually cooling and in
consequence Its light diminishing. II
is well to make some slight allowance
for this. The next step is to figure
out whether the day be very bright
! bright hazy, dull, or very dull This
is dead easy, but thermometer may
be of some assistance, for it is com
paratively easy to distinguish between
the intensity of the light at 102 in tbs
shade, and at zero. Make allowance
for distance; If there be any distance
to it; also for shade, If the subject be
J of a shady character. Allow for color
of the landscape. If landscape it be
or, If portrait, and the hair be red