Omaha daily bee., 1909-04-03
MOVING PICTURES
Latest Feat In PhotoEraphInR IN
Natural Tints shown
I'm London.


In London.
LONDON. March 2-Colored photosra-
ply is no longer q dream of the future, II
is an accomplished fact: II no longer lies
In the region OF theory. II has become a
workable, mechanical process. So much
was proved by the remarkable series Of
colored bioscope pictures shown to the pub
lie for the first time yesterday at the Pal
ace theater by Charles Urban and Albert
Smith.
The beautiful colored transparencies exs
hibited last autumn by Langdon CoburnA
Baron de Meyer and others Of the Linked
Ring showed what wonderful progress
color photography has made during the
last few years Though much time,
money and thought has been spent on
experiments with bioscope pictures. yester-
days exhibition was the first public pres
e%ntation of actual results.
'Kinemacolor' is a distinct advance on
anything that has been done before. II IL
a step in the right direction, and every
step brings nearer the perfect realization
of photogranhing nature I'm her own hues.
The bloscope pictures are colorcd entirely
by the action OF tho SUMS rays. The films
are in no way touched by hand after be-
ing taken, except to be developed like or
binary photographs.
The process is this: An ordinary reel
Of films "a ribbon Of celluloid is the tech
nical name) Is placed in the bioscope ma
chine and i'm front OF the aperture are
placed two screens, or filters as they are
I called. which alternates as soon as the ma
chine is set in motion, so that each piece
of film as II Is exposed Is influenced by
the filter which comes between II and the
scene It records, These filters divide all
the colors of the spectrum into two groups,
one ranging through white. yellow. orange
and scarlet to the darkest reds: the other
through white and yellow to green. blue
violet and indigo to black.
The film itself is monochromatic and can
be used for ordinary bioscope pictures. but
when being used for kinemaoofor pictures
1t is necessary to place two screens In
front of the aperture OF the machine. these
being complementary to the filters used
in taking the photographs, so that each
picture when illuminated and projected on
the sheet reproduces the colors according
to the original filters, first orange red.
then blue green, and these alternate with
such rapidity that the tints of nature are
more or less reproduced.
Houses are red. trees are green. rocks
and roads are brown, and sky, sea and
people are represented to a certain degree
as we are accustomed to see them. Doubt
less, when the process is further improved
the tints of nature will be absolutely re-
produced.
To say that the invention has not yet
reached perfection Is to east no slur upon
the inventors. Attached to the program OF
this exhibition is a little explanation by
them setting forth a few facts about their
process in which they admit that Il is
capable of fuller development, and they
add that they are daily working at expert
ments toward that end.
As It is, the pictures are remarkable.
They fail only in so far as they do not yet
reproduce all the tints OF nature. Fellows
and blues are negligible quantities, while
reds and greens are too i~nsistent and apt
to be a trifle crude. To account for this a
rather fuller explanation Of the process -
necessary.
Everyone knows the means by which an
ordinary photograph is obtained, know that
the rays from a light object, when passing
through the lens OF the camera, darken or
thicken the negative, and that the thicken
ing OF the negative. when placed over the
sensitive paper, prevents the light from st-
fecting the paper and so the object becomes
light again in the positive. II is the filters
used in taking the kinemacolors that deter
mine the color of the picture.
These filters are so prepared that the one
that is Complementary TO the orange-red
screen allows the rays of light TO affect the
negative in such a way that when the posi-
tive is illuminated the light passes through
the orange-red screen only in such a degree
as is necessary to the color OF the picture.
The same is true OF the blue-green filter,
and the intermediate colors or grays are
produced by a little light passing through
both filters at the same spot.
In color printing every tint and graduation
can be perfectly reproduced by means OF
three blocks, each block representing one
of the three primary colors. In the kline
macolor pictures 1t may be that the use OF
only two screens, red and green, does not
permit of such gradations.
It may also be that blue and yellow arG
more affected by artificial light than rec
and green and that therefore,, although tbs
photographs may be true as to color in day,
light, in the artificial light which is used II
showing them ii would be necessary to over
emphasize the blue and yellow to give thest
colors their proper value.
Another fault OF the kinemscolor pictures
is their tendency TO show a prismatic lin,
where one object touches another, and THU
is particularly noticeable where a white oh
ject is relieved against a dark background
For instance, in the series which shows Z
little girl playing with her rabbits first Z
red line, then q green line and then both
red and a green line appear between tn,
edge OF the child's white hat and pinafor'
and the trees and fence behind her. SOM
pictures show this much less than others
those that are simple and contain few OBJ
tects are the best.
Origin OF the Word "KerOsenS.0