A METHOD OF OR PROCESS
Year: 1865

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Edwin Pettitt, of Birmingham, in the County of
Warwick, Photographer, for the Invention of "A METHOD OF OR PROCESS
Sealed the 15th August 1865, and dated the 4th March 1865.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Edwin Pettitt at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 4th
March 1865.
I, EDWIN PETTITT, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Photo-
grapher, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for. "A METHOD
OF OR PROCESS FOR PRODUCING A NEW KIND OF PHOTOGRAPHIC PICTURES," to
be as follows:-
My Invention consists of the method or process herein-after described for
the production of one photographic picture from two photographic images, the
one superimposed upon the other, which single picture possesses great relief.
If I desire to produce a life-sized portrait, I proceed in the first place to take
a double negative of the sitter by means of a pair of lenses and a camera
obscura in the usual way of taking ordinary stereoscopic negatives; or I use
only one moveable lens and take two pictures therewith, each differing in its
angle to the sitter, as is well known, and having obtained a satisfactory double
negative I separate the two pictures and transpose them, placing the right-

page_text: hand picture to the left, and the left to the right; and in this order I cause
light to be passed through them in a dark room or camera obscura, and receive
the rays so passing through the pictures by a pair of lenses placed at the same
distance from them as the pictures were when taken; and the two pictures
now become enlarged, coalesce, and are superimposed upon each other at the
distance from the lenses at which the sitter was originally placed when the
double negative was taken. The compound image is received on a sensitive
photographic surface situated parallel to the negatives, and at such a distance
from the lenses as to receive the sharpest image the lenses will give.
There
is thus produced a portrait, which is a negative by reflected light, and a positive
by transmitted light. This picture may now be varnished, painted, or backed
with any white opaque or semi-opaque substance, as wax, cement, plaster, or
paper.
If a smaller picture is required, I increase the distance between the double
negative and the lenses, the former of which I separate, or I bring the latter
closer together, according to the size of the picture I require; but if a larger
picture is wanted, the lenses and double negatives are brought nearer to each
other.
A picture can also be obtained according to my Invention from two pictures
without separation or transposition of the double negative. If I wish to
produce copies, I do so in the manner commonly practised in the copying of
ordinary photographs with a single lens, or I take a direct positive or negative
from the image as thrown upon a screen. Landscapes, groups, objects of
still life, and any object having relief may be produced by my process.
In carrying my Invention into effect any of the ordinary photographic
sensitive surfaces may be employed, such as collodion on glass, waxed paper,
albumen, or other transparent or semi-transparent sensitive surfaces. I do
not confine myself to exact distances at which the lenses shall be apart, but
two and a half inches is the distance at which the most truthful effect may be
obtained for portraits, and the lenses may be five or even more inches apart
for a landscape subject.
Negative pictures produced according to my Invention are adapted for
printing on paper and other surfaces as is usual with ordinary photographic
negatives.
The advantages possessed by the pictures produced according to my Inven-
tion are that a greater amount of truth of perspective and appearance of
roundness and solidity is obtained than can be obtained with a single lens in
the ordinary way.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said Edwin Pettitt in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
31st August 1865.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, EDWIN
PETTITT, of Birmingham, in the County of Warwick, Photographer, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Fourth day of March, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five, in the twenty-eighth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me,
the said Edwin Pettitt, Her special licence that I, the said Edwin Pettitt¸
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the said
Edwin Pettitt, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any
time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times there-
after during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make,
use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "A METHOD
OF OR PROCESS FOR PRODUCING A NEW KIND OF PHOTOGRAPHIC PICTURES,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said Edwin Pettitt, my
executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or their,
or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain the
nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same was to be per-
formed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within
six calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Edwin Pettitt, do hereby declare
the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be per-
formed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement thereof, that is to say:
My Invention consists of the method or process herein-after described for
the production of one photographic picture from two photographic images,
the one superimposed upon the other, which picture possesses great relief.
Pictures so produced I designate "binographs." If I desire to produce a
life-sized portrait, I proceed in the first place to take a double negative of the
sitter by means of a pair of lenses and a camera obscura in the usual way of
taking ordinary stereoscopic negatives; and having obtained a satisfactory
double negative, I separate the two pictures and transpose them, placing the
right-hand picture to the left and the left to the right; and in this order I

page_text: cause light to be passed through them in a dark room or camera obscura, and
receive the rays so passing through the pictures by a pair of lenses placed at
the same distance from them as the pictures were when taken, and the two
pictures now become enlarged, coalesce, and are superimposed upon each other
at or near the distance from the lenses at which the sitter was originally
placed when the double negative was taken. The actual distance is governed
by the focal length of the lenses. If the same lenses are used for the bino-
graph as were used in taking the double negative, the distance is the same as
that at which the sitter was placed. The compound image is received on a
sensitive photographic surface situated parallel to the negatives, and at such a
distance from the lenses as to receive the sharpest image the lenses will give.
There is thus produced a portrait which is a negative by reflected light and a
positive by transmitted light. This picture may now be varnished, painted, or
backed with any white opaque or semi-opaque substance, as wax, cement
plaster, or paper.
If a smaller picture is required, I increase the distance between the double
negative and the lenses, the former of which I separate, or I bring the latter
closer together, according to the size of the picture I require; but if a larger
picture is wanted, the lenses and double negatives are brought nearer to each
other.
A binographic picture can also be obtained from two pictures without
separation or transposition of the double negative. If I wish to produce copies
of the said binographs I do so in the manner commonly practised in the
copying of ordinary photographs with a single lens, or I take a direct positive
or negative from the binographic image as thrown upon a screen. To effect
this, I place a second camera obscura at the back of the screen, which must
be semi-transparent, if a negative be required, and before an opaque white
screen if a positive is desired.
In carrying my Invention into effect any of the ordinary photographic
sensitive surfaces may be employed, such as collodion on glass, waxed paper,
albumen, or other transparent or semi-transparent sensitive surfaces. I do
not confine myself to exact distances at which the lenses shall be apart, but
two and a half inches is the distance at which the most truthful effect may be
obtained.
Negative pictures produced according to my Invention are adapted for
printing on paper and other surfaces as is usual with ordinary photographic
negatives. But in this case a double transparent print on glass is first taken
from the double negative, and the binographic negative is enlarged from the
said transparent print or positive.

page_text: The advantages possessed by the pictures produced according to my
Invention are that a greater amount of truth of perspective and appearance
of roundness and solidity is obtained than can be obtained with a single lens
in the ordinary way.
The instruments and processes which I employ in carrying my Invention
into effect are those ordinarily employed in the practice of photography. I
prefer to employ a camera obscura having two lenses, the axes of which are
parallel and in the same horizontal plane, such as is commonly used for taking
stereoscopic negatives. I prefer to place the lenses with their axes two and a
half inches apart, but I do not limit myself to that distance. In order that
the axes of the lenses may both be parallel during the taking of the pictures,
with a vertical plane passing through the middle of the camera obscura, and
also the middle of the head or object to be taken, I prefer to fix on the top
of the camera obscura two sights, one of the said sights being at front and
the other at back. The said sights are in a vertical plane exactly midway
between the axes of the lenses. The back sight has a small hole or perforation,
and the front sight has a larger hole with cross wires in it. By means of
these sights the middle of the camera obscura is pointed directly at the point
of the object to be focussed.
Having now described the nature of my Invention and the manner in which
the same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I do not limit
myself to the precise details herein described, as the same may be varied
without departing from the nature of my Invention; but I claim as my
Invention the method or process substantially as herein described of producing
photographic pictures having greater truth of perspective and an appearance of
greater relief than ordinary photographs.
In witness whereof, I, the said Edwin Pettitt, have hereunto set my hand
and seal, this Twenty-sixth day of August, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-five.
Witness,
CHARLES HAWKER.
EDWIN PETTITT. (L.S.)