EX CATHEDRA: Ghost Images or Flare, Camera Copies and The Shop Window.

Ghost Images or Flare

It is a known fact that many of the finest pre-war anastigmats frequently give both ghost images and flare when dealing with subjects which throw a strong light into their glasses. The defect is much lees often met when single lenses or the single components of convertible auastigtmats or R.R. instruments are employed. "Ghost images" or "flare'' are regarded by many photographers as being the more likely with instruments having many glass-to-air surfaces, and as a matter of fact, though not as a general rule, the more of these surfaces there are in the instrument the more likely is the defect to be in evidence in certain classes of work. It is not realized as well as it might lie by those who possess anastigmats which exhibit flare or ghost images that much may be done to assist in eliminating these if the instrument is provided with a sufficiently deep hood. We have in our own possession an anastigmat with no less than ten glass-to-air surfaces, and invariably when this lens is used against the light or under like conditions the defects are sure to manifest themselves, yet when the front glass is shaded with a deep and efficient hood we have never had the least reason for complaint. The rarity of ghost images or flare when R.R. or single lenses are used may be traced in part to the fact that with the former class the hoods are much more efficient: as regards the latter, when the single components of the convertible anastigmat are employed it is nearly always the front lens that is removed, and thus the mount of the lens serves as a highly efficient hood for the back glass.

Camera Copies.

The recent installation of the Photostat Patent Office brings forward the subject of quick and cheap copying of documents, printed matter, or drawings, by means of the camera. As most of our readers are aware in this and similar apparatus, the print is made by exposing bromide paper in a special camera which is scaled to various sizes. The image is normally a negative one, although positives may be made by recopying them same size. Taken in an ordinary camera the images would be laterally inverted, but this can be obviated by fitting a reversing prism or mirror to the lens, the latter being, of course, much the cheaper arrangement. We think that photographers who work for engineering and other manufacturing firms would do well to take this class of work into consideration, as it would secure many orders for copies of drawings, plans, etc., not amenable to duplication by the usual heliographic methods, which call for a translucent original. It should not be difficult to arrange an attachment to any ordinary large camera for moderate-sized subjects, while larger ones could be managed by taking a small negative and enlarging in the usual way. We have seen some excellent copies up to three feet across made in this way and as the work practically mechanical, highly-skilled labour is not necessary. On point is essential, and that is that the same lens should be used both for making the negative and the enlargement. The operation has been very successfully carried out thus: supposing an architect's drawing has to be reproduced, a copy is made upon a process-plate, say, half-plate or whole-plate size, the distances between lens and original and lens and plate being accurately measured. The lens is then transferred to the enlarger, and the negative and bromide paper carefully placed at exactly the same distances, the result being a full-sized copy free from any distortion, the image having been made to travel back through the same optical system by which it was produced. Where much work has to be done it would be well to have both camera and enlarger rigidly set to the required points so that for full-sized reproductions no setting would be necessary. With a proper artificial lighting scheme the exposures of both plate and enlargement would be a fixed quantity, and a spoiled sheet almost unknown.

The Shop Window.

A few days ago we were asked whether it was advisable to retain a shop window for the display of specimens or to be satisfied with show-cases in a lobby and let off the shop. This is not quite such a simple question to answer as it appears at first sight, since many factors have to be taken into consideration. The first of these is the class of business which is intended to be done. The highest class of portraitists depends almost entirely upon introductions and to a lesser degree upon reproductions of their pictures in the press. Some go no farther than a brass door-plate to advertise their locale, a few even dispense with this, while others have modest show-cases with only one or two specimens on view at a tine. A few of the older firms have large lobby shows or shop windows, but it is not until we reach those who cater mainly for chance trade that we find the window show really popular. Recently there has been a great increase in these window shows in London and other large centres, so that we must conclude that they have been found to be a paying proposition. It may be noted that many of the large portrait shops are being run by people who are also engaged in other branches of industry, and they have treated photographs in the same way as they would clothes, jewelers, or tobacco. Surely, therefore, it is quite in order for the photographer, pure and simple, to take a leaf from the business man's book and to go in for bold advertisement, providing that he has the means to do it properly, and not to lose sight of the next important factor in the matter that of locality. To be effective a window display must be situated where there is a considerable amount of traffic, and in what may be called a shopping or market thoroughfare, where there are other attractions. Even in the same street one position is valuable and another almost worthless. In nearly every important thoroughfare there is one side which is much better for business than the other, and this keen business man is careful to ascertain before he invests his money.

Photography's War Work

[The immense part played by aerial photography in the prosecution of the war is naturally realized by photographers, a very large number of whom have been practically engaged in carrying it on. But perhaps the magnitude of the scale is not a matter of common knowledge, and therefore we embrace the opportunity of reprinting from the "Daily Telegraph" of Monday last an article which presumably embodies official figures. It is interesting to find that in the essential matters of cameras and lenses the British forces were better equipped than the German. The fact has recently been the subject of remark as regards lenses, and the writer of the 2 notes printed below describes, it will be noticed, the same superiority in respect to cameras. Eds. "B. J."]

           When hostilities broke out in 1914 aerial photography was still in its primitive and experimental stage. A considerable amount of pioneer work had been done both from balloons and aero planes; a small but valuable literature was arising; but the impetus of war was required, with the aid of the immense scientific and technical resources behind the Royal Air Force, to exploit its possibilities. Some idea of the progress made can be gained from the fact that on the Western front alone during the last ten months of war no tower than 264,605 Royal Air Force negatives were taken in the air over German territory, and the gigantic total of 5,800,000 prints was made from these negatives for the use of the Intelligence Staff.
           The most recent types of Royal Air Force cameras are very highly finished pieces of work. .The lens itself is shielded in a deep tube which faces vertically downwards, thus preventing direct sunlight falling upon it. At the other end of the camera is a steel chamber, containing the automatic device for changing the plates after each exposure. The entire apparatus is securely fastened to the side of the machine, and u connected by a wire with the observer's seat. The pressure of a lever is sufficient to expose a plate and to bring a new plate into position. The German cameras, as recently exhibited in the Strand, lack many of the exquisite mechanical refinements of the British instrument, particularly the ingenious device by which the plates are automatically changed in the air, without any attention whatever from the pilot. This striking British invention ha enabled many excellent and valuable photographs to be taken while the machine itself has been under heavy fire both from the air and the ground.

High-Speed Photography.

           Anyone who has tried to take a snapshot from the carriage window of an express train realizes the difficulty experienced in obtaining a negative entirely free from movement. The same difficulties are, of coarse, experienced in taking photographs from the air. A modern aero plane is really a traveling observation platform moving at from fifty to a hundred miles an hour. As the pace of the machine cannot be altered, the object to be taken must be "snapped" as it slips swiftly by beneath the machine. Aerial photography is, therefore, high-speed photography of a special kind. An aerial photograph is almost always under-exposed, and this calls for exceptional treatment when the plates come to be developed. Apart from this peculiarity, however, it is the definite policy of the Royal Air Force to specialize in very thin negatives. A dense negative takes far too long to print by artificial light. A thin negative enables prints to be made in about three seconds. In this way a trained Royal Air Force photographer can print and develop as many as eighty separate enlargements in the course of an hour.
           For this scientific work the Royal Air Force has trained large numbers of highly skilled workers. In the model dark-rooms at the Central School of Aerial Photography every candidate for acceptance as a R.A.F. photographer must first pass a severe test, designed to reveal his suitability or otherwise for the work. He is then given a month's practical intensive training, particular attention being paid to the processes of development, and to the enlargement of negatives by artificial light. Much importance is attached to the rapidity with which these enlargements ran be produced, for the fate of a battle may depend upon the promptness with which large scale copies of a vital subject can be supplied to the Intelligence Staff. After a further course at a training centre in England, the airman-photographer would proceed to a service squadron overseas and be assigned to a photographic section working with a recon naissance Bight. Such a "section" usually consists of a technical non-commissioned officer and about seven men, who take in torus the more confined and laborious aspects of the work. One man will “load” the magazines with unexposed plates, another will fix the cameras to the machines prior to flight, and receive them on return; others are detailed for developing, washing, drying, and plotting the negatives. Several men are constantly engaged in tin enlarging room, exposing and developing as many as 100 prints in an hour.

Before an Offensive.

           It is during the strenuous days preceding a big offensive that photographic activity raises to its maximum. During the successive big drives made by the British in France during the summer and autumn of last year, the entire field of operations was photographed over and over again. If a new series of enemy trenches were constructed during the night, a R.A.F. reconnaissance squadron would bring home photographic evidence of the fact on the following morning. It was no uncommon thing for as many as 11,000 negatives to be made on the Western front alone during a single week preceding an important advance.
           In addition to this vast work of aerial reconnaissance, photography was also extensively used for verifying the results of artillery fire, and for recording the precise effects of bombs dropped from the sir. The very Inking photographs of Frankfort, Mannheim, Mets, Sablon, etc., recently published in the Press, were actually taken during the raids upon those towns. Another valuable development was the application of the stereoscope to war intelligence. By taking two photographs of the same object, say an enemy trench system, at an interval of a few seconds, a striking stereoscopic effect is obtained which throws all the ramparts and other elevated portions of the enemy work into high relief. In this way the principal difficulties to be encountered by the attacking party can be foreseen.
           Aerial photography is destined to become one of the big new industries of the future. The topographical surveys of to-morrow will be photographic surveys; the school and commercial atlases will be photographic atlases. Exploration, commerce, scientific research must all benefit by an industry which may well grow to very largo proportions. In this field of post-war industrial activity, Britain will inevitably take a foremost place, for she already has at her command in Royal Air Force personnel some of the most highly trained specialist photographers in the world.

Practicus In The Studio: Backgrounds

           The modern photographer regards the background of a picture in a very different light from his predecessor of twenty, or even ten, years ago. Then it was the custom to use elaborately painted scenes, which were supposed to be more or lees suited to the social standing of the sitter. Usually they were highly incongruous, and we often found such combinations as a butcher-boy in a tropical conservatory or a lady in evening dress waiting by the banks of bonnie Loch Lomond. I well remember one enterprising firm who went so far as to have the entrance to Hyde Park accurately reproduced with real posts and rails for church parade sitters, and an interior of one of the salons in Buckingham Palace for court dresses. This sort of thing was borrowed from a certain school of portrait painters who considered it necessary to depict their models in what they considered an appropriate entourage. Fortunately we have changed all that, and the scenic background is rarely used except in the "while-you-wait" studio, where it serves to cover up finger-prints and stress markings in other words, it has almost entirely "retired into the background." The painter had one reason for introducing scenic effects into his pictures which does not apply to photography, for his subject being fully coloured often called for a foil, a warm-toned curtain, or sometimes even a conflagration, as in some naval or military portraits being used to modify a rubicund complexion, while a delicate sky or light foliage served to enhance the charms of a blonde beauty.
           The modern photographer has evidently taken a lesson from stage lighting, in which a concentrated light is often thrown upon the principal character, while the garish colours of the scenery are allowed to remain in semi-obscurity; and this has been all to the good as far as the artistic nature of the result is concerned. Many photographers now confine themselves to plain backgrounds. It is a safe course, although one sometime, (eels that a little relief would often be acceptable, especially for half and full length poses. Hence a dark cloud or suggestion of foliage is often useful, as it allows the figure to show more relief by opposing a light portion to the shadow side of the sitter. There is one disadvantage in using this class of background because it is not always possible to bring the light patch into the desired position. This was overcome by a device, little known in this country, which consisted in having the background made in an endless belt running over two rollers, something like a roller towel, by which the height of any portion of the surface can be adjusted to a nicety. Such a background may carry foliage suggestions, clouds, and plain surfaces in various sections, as the length of 16 ft. affords ample room. Another device for securing gradation was to have the ground made in the form of a shallow saucer, which gave a perfectly natural effect of light and shade just where it was wanted. Such a construction was found in practice to be too unwieldy for general use, and a more convenient way of carrying out the same idea is to have a tall screen made of narrow strips of wood glued to an ordinary plain canvas background of a medium grey tint. This can be placed so as to form a kind of alcove behind the sitter, more or less concavity being given as harder or softer gradation is required, or even be used flat, while when done with it can be rolled up and put in a corner. To make the method of construction quite clear, I will compare it to the roller shutter of a studio dark slide, the wooden slips being, of coarse, turned away from the sitter. Tapestries and curtains form effective backgrounds if judiciously used, but neither the pattern nor the folds should be pronounced in character, only enough being shown to break up the flatness of a plain surface.
           The illumination of the background has an important effect upon its depth of colour, and much may be done by turning it to or from the light, while the distance it is placed under the drawn blinds gives somewhat similar modification. Thus, to obtain the darkest effect from any given tint of grey, we keep it well back from the sitter and bring the edge nearest the side light as far forward as may be, the reverse being done when a lighter tone is required.
           In the case of white backgrounds for "sketch" work it is usually recommended to light these independently by opening the blinds behind the sitter. This is all right in a dull light, but on a bright day the flood of light so projected into the lens is very likely to cause a general fog over the negative. Certainly if the quality of the work is to be considered it is better to secure opacity by Mr. Adamson's method of using red ink and seccotine on the back of the negative. A common error is to paint sketch backgrounds a bluish-white, the idea being that a denser deposit will be obtained. This is quite wrong ; nothing can be whiter than white; the blue only masks any yellow tint in the distemper, and there is no gain by adding it.
           From time to time attempts hare been made to print in backgrounds from film negatives interposed between the portrait negative or to put in backgrounds on the back of the glass. These plans are rarely satisfactory, though in some cases excellent results have been obtained. As a rule, however, the general effect is not so good as from a background which has been photographed with the sitter.
           The materials used for backgrounds are various. For plain tints Melton cloth is excellent when it can be obtained. Failing this, distemper on canvas or stout sheeting is very suitable. For graduated backgrounds distemper may also be used, but it requires a considerable degree of skill to apply it, so that the necessary softness is obtained, and for this class I therefore prefer flatted oil-colour, which does not alter in depth upon drying, and which can be easily worked and softened while wet. Aerograph work upon a plain grey distemper foundation answers very well, but it takes some time to cover so large a space. The aerograph is also excellent for subduing contrast in scenic backgrounds which are too contrasty. I have also improved such by rubbing on black chalk powder exactly in the same way as in finishing an enlargement, but care must be taken to avoid patchiness if there are decided brush marks on the surface. For small grounds up to 54 in. wide dark green or red serge is very good, and a little light may be introduced by dusting powdered French chalk on where required. This is easily removed with a clothes-brush if the plain surface is again required. If you wish to distemper your own backgrounds it is better to purchase one of the many ready-made distempers or to use the Kalko powders (Vanguard Co.). which are specially prepared for this work. Oil-colours should not be purchased ready mixed; they should be procured "ground in oil" in a stiff paste, and this should be thinned down with turpentine or on of the current "turpentine substitutes."
           Lincrusta and Anaglypta are useful for making imitation panelled backgrounds. The latter, being a kind of embossed papier mache, is the cheaper, but will not stand knocking it so well as the Lincrusta does.
           Now that we do not require so many backgrounds the old-fashioned multiple stand should be discarded and the material should be stretched upon light wooden frames fixed upon feet with castors, so that they may be moved about the studio easily and used at either end or diagonally, as may be desired. It is a good plan to have the ends of the studio finished so that they may be used as backgrounds. This has also the excellent fleet of preventing the space behind the movable screens being used as a receptacle for lumber. The oak paneling comes in very well for this, and if the entire end be covered a large group can be accommodated without having to eke out the ordinary-sized ground with curtains, side slips, and other make-shifts.
           As a guide to those who are attempting to make or renovate their own backgrounds for the first time, I give the following hints. Do not expect to get an even surface with one coat of distemper. You may do so but, if not, do not be discouraged, apply a second coat rather thinner in consistency. If working on new canvas or sheeting it is a good plan to give a first coat or filling of thin size, or even starch or flour-paste. Tins prevent the distemper from being sucked into the material, and makes it easier to apply. For oil colour, ordinary glue size is to be preferred. A large paint brush, about three inches across, is easier for the amateur to manage than the orthodox distemper brush, and should always be used for oil. Work quietly, and do not slop on too much colour at once. A good grey can be made by mixing a little Venetian Bed and blue with the black and white. This looks warmer, and photographs better than black and white alone. Remember that distemper dries many shades darker than it appears when wet; therefore before using your mixed colour try a patch' on brown paper and dry it before the fire: you will then know what your background will look like when dry. A very little white will turn black into a light grey. Do not buy black in a dry powder, as it is very difficult to mix; ask for black ground in water. Always strain your distemper through muslin before using, or eke you will get streaks which are caused by unmixed particles of colour which break up under the brush.
           There is a right and a wrong way of nailing a background on to its frame. The wrong way is to fasten all four corners and then to go round the sides. The right way is to drive a strong tack in the middle of the top edge, then to pull the canvas as tightly as possible and drive another tack in the middle of the bottom; then fasten the two sides in the same way. Having got a straight pull these two ways, begin driving in tacks about one and a-half inches apart towards the corners, always working from the centre. In this way any fulness is drawn out as you go on, and the background will be perfectly flat and free from wrinkles. It is a good plan to fasten a loop handle tit iron or brass at each side of the frame; this obviates the necessity of handling the edge of the wood, and keeps the background in much bettor condition. If the frame is wider than you can stretch, a loop of webbing or cord, about eighteen inches long, should be fastened to one of the handles. Holding this and one handle, you can easily move an eight-foot frame single-handed, although if good castors are fitted it may not be necessary to lift it very often.

PRACTICUS.

Carbon Printing By Artificial Light

           Although many photographers, both professional and amateur will be familiar with the fact that the printing of carbon tissue can be done conveniently with the stronger sources of artificial light, such as the electric arc and mercury vapour lamp, as well as by daylight, it does not appear to be so well known that by choosing a suitable source of light prints without the usual lateral inversion can be obtained from ordinary glass-plate negatives by the process of single transfer only. A few remarks on the method of obtaining such prints may therefore be of interest to those who have the necessary facilities in their studios or homes.
           To obtain the unreversed print the tissue most be placed in contact with the plain glass side of the negative, the latter being placed in the printing frame with the film towards the light. The negative moat then be illuminated by a very small but sufficiently actinic sources, and care must be taken that as little light as possible, other than the direct rays from the direct rays from the source, falls on the plate during the exposure.
           The most convenient and satisfactory illuminant is undoubtedly the comparatively new Ediswan "Pointolite" lamp. The actual source in this lamp is a small metal ball, the diameter of which is about two millimeters, supported in the centre of a glass bulb, some 10 centimeters in diameter. The ball is rendered incandescent by a small electric arc, which obtained by placing a second electrode immediately over the ball. The usual rating is 100 candle-power, and the current required about 1,5 amperes. This intense and practically “point” source of light is highly actinic, and forms an ideal illuminant for many optical purposes. In using the lamp for the purpose under consideration it is well to place the negative end of box coated inside with a dead black, and to the lamp outside the box at the other end. A small rectangular hole is to be provided in thia end, so that when the lamp u placed as close as possible to the hole the beam of light which enters the box will just cover the film of the negative. The distance between the centre of the bulb and the negative may be 20 centimeters, or even less. It is clear that a number of negatives may be printed at the same time, the bulb of the lamp being placed for this purpose in the middle of a circular or, say, octagonal box with suitable radial partitions; light reflected from the film of one negative must not be allowed to fall on the others. When six negatives are printed at once the cost of printing may be less than that of the final rapport used in the double transfer process, and there is, of course, also a considerable saving of time. With negatives of average density the time of exposure required is 40 to 50 minutes. The time may be shortened, if fine definition is not required, by reducing the distance between the negative and the lamp. It may be added that the "Pointolite" takes so little current that is may be connected to any lamp-holder, special wiring not being required.
           A second illuminant which will be found to give satisfactory results is the iron arc, but this can only be used where ordinary arc lights are installed or where the electrical fittings allow the use of a current of 5 or 6 amperes. The advantage of an arc with iron pole, instead of the usual carbon poles is that the iron burns away very slowly, so that no “feed” is required. In fact, the lamp in this case may consist simply of two iron rods, 1 or 1*(1/2) cm. in thickness supported in the same vertical line with a space of about 4 mm. between their nearer ends. The poles must be, of course, insulated and connected to the mains in the same manner as the ordinary arc lamp. The arc is most conveniently “struck” by drawing a third iron rod across the ends of the pole piece. Once the pole, become hot the lamp will run for long periods, sometimes hours, without requiring attention. If the power is supplied by direct current the upper pole should be made the negative one. It is well to place a tray containing .water below the lamp, as occasionally small pieces of molten iron may fall. As the light is very rich in ultraviolet rays it should not be used except when the eyes are protected by plain glass or ordinary spectacles. With this more powerful source a larger number of prints may be exposed at once, the frames being arranged in a circle, say 50 cm. from the light. At this distance no special screens are necessary and reflection from surrounding objects is of no account unless they are light-coloured. The exposure required at 50 cm. is about 20 minutes, with a current of amperes.
           With the distances quoted above the diameter of the circle of confusion representing the points of the image is about .005 mm, but there is a slight loss of definition which appears to be due to reflection between the front and back surfaces of the negative. The want of sharpness, however, is remarkably slight, and in most cases amounts to no more than a softening of the otherwise hard lines of the picture, an effect which in many subjects is quite pleasing.

S. S. RICHARDSON.

Re-Sittings

           The question of re-sittings is one which perennially crops up, although we do not think that photographers have so much to complain of in these days as they had a few years ago. Probably the broader style of treatment which is now general has a good deal to do with it, while more intelligent and less mechanical retouching has also had an effect. Still, they are common enough to be reckoned one of the plagues of professional photography, and we have to consider the best way to deal with them.
           In the first place, the operator will save himself much heartburning if he can bring himself to realize that the sitter does not usually intend to cast any imputation upon his ability. The old hand knows this, but the young artist is apt to take the return of proofs with perhaps rather a pointed remark or two as a sort of blow in the face, and either to contest the matter or to yield with, rather a bad grace. That is quite the wrong thing to do. He should endeavour to see the matter from the sitter's point of view as well as from his own, and to do all that he can to give satisfaction. Personal recommendations are the best possible advertisements for any business, and a dissatisfied client will often be the means of diverting many profitable orders, while the assurance that polite and considerate treatment can always be expected will have the contrary effect. There are few people whose genius is so transcendent that they can afford to be ungracious, not to say rude, so that our advice is to stifle one's feelings and to accept an unpleasant situation with a smile. There are, of course, exceptions to this rule, and if the photographer can see that an attempt is being made to impose upon him there are good grounds for protecting himself against it.
           It is not wise to mention the subject or to make any conditions as to re-sittings on any price list or even verbally at the time of sitting, as this shows a lack of confidence. If re-sittings are so frequent as to be a serious matter it is a sign that there is something wrong with the work, and a decided attempt should be made to remedy it. In many cases faulty or excessive retouching is to blame, and in others a want of attention to small details in drew or posing. Therefore, in every case it should be ascertained what the fault is before proceeding with the second sitting.
           Various plans have been tried for avoiding loss in this way, but moat of them are open to objection. One is to make a charge if any alteration is made in the dress or style of hairdressing. This appears fair at first sight, but it puts an unpleasant restraint upon the sitter, who may have good reason for complaint, and who can see that certain modifications would help to secure the desired result. Another method is to charge a moderate fee for the sitting and a set of proofs, after which copies may be ordered at a fixed price each. This has its advantages, but as a rule if the proofs are not quite satisfactory the sitter does not return, but tries another studio, so that it is a question of half a guinea sitting fee and no further order or a two or three guinea order with a possibility of a remitting at a cost of two or three plates, with perhaps an additional order at the end. In many studios it is the custom to destroy negatives which are not at once approved of, and if the sitter does not wish thin to be done large a registration fee of, say, half a crown if they are to be kept. Occasionally a sitter will ask for this to be done, in case the second sitting is no more satisfactory than the first. It may be worth while to adopt this plan, but seems to us that the fewer conditions imposed in an intimate business like portraiture the better.
           After all prevention is better than cure, and every step should be taken to avoid the necessity rather than to remedy it when it comes. In the first place, we must remember that the average sitter has no clear idea of the powers of the retoucher, therefore rough proofs should never be submitted unless the negatives are really good and require but little work upon them. It is difficult to explain that this can be altered and that can be altered; the sitter is not so sure about it, and presses for a re-sitting which would not have been asked for if the alterations had been made before proofing. We have noticed that those portraitists who do most of the work themselves are less troubled than the large businesses where it is carried on more or less a factory system.
           Another point is that sufficient choice of poses should be offered to the sitter. One of the most successful businesses has been built up on the principle of submitting six proofs for an average order. Some people have called this taking your re-sittings beforehand, but it is eminently sensible not only as helping to avoid a second trial, but because with so many positions to choose from the original order is in very many cases increased so that on the whole the additional outlay brings in a good profit. At the present price of plates this may not be regarded as advisable, but there is a wide margin between six proofs and the two which are often submitted.
           Whenever it is possible the granting of a re-sitting should be done by the operator and not by the receptionist. The latter may be an excellent business woman tactful obliging but she has rarely the artistic or technical knowledge which are necessary to decide the point. Moreover the sitter enters the studio with less diffidence if the question has been settled wife the person whom she considers is in fault. It should hardly be necessary to say that no proofs with which the photographer himself is not satisfied should be sent oat without remark. In such cases it is well worth offering re-sitting at once. It may not always be accepted, but if it is the sitter comes back in a pleasant mood, which is decidedly helpful. All this is an old story to those who have spent many years in studio work, but we hope that it will go some way to smooth over a disagreeable side of life to those who are still young at it. In every walk of life we are open to criticism, and photographers should be thankful that they are not politicians whose incompetence we see denounced every time we open a newspaper.

EX CATHEDRA: Continuation

Dark-Room Lighting.

           We recently were in the dark-room of a photographic friend whose amateur experience in electric wiring and battery making had been apphed in the provision of what he regarded as luxuries in the way of illumination. We are not so sure but that for a commercial dark-room, there were little more than the necessities for minimizing waste of labour. We should explain that our friend's dark-room, which was of ample size, and had the customary developing bench in one corner, had cupboards the contents of which were clearly seen by means of a little yellow electric bulb worked from a battery and connected to the latter so that the opening of the door completed the electric circuit whilst its closing the light off again. In many commercial dark-rooms where from lack of space elsewhere things are kept which are not needed in development operations a device of this kind would often save the time of a second assistant who might be wanting them whilst the dark-room was in use. Naturally enough our friend's room was fitted with two types of lamp, one with the safe-light nearly vertical the examination of negatives, and another of the horizontal pattern for use in the development of prints. Another fixture, and one which we have regularly used our self, is a ceiling light consisting of a fairly large lamp I a foot or so from the ceiling with its safe-light uppermost. The illumination, after its reflection from the ceiling provides a weak, but safe, and very comfortable light throughout the room.

Passe-Partouts.

           The passé-partout method of framing may very reasonably be thought to be one which will retain its popularity - certainly among amateur photographers and, no doubt, among the customers of professionals, to whom, however, it has not been offered as freely as its artistic possibilities warrant. It is sometimes astonishing to us to notice the ugly designs of frames which are shown in the show windows of photographers whose taste, judging from their own work in portraiture, might be thought to be a good deal better. The passe-partout with its ready adaptability to the key and colour of the print is particularly fitted for the display of window specimens, and, a* we have said, might well be offered to the customers of a studio more than it has been. Perhaps the manufacturers may do something towards further popularizing this form of framing; the altogether charming metal edging which for some year or two now has been on the market is one way of overcoming an objection to the passe-partout, viz., the impermanence of its paper binding. Messrs. Butcher have done something in the same direction by providing the slender frames, which are practically more or less solid surrounds for passe-partouts. More might certainly be done in this way by providing in one form or another a frame for the passe-partout which need only be of the lightest construction, any hanging tabs or rings ere attached to the back of the passe-partout itself, and the accessory frame thus relieved of any weight.

Fastest Fixing.

           Among other suggestions which we recently made to a correspondent who sent up a batch of stained paper natives was that of using a bath of the maximum fixing speed. Where, as in the case of such negatives, the process of fixing cannot be seen by the eye it is more than ordinarily necessary to arrange matters so as to secure complete fixation. As was ascertained some years ago by Mr. Welborne Piper in the course of a lengthy series of experiments, a fixing bath of 40 per cent, strength, that is to say, 8 ozs. dissolved, water to make 20 ozs. of solution, fixes more rapidly than any which is weaker or stronger. Although these experiments were made with a particular emulsion, our own experience with plates of many different makes has shown us that for practical purposes the strength of bath abovementioned may be taken as that which fixes in the shortest time. Obviously more hypo is required to make up a. bath of this strength, but, setting aside loss from sheer carelessness, such as splashing the solution about, there is no reason to believe that a bath of this strength is any less economical in use than one containing, say, only 4 to 6 ozs. in a pint of water. We have yet to find a plate with which a bath of this maximum strength cannot be used. In the case of papers it may easily happen that frilling or blisters may arise from the use of a fixing bath of this strength, although in our experience such effects have been very rare.

An Enlargement Attachment.

           By those photographers who require to make an enlargement only on comparatively rare occasions the studio camera may be very suitably employed. The addition of a small attachment serves to convert it into an enlarger capable of making a print of the size of the largest plate which the camera will take. The attachment consists simply of a box mounted to slide, by means of a panel, in the grooves which carry the camera lens. The box is provided at one end for the reception of the negative to be enlarged and at the other with an R.R. lens of focus suitable for the purpose. The distance between the diaphragm of the lens and the negative will naturally be adjusted in correspondence with the degree of enlargement required. For this there is the very simple rule that the distance will be one focal length plus one-half one-third, one-fourth, according as the enlargement is to I three or four times. Where the studio does not provide a ready outlook to a clear sky for the illumination of the negatives, the necessity of tilting the camera may be avoided by using a reflector in the shape of a mirror or even a white card placed at an angle of 45 to the plane of the negative. An alternative where electric light it used in the studio may consist simply in placing this reflector, or rather the white card, a few inches below an, arc lamp or a half-watt bulb.

PRACTICUS IN THE STUDIO: MANAGING THE SITTER

           The first stop towards managing your sitter is to hare perfect control of your own feelings; no matter what worries or annoyances yon hare to encounter, do not take them into the studio with yon. Man is an imitative animal, and in the great majority of cases unconsciously copies the temperament of those surrounding him in a greater or lees degree, according to his own strength of character. Therefore, it is very necessary that the photographer should cultivate a quiet geniality of manner, adapting his degree of freedom of speech and manner to that of his sitters, taking care to avoid an excess of familiarity with those who bare an idea of their own importance or a patronizing air with those of more modest manners. To pat it briefly, the operator must be "all things men" (and women), and should boar in mind that "As iron sharpeneth iron so is a man's face brightened by the countenance of his friend."
           One person at a time is quite enough to manage, and any friends who accompany the sitter most not be allowed to remain in the studio while the kitting is made. If possible they should be induced to remain in the reception-room, but usually it will not be easy to arrange thin, and one at least will be allowed to enter toe studio. I have always made a rule of having a screened-off corner with comfortable chair, to which I escort the friend as soon as I have welcomed the sitter taking rare that the friend cannot peep out and he seen just as an exposure is being made. There is a goal reason for this; it prevents the friend from criticizing the pose, seen from a totally different position from the camera, id also prevents conversation, which often results in giggling With children, it is, of course, necessary that they should he accompanied by an adult, but only one should be allowed. If a mother and nurse come, try to get the mother to retire behind the screen, as the child will usually behave better with the nurse, who will not try to excite it. A whole family party in the studio usually means a resitting after a lot of valuable time and plates have been wasted. Even if a family group has been taken, the members should be shown out if separate sittings of any of the children are required, and it is sometimes politic to ask permission to make a negative or two of a pretty youngster, even if not ordered. The parents feel flattered by the compliment, and go away feeling that the photographer m really a man of taste.
           We now come to the practical work of making the portrait, some people call it a "picture," and we should endeavour to make it worthy of both designations. To this end it is necessary to make a rapid survey of the sitter's features and figure so as to get the best result possible. It is said that Reynolds always wanted to dine with a person before he painted his portrait, so as to get a true impression of his appearance, but the photographer is not so fortunate, for he has only a minute or two to decide upon his course of action. I will endeavour to indicate a few of the points to be observed. There is not one person in a hundred whose features are even approximately symmetrical, so that it is necessary first to decide which side of the face is to be turned to the light. The nose will often appear quite straight if the head be turned one way, and either aquiline or retrousse if turned the other. As a rule it is advisable to choose the straight side unless other conditions militate, in which case the aid of the retoucher must be sought. With nine people out of ten the left side of the face is the most perfect, so that the studio should be arranged to take negatives with the light falling on the sitter's left hand.
           The eyes are usually uneven in size and sometimes in height; the best result can be obtained by having the larger or higher eye nearest to the camera. In cases of a decided squint the abnormal eye should be turned from the camera and brought well into shade, so that it can be more easily corrected in the retouching. If the profile is fairly good, one or two positions of it should be taken - when the sitter is afflicted in this way.
           If the sitter's neck be short it can be made the most of by lowering the camera considerably, while with a long, scraggy neck the camera should be well raised. The height of the camera has an important effect upon the rendering of the nose. A long nose is shortened and the upper lip well shown with a low camera, while a snub nose and long upper lip is better rendered from a higher position. Tilting the head up or down will give the same effect, but this would interfere with the pose of the head and probably spoil the eyes and forehead. A small, receding forehead should be inclined towards the camera, while the possessor of a massive one may throw the head well back. In both these cases the pose will probably be a natural one to the sitter.
           The hands are a constant source of worry, and many photographers now look the difficulty boldly in the face and take bust portraits almost exclusively. If they have to be included in the picture the hands should be made as unobtrusive as possible, and care should be taken not to let them come too far forward, or they will appear larger than they really are. It is usually recommended to use the swing back to bring the hands into focus without stopping down the lens, but this is not a good plan, as it necessarily renders them on a larger scale than the rest of the picture. It is always desirable to use as long focus a lens as possible for sitting figures, so as to minimize distortion of this kind. Of course, some sitters have small hands, and then there is little difficulty in dealing with them. One position is always to be avoided, that of having the fingers interlaced while the hands are lying on the knees. A book or flower may be held so as partly to hide the hands, but this device is rather hackneyed. A long chain or string of beads falling from the neck into the lap often affords an opportunity for a graceful arrangement of the fingers.
           Full-length portraits are now rarely taken unless for the express purpose of displaying the dress or uniform. For these the camera should be raised, so that the lens is about level with the breast of the sitter say, five or six inches below the chin. Care should be taken that the body is well balanced upon the feet, which should not be placed evenly, but one; little before the other; in military terms, the sitter should ''stand at ease" and not at "attention." At the risk of being considered old-fashioned I strongly advocate the judicious use of the head-rest for standing figures, as not only are "moves" reduced to a minimum, but it prevents the sitter from dropping into a slouching position. I prefer not to place the rest behind the head, but behind one shoulder.
           The rest is also very useful when making dancing poses, as it enables a position to be held with one foot in the air. The ironwork should be painted a fairly light grey, so that it is lost in the background and is easy to work out on the negative. If black or dark green, as usually supplied, it is difficult to get rid of.
           Young children present a different set of problems from adult sitters. Their features do not require so much consideration, and the lighting is usually full. The great points are to keep them still and to secure a happy expression. They should not be allowed to curl themselves up with one or both legs drawn up under them, but otherwise they will find their own poses, from which the photographer should make his choice. The great thing is to get the child's confidence as soon as it comes into the studio, and to keep the camera out of evidence as much as possible. To attempt to work with children as one would with adults is to court failure. Many of my best child pictures have bean obtained by focusing upon a cushion or similar article, placed where it is intended the child to be, before it came into the studio at all ; then the plate was inserted t the slide drawn, and the child coaxed into position in an innocent sort of way. Then the exposure was made, using a rather long release tube or cable, and while the child's attention was otherwise occupied the plate changed and the process repeated. A little table at which the child can stand is an excellent accessory, as if a toy be placed upon it in focus the child will usually go to it of its own accord; if spoken to it will usually look up with a pleased expression, and the exposure is instantly made. I generally find that I can get three sharp negatives out of four exposures when working this way. The "little bird" trick is not a bad one; but there should be no deception, the bird should be forthcoming. I have made hundreds of negatives with the help of a cheap toy, consisting of a small metal bird perched on a bulb which contained a water warbler, worked by a rubber tube. The bird flapped his wings and opened his beak while singing. The plan was to tell the child to look for the bird, and to give a note or two on the warbler, and immediately after the exposure to show the bird in action for a few seconds. It was then hidden and the child told that it would come back if he were good. Alas! a little sitter found it when I was not looking, and effectually ended its career. It was probably of Hun origin, and, I hope, cannot be replaced. However, the idea remains, and it might be possible to make a substitute. It is a good plan to keep a few cheap toys so that a child can take one away with it, especially if a resitting may be necessary, as the child will be willing to pay another visit to a place where toys are given away. Big toys, such as Teddy bears, horses, etc., are a nuisance, and the toy should be used to attract the child's attention and not given to it until the exposure is made. Before I learned this I have had a child marches away with it into a dark corner and sit down to play with it, any attempt to entice it out being hopeless. I have said nothing about posing either adults or children, as little useful information can be conveyed by words. By the study of paintings, engravings, and the work of good photographers much can 'be learned and a general idea of what is graceful and artistic obtained, then when the sitter arrives one is not at a loss for a pose. If there is any characteristic mannerism about the sitter it should be preserved; if a man habitually holds his head on one side it is a mistake to put it straight, as it would be to make a man who stoops slightly stand bolt upright.