[PhotoHistory] Retro Invention was Muybridge Re-enactment

[TERRYAKING@xxxxxxx]

Rob

 

Thank you.

 

I am grateful..for the thoughtful and constructive suggestions that have been made. I will incorporate these,  if there are no objections, into the report of the experiment which will presented at the seminar in November ..

 

I have in my photographic library both Clerc and the 1890 edition of the Woodbury Encyclopaedia (which appears to be the forerunner of a long series of editions which went on into the thirties) and I use them.

 

I was asked to look at this at short notice, as a volunteer, by old friend.

Everybody is working voluntarily in their own time (and very little of it) and with no budget.. Given these parameters I am trying to see to see what is feasible. I know that this sounds an impossible task.

 

One effective way of establishing feasibility is to try something out and then establish why it did not work or, if it did, how or whether, for the purpose, it could be improved. This is what I am doing here.

 

It is surprising how often a simple practical experiment will resolve opposing theories or even work in the face of established practice or received knowledge. 

 

My method of preparing gravure plates in high ambient temperatures was attacked as impossible despite the protestations from students that they had followed my procedure successfully  over a number of years.

 

I have, using a similar approach, developed chemically simple  and cheap and reliable methods of making gold prints,  and cyanotypes that will make beautiful continuous tone prints that tone beautifully and is so flexible that it will print from dense 'platinum' negatives and so fast  that I have even make in camera negatives (admittedly with time exposures). I will be demonstrating these at APIS (Alternative Processes International Symposium) 2004, meanwhile examples of the processes and details about APIS 2004, to be held in Scotland in September, can be seen on my web site,

 

www.hands-on-pictures.com .

 

My experiments in relation to Niepce's asphaltum prints and how long they took to expose, also produced some very interesting results. Dusan Stulik from the Getty Conservation Institute will be making a presentation on the subject at APIS. Other institutions of international significance will also be playing a part in the Seminar.

 

I must repeat that I am neither trying to emulate Muybridge  nor produce technically perfect prints . Using the drop shutter in front of the lens  with a slot  of 1/4 will be our first run. Any distortions will be so much to the good.

 

If simple amendments  to slot size and aperture are not feasible, we will go for an electronic approach.

 

Terry

 

 

a message dated 26/06/2004 23:24:48 GMT Standard Time, idag@xxxxxxx writes:

Terry,

Not to throw too many more factors into your experiments with drop
shutters, but the placement of your drop shutter (in front of the lens,
at the back of the lens, or close to the plate itself) will determine
the type of motion-distortion your image will exhibit, caused by the
movement of the horse across the frame.  Using the shutter in front of
the lens will expose the head of the horse first and then his feet an
instant later; the shutter used behind the lens, just the opposite.  As
your shutter falls at gravity's pace, the horses feet would appear in a
slightly different (distorted) position in relation to his head.  If you
speed up gravity's pace on the shutter with the use of rubber bands or
springs, the effect is lessened.  Not that it will be very noticeable
(or even to be considered for your purpose) but I thought you'd like to
know.

Interestingly, when reading Ben's post regarding Muybridge's shutter
(two slots traveling in opposite directions), that ingenious design may
have in fact counteracted the slight distortion of the horse caused by
its motion.  Just a thought.

Allow yourself many trials of experimentation with the shutter, as there
are so many factors involved with actually getting enough light to the
film and stopping the horse's motion sufficiently.  Also, the shape of
the shutter's opening will also affect the evenness of your exposure
across the frame.   A rectangular opening used in front of (or behind)
the lens will cause the edges of your plate to be underexposed.  Other
shapes give a more uniform exposure.  Look at the various design's used
during the period.

The focal length of your lenses plus the distance your cameras are from
the horse will determine what shutter speed is necessary to stop the
horses motion sufficiently.  You should probably not go under 1/200th of
a second for a reasonably good result, although 1/500th would be
preferable.  On an 8x10 plate, you have your work cut out for you.
Muybridge's plates were severely underexposed and that's why he
photographed the horse against a bright white background (the horse
essentially silhouetted against the white background).

There is an excellent 6&1/2-page article on drop shutters, their
theories, and operation in "The Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Photography"
by Walter Woodbury (published by Scovill and Adams in 1898).  I highly
recommend you read the article before building all of your shutters, as
you may find the formulas and descriptions useful.

Good luck, and please share some behind-the-scenes photos of the event
with the rest of us.

Regards,
Rob McElroy
Buffalo, NY

 

Terry King FRPS

RPS Historical Group (Chairman)

www.hands-on-pictures.com/

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