Above all Silver

Above all Silver

The 19th century was undoubtedly the most stormy and dynamic age in the history of photography. It was not just the century when photography was invented but above all the time when nearly all the photochemical processes ever used in photography were invented. It was the period during which photography covered the unimaginable distance from the daguerreotype developed in mercury vapours and the paper negative to the silver gelatine photographic film on elastic substrates and the first roll films. In the first few decades of photography, countless materials including not only silver but also iron, chromium or….. bitumen of Judea were tested in the search for the best materials and technologies to . Even though photographs were successfully made with the use of each of the above and processes such as the cyanotype, the platinotype, the oilprint, gum bichromate or carbon transfer enjoyed a considerable career and are used by artists till this day, it was silver that proved the absolute winner and its salts have been used in all of the most popular photographic processes not only of those days but also of the twentieth century when the dominance of silver based photography became absolute. This is why the longest and most intensive workshop I offer is devoted to photographic processes using silver. During the six days three participants will have a one of time opportunity not only to observe the development of photography  from the talbotype until the development of  photographic emulsions but will, above all, have an opportunity to gain an in depth understanding of all the leading processes of that time as well as to...
Ambrotype – two day workshop

Ambrotype – two day workshop

Discover the magic of the ambrotype together with the author of The Ambrotype – A Practical Guide – the first Polish textbook devoted to this fascinating process. Join our workshop and learn to make your photographs on glass using the methods of the masters of 1860’s and 1870’s, the methods used till this day by numerous photographers all over the world – to name just Sally Mann or Ian Ruhter. Learn all the necessary secrets of the process along with recipes and procedures enabling you to create unique works of art while discovering the charm of old photography. The magic of wetplate photography or, to be more specific, of ambrotypes, hasn’t passed for over 150 years which have passed since the invention of the technique. The image made of silver on glass, magical, glittering with subtle hues fascinates in the 21st century just as much as it did in the 19th. And just as it was in the times when it was invented, for most of us the technique still is a mystery, something almost mystical. It seems that it is even more of a mystery now than in the past. Our two-day workshop in making wetplate ambrotypes will not only allow participants to learn/revise the rules governing wetplate photography but will also offer practical opportunities to use these skills under the tutor’s guidance and with the help of professional models taking part in the workshop. The programme of the workshop covers: a quick revision of using large format cameras, a presentation of the wetplate ambrotype process including chemical recipes, preparing glass for ambrotype photography, coating glass with collodion, sensitizing,...