A bit of history--film--back then.

Except for hearing about wet plates, or even glass plates, few of us are familiar with what photographers had to do in order to pursue photography as a hobbyist or professional. Of course, in the not very distant future, few of us will use film (and certainly not glass plates) in pursuit of photography.

My first real appreciation for the hard work and hardships photographers experienced about one and a half centuries ago came when I became the owner of Picture Maker of the Old West. This is a book about William H. Jackson and how he documented the building of this country, west of Chicago. The book is in large format (9 x 12 inches) and includes 393 photographs, sketches and paintings. Jackson was an artist before he became a photographer. The book is one of the greatest gifts I ever received and came from PSA member William Migon. Mr. Migon was a history buff and gave me the book in appreciation for the one hundred Historically Speaking articles I wrote for the PSA Journal.

In 1863, photographers worked with dry plates. This was a great improvement over wet plates. Wet plates were coated and put in holders in the dark, and had to be exposed within five minutes and developed in the next five minutes. This was not an easy task when you traveled by mule in the west. Dry plates still had to be prepared by the photographer. The procedure was to coat the glass with iodized collodion, sensitize them with in a silver bath, wash the coating with albumen, then dry them. The plates were then immersed again in the silver bath.

When collodion emulsion came into being about 1864, coating became a simple, one-step operation. Gelatin emulsion, a more convenient material, was available in 1871. The real progress came when commercial manufacture of plates became a reality a few years later. Photography didn't become an easy and popular medium until roll film came along, but that is another story.

A serious consideration that escapes us regarding glass plates is the handling and storing of these photographic records. I own about 20 of the 5 x 7 glass plates and they fill a large cigar box. Most cigar boxes are not wide enough. More noticeable is the weight, which approaches five pounds. Of course, there is also the problem of hanging the "film" to dry.

Originally, film was sensitive to only ultra violet, violet and blue light. In 1873, a method was discovered for making film sensitive to all colors. This is referred to as panchromatic film and is used today for all except special applications where orthochromatic film has advantages. Of note is the fact that this discovery was made by accident and photographers have been very happy regarding this "misfortune."