and somewhat dangerous to do. It was invented in 1851 by the Englishmen Frederick Scott

Archer who has looking for a process that could produce fine detail and negatives. It

was one of the first photographic processes invented.

Cutting the glass. I use both black glass and clear glass in the process. I use clear

glass for negatives and black glass for positives. I shoot everything from 11 x 14 to quarter

plate. Deburring the glass. You need to do this so

you don’t get cuts on your hands because of the cyanide used in the process. It also

gives a ridge to hold the emulsion or the film.

Cleaning the glass. Although this step isn’t very flattering, it’s extremely important.

If the glass isn’t cleaned well the emulsion or collodion will peel from the plate.

Flowing the plate. This step is where you actually pour the collodion onto the glass

plate. It’s very technique driven. It takes a lot of practice to do it correctly. The

technique used here will determine if your plate is smooth and ridge free and will determine

how many defects or imperfections you have in the plate.

Sensitizing the plate. When the collodion has reached a set point, the plate is dropped

into a bath of silver nitrate for three to four minutes.

Exposing the plate. Exposure in wet paint photography range from a few seconds to several

minutes depending on the lighting, the chemistry and what the photographer wants the image

to look like. Developing the plate. It only takes fifteen

to twenty seconds to develop the plate but you need to know what you’re looking for

so you don’t overdevelop or under develop. Fixing the plate. I use potassium cyanide

to fix the images. I let the sitter wash from a bluish negative to a warm positive ambro

type. Last year I bought a 1990 Dodge Caravan and

put a dark room in the back of it. This has allowed me to take wet-plate on the road and

do portraits outside of my studio. While this is exciting, it presents a whole new set of

challenges for me and makes me appreciate the photographers of the nineteenth century

even more. The biggest challenge I have is the technical aspects of the process. I have

no running water and it’s much more difficult to control the light when I’m not in my

studio. But when it’s successful, it can be very rewarding.