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Title: Pictorial Photography in America 1921
Author: Pictorial Photographers of America
Language: English
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Pictorial Photography in America 1921
Pictorial Photographers of America
New York
1921
_Editorial Board_
CLARENCE H. WHITE
HENRY HOYT MOORE
DWIGHT A. DAVIS
JOHN PAUL EDWARDS
_Committee on Publication_
HENRY HOYT MOORE
WALTER L. EHRICH
RAY GREENLEAF
JOHN A. TENNANT
ILLUSTRATIONS
THE HAMPTON SINGER
_By _DOROTHY ABBOTT, _New York City_
THE ARCH OF JEWELS, NEW YORK CITY
_By _WILLIAM A. ALCOCK, _New York City_
WILLOW VALLEY
_By _CHARLES K. ARCHER, _Pittsburgh, Pa._
PRAYERS OF BUDDHA
_By _F. BAUER, _San Francisco, Cal._
THE SWANS
_By _JESSE TARBOX BEALS, _New York City_
ABOVE THE CLOUDS
_By _CLARK BLICKENSDERFER, _Denver, Colo._
GRAMERCY PARK
_By _MARY F. BOYD, _Chambersburg, Pa._
HILL TOP—WINTER
_By _GEORGE BUTLER, _Worcester, Mass._
WEISSTHURM—ROTENBURG O. TAUBER
_By _A. D. CHAFFEE, _New York City_
CABLES
_By _ARTHUR D. CHAPMAN, _West Hoboken, N.J._
BOOKPLATE
_By _ALFRED COHN, _Brooklyn, N.Y._
THE BUGLE CALL
_By _DWIGHT A. DAVIS, _Worcester, Mass._
THE BRIDGE
_By _JOHN PAUL EDWARDS, _Sacramento, California_
MY FATHER
_By _VERNON E. DUROE, _Brooklyn, N.Y._
MAIDS O’ THE MIST
_By _MR. AND MRS. J. D. DREW, _Montclair, N.J._
AFTERNOON TEA
_By _ELEANOR C. ERVING, _Albany, N.Y._
SUMMER PORTRAIT
_By _LAURA GILPIN, _Colorado Springs, Colo._
SUNLIGHT—TAOS
_By _FORMAN HANNA, _Globe, Arizona_
DICK’S STALL
_By _G. W. HARTING, _New York City_
BETH-EL
_By _EDWARD HEIM, _New York City_
THE TOILERS
_By _EUGENE P. HENRY, _Brooklyn, N.Y._
ARCHES OF THE MUNICIPAL BUILDING
_By _ATOINETTE B. HERVEY, _New York City_
MORNING—PLYMOUTH
_By _LILLIAN M. HOBART, _Northborough, Mass._
LAST OF THE SQUARE RIGGERS
_By _G. BUELL AND HEBE HOLLISTER, _Corning, N.Y._
WAR VETERANS
_By _MILLIE HOOPS, _New York City_
STILL LIFE
_By _D. S. HORNE, _Princeton, N.J._
THE SUNSHINE OF JOHNNIE’S SMILE
_By _ROBERTA HOSTETLER, _Davenport, Iowa_
SUN DRYING
_By _H. A. HUSSEY, _Berkeley, Cal._
PORTRAIT
_By _DORIS U. JAEGER, _New York City_
THE PIPES OF PAN
_By _MYERS R. JONES, _Brooklyn, N.Y._
IN AN ITALIAN VILLAGE
_By _H. A. LATIMER, _Boston, Mass._
CROW’S NEST RESTAURANT
_By _SOPHIE L. LAUFFER, _Brooklyn, N.Y._
THE QUARRY
_By _GEORGE P. LESTER, _Bloomfield, N. J._
DETAIL OF CALIFORNIA BUILDING
_By _FLORENCE BURTON LIVINGSTON, _Mohegan Lake, N.Y._
SUNBEAMS
_By _BEN J. LUBSCHEZ, _New York City_
ALONG THE CANAL
_By _WILLIAM ELBERT MACNAUGHTON, _Brooklyn, N.Y._
SPRING
_By _HOLMES I. METTEE, Arlington, Md.
SYMPATHY
_By _HERVEY W. MINNS, _Kenmore, Ohio_
THE MEADOW
_By _ROBERT B. MONTGOMERY, _Brooklyn, N.Y._
THE RAILWAY STATION
_By _HENRY HOYT MOORE, _Brooklyn, N.Y._
CULTIVATING
_By _L. POKRAS, _Brooklyn, N. Y._
PORTRAIT—MISS F.
_By _ARTHUR RACICOT, _Quantico, Va._
TO THE UNKNOWN SHORE
_By _LAWRENCE C. RANDALL, _Columbus, Ohio_
THE EAST RIVER
_By _D. J. RUZICKA, _New York City_
CLOSING OF AN AUTUMN DAY
_By _J. G. SARVENT, _Kansas City, Mo._
THE VANISHING ROAD
_By _OTTO C. SHULTE, _San Francisco, Cal._
THE HOUR OF TWILIGHT
_By _WILLIAM GORDON SHIELDS, _New York City_
A SONG
_By _GUY SPENCER, _New York City_
OPEN-AIR PULPIT, GRACE CHURCH
_By _ELIZABETH G. STOLTZ, _Marion, Ohio_
L’ENTRE’ACTE
_By _MANKICHI SUGIMOTO, _New York City_
FARMYARD
_By _GEORGE P. SWAIN, _East Orange, N.J._
CARLOTTA
_By _LACY VAN WAGENEN, _Orange, N.J._
MRS. PICKFORD
_By _MABEL WATSON, _Pasadena, California_
THE LITTLE ART SHOP—WOODSTOCK
_By _ANTHONY J. WEIS, _New York City_
THE DANCE
_By _DELIGHT WESTON, _Blue Hill, Maine_
SISTERS
_By _CLARENCE H. WHITE, _New York City_
SAND DUNE
_By _MILDRED RUTH WILSON, _Flushing, Long Island_
Advertisement: Pinkham and Smith Company
Advertisement: Eastman Kodak Company
Advertisement: Ansco Company
Advertisement: Ica-Contessa
Advertisements: Kalogen; Willis and Clements
Advertisements: Japan Paper Company; George Murphy, Inc.
Advertisements: Fred’k W. Keasbey, Abe Cohen’s Exchange
Advertisements: Wollensack Optical Company; Willoughby’s
CONTENTS
PAINTING WITH LIGHT
THE YEAR’S PROGRESS
HOW WE MAKE OUR PHOTOGRAPHS
PAINTING WITH LIGHT
_By _ARTHUR WESLEY DOW
_Professor of Fine Arts in Teachers College, Columbia University_
The painter need not always paint with brushes, he can paint with light
itself. Modern photography has brought light under control and made it as
truly art-material as pigment or clay. The old etchers turned chemical
action to the service of Art. The modern photographer does the same,
using the mysterious forces of nature as agents in making his thoughts
visible. It’s a long story of effort and experiment since someone
observed that an inverted landscape on the wall of a darkened room was
painted by light coming through a hole in a shutter. The shutter and the
dark room are still acting, but now we can hold the fleeting vision.
While we rejoice in the triumph of Science it is the triumph of Art that
concerns us most. The photographer has demonstrated that his work need
not be mechanical imitation. He can control the quality of his lines, the
spacing of his masses, the depth of his tones and the harmony of his
gradations. He can eliminate detail, keeping only the significant. More
than this, he can reveal the secrets of personality. What is this but
Art?
Just here we must remember that neither light, nor chemicals, nor camera,
nor nature tell us anything of Art—that Art is not the child of Knowledge
or Science or Nature, but is born of trained Appreciation in the soul of
man. He that would paint with light must be first of all a Designer. His
chief concern will be to find and use his own powers of choice and
appreciation. He will need the studio more than the laboratory.
“What is Design?” Ask Korin, Hiroshige, Giotto, Rembrandt, Titian; ask the
master-photographers who can build harmonies of line and space and
texture. But the secret is not revealed by asking, only by DOING.
THE YEAR’S PROGRESS
_By _CLARENCE H. WHITE
_An Interview with Henry Hoyt Moore_
“What notable events, Mr. White, have occurred in the photographic world
during the year 1920?”
“Perhaps no outstanding event, either on the art side or the scientific
aspect of photography, has marked the year. A steady progress, however,
in the direction of a better appreciation of photographic art is apparent.
This is seen, for one thing, in the numerous exhibitions that have been
held. Confining our attention to American exhibitions, I would remark
that instead of, as in former years, having one big exhibition in
Baltimore or Philadelphia or some other city, there are now active centers
all over the country—there is a regularly established international salon
in Los Angeles, and the well-known Pittsburgh Salon, and regularly
established exhibitions in Portland and Toronto. There are groups of
enthusiastic workers in all these centers. There are also exhibitions of
photographic art regularly held in many of the museums of the country.”
AMERICAN PHOTOGRAPHERS SET THE PACE
“I once heard a well-known photographic worker say, ‘If you have any doubt
as to the pictorial quality of a photograph, send it to the London Salon
and their judgment will decide for you.’ Is this still true?”
“I still feel that the American photographers set the pace, and in this
connection I would like to read you this letter from the Secretary of the
Royal Photographic Society of Great Britain as indicating the appreciation
in England of American pictorial work:
35 Russell Square, London, September, 1920.
I am happy to say that we have received from the United States and
Canada a collection of pictorial photographs of such outstanding
interest that the task of discrimination became one of great
difficulty.
Those selected by the judges have been placed in the exhibition,
but the Council of the Society feel that it would be most
unfortunate if the collection generally could not be viewed by the
English public, and it is proposed that the bulk of the American
and Canadian pictures, including those shown at the Annual
Exhibition, should form one of our house exhibitions and be open
to the public during the last part of January and the beginning of
February, 1921.
J. MCINTOSH, _Secretary_
THE SOFT FOCUS LENS
“What changes in the past twenty years, Mr. White, would you say have been
most noticeable in photographic work?”
“Well, I would say the most noticeable is what we call the use of the soft
focus lens. Secondly, I would say another noticeable change is the better
general quality of photographic work. I feel that the photographers of
today have a better idea of picture construction.”
“Would you say that one of the changes in the past twenty years is in the
spreading of a knowledge of pictorial photography throughout the country?”
“Very definitely so. The interest in pictorial photography twenty years
ago was confined to a small group. There are now groups in various
centers as large as the national group of the early days.”
NO ONE LENS IS SUFFICIENT
“Getting down to a practical question for a moment, Mr. White, do you
recommend a soft focus lens for small cameras, the work to be enlarged
with a sharp lens, or do you recommend the reverse process?”
“I still keep to my original statement that I made two or three years ago
that I do not believe that any one lens will serve all purposes. I
sometimes feel that an anastigmat lens is best and sometimes that a soft
focus lens is best for some particular work, and sometimes I feel that if
I could get only one I would prefer an anastigmat to a soft focus.”
SOFTNESS DESIRABLE, NOT FUZZINESS
“Is there a tendency, as shown in the work seen in the magazines, the
exhibitions, and the photographs selected for the present _Annual_, to get
rid of fuzziness and substitute a rational degree of softness and
atmospheric effect?”
“I would say that the reproductions that we see in the magazines do not in
all cases represent lens work but, I fear, bad printing sometimes. There
is often a good definite quality in soft focus lens work that looks very
definite indeed, even more definite than a sharp lens will give.
Fuzziness is bad, but not softness. The soft focus lens seems to be more
popular than ever and it apparently has come to stay.”
PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY INFLUENCED BY THAT OF THE PICTORIALIST
“Has the professional photography of today been influenced, in your
judgment, by the work of the pictorialists?”
“Yes, very decidedly, and the professionals confess it. The best
professional photographers freely admit that they have drawn much
inspiration from the pictorial workers’ ideas.”
THE POPULAR MEDIUMS
“What medium—gum, multiple gum, bromoil, platinum, bromide, chloride—is
most popular today?”
“Bromide and chloride are the most popular. That this is so is probably
because they are easier to use; but there are very earnest workers—some of
the best—who insist on using the processes which give a greater range and
greater possibilities of quality, such as bromoil, gum, and gum platinum.
I would say that these processes are more popular than they used to be.”
COLOR PHOTOGRAPHY
“Has color photography made any advance during the year? Are autochromes
still popular? Has any progress been made in the direction of producing
color photography on paper?”
“I do not know of any special progress in this branch of the art. Color
photography on paper has been worked out successfully by Mr. Ives, and I
think the difficulty in obtaining materials has temporarily affected the
popularity of color photography in this country.”
“Is the color process used to any extent for portraiture in the United
States?”
“I do not think it is used to any great extent, but I believe that it has
great possibilities and that it can be used if workers will take the
necessary care and pains. I think the difficulty of getting material
recently has set things back along this line.”
THE “SECRET” IS THE ARTIST
“Have the so-called pictorial photographers any ‘secrets?’ People often
ask, ‘How are these effects produced?’ What is the best method of
producing soft, atmospheric pictures? Can a skilled worker take an
ordinary hard negative and, by suitable manipulation or the use of soft
paper, produce an atmospheric print? Is the medium the secret? Will one
paper or developer produce soot and whitewash effects and another a
picture? Are soft effects generally produced by manipulation in
developing negatives or prints?”
“I believe the quality of a picture is not due to the medium by which it
was made. It depends entirely on the man who made it. I think one man
can make a good print on soft paper and another a good print on hard
paper. I do not think the medium makes the picture. I think the medium
produces the picture to some extent, but it does not make the picture.”
HAND WORK VS. STRAIGHT PRINTS
“What are the limits of hand work that are legitimate in photography? I
don’t like to use the word faking, but most people would so describe it.
I mean, for instance, putting in skies, blocking out obtrusive
backgrounds, sunning down high lights, retouching negatives, printing
through prepared masks that entirely alter the negative, and pencil or air
brush work on prints?”
“I do not have any objection to anybody using any methods that he pleases
providing that the result is convincing; and I believe that practically
every one of these means has been used successfully, in making pictures.
On the other hand, some of the best and probably more good pictures have
been produced by not using any of them—that is, by making the picture
straight.”
COMMERCIAL POSSIBILITIES FOR PICTORIAL WORK
“Are there commercial possibilities at present for pictorial
photographers? Has the public shown an increasing desire to buy soft
focus pictures? Is there a demand on the part of magazines and newspapers
for pictorial work?”
“There is a very definite demand on the part of both magazines and
newspapers for soft focus pictures. In fact, sometimes the art editors,
in their eagerness to get soft focus work, will buy a photograph because
it is fuzzy, without regard to its quality. But the outlook for the
pictorial worker in its financial possibilities is steadily improving.”
AIRPLANE PHOTOGRAPHY
“Has any pictorial work been done in connection with airplane photography?
Is the apparatus for this sort of work too expensive for anything besides
military or movie use?”
“At present I do not know personally of any pictorial work being done in
this direction, but I have seen reproductions in newspapers of pictures
from airplanes that show most interesting results. Airplane photographers
as a rule do not as yet put into their work a marked pictorial quality.”
ELABORATE APPARATUS NOT ALWAYS NECESSARY
“Have any notable inventions marked the year? Is the photostat coming
into use and has it any value other than commercial? Do you recommend one
of the new high-priced enlarging cameras, which focus the lens
automatically on any size of paper, as suitable for clubs to purchase?”
“Well, I must confess that I have only heard of it, and the price seems to
be such as to discourage almost all the pictorial workers that I know. In
my observation of the work that has been done by pictorialists, the very
fact that in many instances they use makeshift apparatus has resulted in
some of the most beautiful effects in their work. Good apparatus is of
course desirable, but there are happy accidents with the other sort. It
is the workman, not his tools, that counts. Get the best tools if you can
afford them, but remember that you can make just as bad pictures with an
expensive outfit as you can with the cheapest.”
HOW MR. WHITE JUDGES A PHOTOGRAPH
“Many persons would like to know, Mr. White, what are the criteria used by
advanced workers like yourself in judging a photograph. Do you allow so
many points for composition, for technique, for originality of conception,
or for success in a difficult medium? Or do you say, ‘That picture
pleases me, and I vote for it,’ without attempting to state in
mathematical form the qualities of its success as a picture?”
“I would say that the first thing a man should do in judging pictures is
to answer the appeal of the picture. I think a picture should have a
message—that is, it should convey, not necessarily a story, but something
of the feeling of the man who produced it. This is really a difficult
question to answer. I would say, ‘That picture pleases me and I vote for
it.’ That is to say, so many points for technique and so many points for
pictorial quality would mean nothing to me. I would insist that a picture
have an appeal, and then that it have good construction, and it should
have quality. The printing medium, as I have said, doesn’t make the
picture, but the man who uses it.”
MOTION PICTURES AND THE SOFT FOCUS LENS
“Probably photography’s greatest activity at present is in the motion
picture field. Have soft focus lenses been used for producing screen plays
and with what result?”
“Soft focus lenses are being used in motion picture photography, but I am
doubtful as to their success in the way they are being used at present—a
somewhat haphazard way. You are too conscious of the soft focus lens and
of the anastigmatic lens. That is, one part of the picture is made with a
soft focus lens and one with an anastigmatic. I believe that the soft
focus lens can be used, and will be used, in such a way as to give
beautiful results on the screen.”
IS PHOTOGRAPHY TO REMAIN A BLACK AND WHITE ART?
“What forecast, Mr.White, do you make of future developments in
photography? Is it to remain a black and white art, or are photographs in
natural colors to supersede the familiar photograph of the present day in
our exhibitions and in our homes?”
“I think that the fundamental expression of photography is in black and
white, and as we develop what I would call the definite photographic
quality, black and white will maintain its present ascendency.”
“But don’t you expect the art to develop in different directions from what
it is today and what it has been in the past?”
“I think it will develop especially in a more marked sense of picture
construction.”
* * *
HOW WE MAKE OUR PHOTOGRAPHS
_Methods of Several Representative Workers in Pictorial Photography Are
Given Below. Their Pictures May Be Found on the Pages Indicated_
DR. CHAFFEE TELLS HOW HE MAKES BROMOILS—WITH RESERVATIONS
_See __Weissthurm_
Rothenburg o. Tauber, today a mediaeval town surrounded by its ancient
walls and towers, possesses relics of yet earlier fortifications within
the present ones. One of these relics is the so-called Weissthurm, still
dominating the narrow streets that lead to it and the old houses that have
attached themselves to its base.
The print is a bromoil transfer upon English crayon paper from Wellington
smooth ordinary (pre-war variety). The negative was made with a Goerz
Dagor lens in a Lancaster reflex upon a Seed Ortho L plate. The further
data which all careful workers are supposed to keep were not made and can
there fore unfortunately not be furnished.
A. D. CHAFFEE.
EVADED THE STATUTE, BUT MADE A PICTURE
_See __Cables_
“Cables” is the pictorial result of several months’ study of the Brooklyn
Bridge towers. When I found the composition I wanted, the rest was easy.
Except for the police. To a Bridge policeman anything on a tripod is a
movie camera, and that means: “Some guy’s gonna jump! Where’s he at?” I
evaded, not the law, but the majesty thereof—and with an 8×10 view camera.
The light was bad. (My lens would give an optical savant brain fever; I
designed it myself.) I used the rising front to the limit, and stopped
down to F:11 to cover the plate. Result, under-exposure, at one-sixtieth.
I developed first in Rodinal, 1:120; then finished in Rodinal 1:30.
Stanley plates can endure much cruelty. The print for reproduction is
made on matte Azo, soft, using strong M.-Q. developer.
ARTHUR D. CHAPMAN.
A FEW BELIEFS OF A NEGATIVE TENDENCY
_See __The Bugle Call_
I believe that the data of camera, plate, lens, exposure, paper, etc.,
have no essential value as aids in pictorial photography.
That pictures are made with the camera by feeling alone. The selection of
the subject, the lighting, the composition, the exposure and development,
and the after-treatment and selection of the printing medium, are all a
matter of feeling.
That the rules of technique once learned are all practically violated in
the making of the plate and in the production of a print, according as the
artist feels his subject and as he wishes to reproduce that feeling.
In that way only can the individuality be attained which is the keynote of
picture-making.
DWIGHT A. DAVIS.
PHOTOGRAPHING ON A RAINY DAY
_See __Maids o’ the Mist_
This picture was made with a vest pocket kodak fitted with a Goerz Dagor F
6.3. It was a rainy day and the camera user made his exposure under an
umbrella. The film was enlarged to 6½×8½ on Illingworth De Luxe paper,
cream-colored stock, imported from England—took about three months to get
it.
MR. AND MRS. J. D. DREW.
HOW A “REMBRANDT” WAS MADE
_See __My Father_
The original negative of my father was made with 5×7 Graphic camera and a
Standard Orthonon plate, using a Busch Omnar F 4.5 of ten-inch focal
length, at full opening. A hazy day in the country, the ground covered
with snow, a south window shaded by a veranda and my father seated in
front of the window about four or five feet from it, explain the lighting.
No reflector was used. Camera was moved to get the desired light.
Knowing him, I caught him in a favorite chair and in a characteristic
position. To subdue the detail of the door and wall behind, but to
suggest the depth and atmosphere of the room and to give all the lines and
modeling of the face, an enlargement was made on an 11×14 sheet of P. M.
C. No. 8 Bromide paper, and this was carefully inked, using the copper
sulphate, salt, bichromate bleach. The aim throughout was to get a print
which should be a sympathetic record of a good strong face and one which
should tell of the cheerful evening of a busy life.
All my portraits are made in ordinary living-rooms or school-rooms. I
rarely use any reflector, merely shifting my camera or my subject,
preferably the former. For younger subjects and especially children I
prefer a lighter key. Sometimes I use a soft focus lens for a very
moderate degree of diffusion.
VERNON E. DUROE.
HE THOUGHT SHE WAS CRAZY
_See __Arches of the Municipal Building_
“Arches of the Municipal Building of New York” was taken on a Standard
Orthonon plate, about 9:30 A.M., with a twenty minute exposure. Instead
of a lens, the photographer used a piece of black paper pierced with a
pin. A wise passer-by who knew a thing or two about photography noticed
the absence of the lens. “How do you think you are going to take a
picture without a lens?” he asked. “With a pin-hole,” she replied. He
watched her with pitying interest. “She _thinks_ she is taking a
picture,” he said to another expert, tapping his head significantly.
ANTOINETTE B. HERVEY.
THE LAST OF THE SQUARE RIGGERS
_See __The Last of the Square Riggers_
How to suggest something of the stately vigor and the triumph over the
mysteries of the seas of the old whaler, “Greyhound,” home from her last
voyage after seventy-four years of service—her yards squared and bravely
dressed for the inspection which will condemn her to be broken up—was the
problem of the photographer.
The time was near noonday in early August, the air clear and the sun
bright. A Graflex camera was used with Seed L Ortho plates and a
three-times screen, and one-fortieth of a second exposure sufficed at F 8.
The plate was developed with Kalogen in tank rather softly and a contact
positive made of the negative. This positive was then used to make an
11×14 negative by enlargement. P. M. C. No. 8 paper, buff stock, was
selected, and in printing a piece of thin, even-grained paper was placed
between the negative and the print paper to gain a certain softness of
quality in the finished print. Finally when dry the print was waxed and
rubbed down several times to give extra life and richness, particularly in
the shadows. The camera carried a nine-inch Struss lens.
G. B. HOLLISTER.
AS TO CERTAIN SOFT FOCUS LENSES
_See __Still Life_
Answering your question, Do you like to work with the Graflex with a Smith
doublet, visual quality lens? I really believe it would be difficult to
find a more satisfactory outfit. It is a companion always ready and
willing to do everything that either comes your way or you go after.
Working at F 4.5, the lens gives you the opportunity of getting the
broadest effects in landscapes or the softest in portraits. As a rule
these are not pleasing to most people when enlarged. I therefore usually
work with the lens at F 6 or F 8, which gives a delightful image with
distinct contours and a definite softness to the outlines, making
beautiful enlargements which are sharp enough for bromoil or gum. And the
Graflex is not so very heavy when a film pack or cut films are used. The
image is always right side up and you see it in the full size. No one can
question the efficiency of the shutter, and with practice you can hold the
camera for a one-fifth second exposure. The only drawback to the outfit
is in seeing things from the waist level, which makes the foreground
difficult. Thinking of your picture as a pattern, however, it is better
to be looking down from an elevation and with a nine-inch lens on a 4×5
box the immediate foreground is negligible. Everything considered, I
believe there is no more satisfactory outfit than this combination.
“Still Life” was the result of a problem of construction in pastel with
three colors, the vase green, the small box red, with the white string.
It was later photographed as a study of colored objects, using a Standard
Orthonon plate with a Cramer Isos III filter and a Struss lens at F 8.
The lens was of fifteen-inch focal length on a 6½×8½ plate. The exposure
was made in an ordinarily lighted room, but not strong light, and I think
about four minutes was given. The print is on ivory black platinum. There
was no retouching of any kind, and I think the print shows the value of
using a color filter with an orthochromatic plate where colors are
contrasted in the subject.
B. S. HORNE.
MR. LATIMER EXPRESSES HIS VIEWS SOMEWHAT AT LENGTH
_See __In an Italian Village_
In the olden days I used to lug around big cameras. I even went so far as
to have 14×17 _hand camera_, made to take to sea with me to make large
direct marines. In the days of the old Boston Camera Club it was called
“the dog-house.” But I soon found out that it was “too much pork for a
shilling.” Now I use small cameras and enlarge. My small cameras are
mostly of the stereo-panoram variety, and a pocket Ansco, all fitted with
fast lenses and with direct vision finders, which I consider much more
practicable than the old style finders. For instance, I was on a steamer
a few months ago, waiting to leave the dock, and a lot of gulls were
flying around. I said to myself, “Here’s a good opportunity to test my
shutter and finder, and see if I can stop them,” so I used up one roll of
film on them. I made direct hits and stops on every one.
My picture “In an Italian Village” was made with my Voigtlander 45×107 mm.
stereo camera. I was on an auto trip in Italy; had nearly used up my
three months allowed by the Italian Government, and had three days to get
out or lose my deposit for duty on my car. I was on my way to the French
frontier, and ran through this Italian village—Todi I think the name was.
When I saw this picturesque old wall with some of the villagers, I said,
“I’ve got to get this whether I lose my deposit or not.” So I stopped the
car, got out my stereo, stood up in the car, leaned on the windshield, and
shot before they woke up to what I was doing. Then what happened? The
whole village seemed to want to get into the plate, and I had a mob
instead of a picture. I made several more shots, but the first one was
the best. In nine cases out of ten in like conditions I find the first
shot the best. Shoot quick and don’t give ’em time to pose. I suppose if
I had trained movie models, though, it might be different. I’ve tried
studio work, but I prefer the small camera and the quick snapshot. Luck
counts, I admit, but when it is good, the snapshot seems to me more
spontaneous than anything I can do in the studio.
My usual method of enlarging from small camera shots is this. I enlarge a
transparency (positive) up to 6½×8½ or 8×10. “In an Italian Village” was
an 8×10 positive, sharp lens. Then, either with a soft focus or a sharp
focus lens, I enlarge to whatever size I want and whatever effect I’m
after. The advantage of enlarging the positive is that you can do any
faking you want to better advantage, and when your enlarged negative is
done you can print in any medium you wish, so I always make enlarged
negatives. I don’t think I’ve made a bromide enlargement in twenty years.
“In an Italian Village” was enlarged from a part of a 45×107 mm. stereo, a
little larger than my thumb-nail. The enlarged negative is 11×14. It was
printed in multiple gum, four printings, pigment 50-50 lampblack and
indigo.
H. A. LATIMER.
NIGHT PICTURES IN THE STREETS
_See __Crow’s Nest Restaurant,__ also The Arch of Jewels, New York
City—Mr. Alcock’s picture was made under similar conditions._
Picturing New York with a camera after dark is perhaps one of the most
interesting phases of pictorial photography. After spending several
evenings prowling about for subjects that will lend themselves for night
pictures you start out one evening to transfer these mental images to the
plate. A little patience, endurance, and a great deal of enthusiasm will
do wonders. It is not the easiest thing in the world to start out with an
8×10 view camera, a good substantial tripod, and several plate-holders. A
strong tripod is absolutely necessary on account of winds, jars,
vibrations, etc. To avoid halation use portrait film, take the view where
there are no glaring lights, and develop with Azol. Judge your time
according to the amount of light (two to ten minutes). Capping the lens
each time a lighted moving vehicle comes along helps the picture. For
night pictures probably the best medium is gum palladium, because it lends
itself to the mellow evening lights.
SOPHIE L. LAUFFER.
HOW TO “WORK UP” A NEGATIVE
_See __Along the Canal_
“Along the Canal” was taken about mid-day in July in bright sunlight,
Graflex 4×5, Cooke lens working at one-twentieth of a second, F 11, on
Seed 26x plate, Pyro (Kodak powders) developer. In working up, first make
Solio print and enlarge by photographing up to 6×8. On this negative sky
and some trees were painted out, using glass side to work on. From this
negative print was made on American platinum paper, first the foreground,
then the sky printed from negative which will suit subject. Retouching
can be done on this print with carbon pencil. You then have a print which
can be enlarged to any size, using Smith lens. This print is on Spanish
hand-made paper, hand-coated with platinum.
W. E. MACNAUGHTON.
AN EXPERIENCE WITH A RAILWAY DETECTIVE
_See __The Railway Station_
I wandered into the Grand Central Station in New York City with a new
camera—a Speedex 2¼×3¼. It had been given me as a present by my partner
in photographic and other joys, who was tired of seeing me lug around an
8×10 view camera and plates. I thought the light looked interesting in
the big station and opened my little box. Appeared on the scene the
station detective. “Not allowed to make photographs without a permit.”
“Where do I apply for it?” “At the stationmaster’s room.” I walked half
a mile and interviewed a pretty stenographer. She said, when I showed her
the tiny camera, “Certainly you can make snapshots with that little thing.
What we don’t like is putting up a big camera on a tripod.” I went back
in triumph, showed my permit, and shot. F4.8 Zeiss lens, wide open, one
second exposure. Enlarged on P. M. C. No. 5, to 11×14 with Smith lens.
HENRY HOYT MOORE.
FROM A “BATHROOM” EXPERT
_See __The Hour of Twilight_
I never at any time have had a regular dark room, practically always
changing my plates and reloading holders at night in total darkness. When
developing plates or enlargements, I take possession of the bathroom,
place a wide board across the tub on which are placed the necessary trays,
see that the room is absolutely dark, and go ahead. I usually tank my
plates and films and use Azol for developing, sometimes Pyro.
Most of my exposures are made with an Adams Minex Reflex camera, quarter
plate size. This camera cost about three hundred dollars before the war,
and I have found it well worth the expenditure. It has a Ross Zeiss
Tessar lens, which I seldom use, being quite content with the work of my
Smith single F 4.5 lens, which I carry in the camera all the time with a
three-times light filter attached. My only other camera, which I use a
great deal, is a Newman & Guardia “Baby Sybil” with Carl Zeiss Tessar F
4.5 lens, taking a picture 4.5 x 6 cm. This does wonderful work, the
negatives easily enlarging to 11×14 and over. I use the Standard Orthonon
plate and Premo speed film pack, always giving a full exposure. My
favorite printing processes are multiple gum and bromoil, three or four
printings in the former, nearly always from enlarged paper negatives up to
11×14 from either camera.
“The Hour of Twilight” is a triple printing in gum, and was made with the
Adams Minex on a Standard Orthonon plate, using a Smith single lens.
WILLIAM GORDON SHIELDS.
MR. WHITE’S METHOD WITH CHILDREN
_See __Sisters_
When I went out of town to make a photograph of these children I wasn’t
feeling just fit and I asked my friend to excuse me from making any
negatives that day. I took the opportunity to look around and get an
impression of the place. I noted the big rooms and the characteristics of
the lighting and the faces of the children. I found that they kept their
toys in a big sort of a highboy. So the next time I went out I
photographed them there. The lens? Oh, yes; a Taylor-Hobson single.
Exposure? Always with a cap, indoors. Paper? Always platinum or
palladium—sometimes with a gum coating to help out.
CLARENCE H. WHITE.
DRAGGING A VIEW CAMERA THROUGH THE SANDS
_See __Sand Dunes_
For want of a smaller one, I had the courage to drag a 6½×8½ Eastman view
camera through the sand one late afternoon in September, to make my
picture of the “Sand Dune.” I used a Struss lens stopped to F 11, a
Standard Orthonon plate, an Iso three-times ray filter, and gave it as
short an exposure as I could with a cap. I use a cap because I tell
myself it is less mechanical and because I do not happen to possess a
shutter.
I developed the plate with Activol and printed it on sepia Palladiotype to
try to give it that quality of sunlight which I saw falling upon the sand,
the waving dune grass, and the sea beyond.
MILDRED RUTH WILSON.
[THE HAMPTON SINGER, By Dorothy Abbott, New York City]
THE HAMPTON SINGER
_By _DOROTHY ABBOTT, _New York City_
[THE ARCH OF JEWELS, NEW YORK CITY, By William A. Alcock, New York City]
THE ARCH OF JEWELS, NEW YORK CITY
_By _WILLIAM A. ALCOCK, _New York City_
[WILLOW VALLEY, By Charles K. Archer, Pittsburgh, Pa.]
WILLOW VALLEY
_By _CHARLES K. ARCHER, _Pittsburgh, Pa._
[PRAYERS OF BUDDHA, By F. Bauer, San Francisco, Cal.]
PRAYERS OF BUDDHA
_By _F. BAUER, _San Francisco, Cal._
[THE SWANS, By Jesse Tarbox Beals, New York City]
THE SWANS
_By _JESSE TARBOX BEALS, _New York City_
[ABOVE THE CLOUDS, By Clark Blickensderfer, Denver, Colo.]
ABOVE THE CLOUDS
_By _CLARK BLICKENSDERFER, _Denver, Colo._
[GRAMERCY PARK, By Mary F. Boyd, Chambersburg, Pa.]
GRAMERCY PARK
_By _MARY F. BOYD, _Chambersburg, Pa._
[HILL TOP—WINTER, By George Butler, Worcester, Mass.]
HILL TOP—WINTER
_By _GEORGE BUTLER, _Worcester, Mass._
[WEISSTHURM—ROTENBURG O. TAUBER, By A. D. Chaffee, New York City]
WEISSTHURM—ROTENBURG O. TAUBER
_By _A. D. CHAFFEE, _New York City_
[CABLES, By Arthur D. Chapman, West Hoboken, N.J.]
CABLES
_By _ARTHUR D. CHAPMAN, _West Hoboken, N.J._
[BOOKPLATE, By Alfred Cohn, Brooklyn, N.Y.]
BOOKPLATE
_By _ALFRED COHN, _Brooklyn, N.Y._
[THE BUGLE CALL, By Dwight A. Davis, Worcester, Mass.]
THE BUGLE CALL
_By _DWIGHT A. DAVIS, _Worcester, Mass._
[THE BRIDGE, By John Paul Edwards, Sacramento, California]
THE BRIDGE
_By _JOHN PAUL EDWARDS, _Sacramento, California_
[MY FATHER, By Vernon E. Duroe, Brooklyn, N.Y.]
MY FATHER
_By _VERNON E. DUROE, _Brooklyn, N.Y._
[MAIDS O’ THE MIST, By Mr. and Mrs. J. D. Drew, Montclair, N.J.]
MAIDS O’ THE MIST
_By _MR. AND MRS. J. D. DREW, _Montclair, N.J._
[AFTERNOON TEA, By Eleanor C. Erving, Albany, N.Y.]
AFTERNOON TEA
_By _ELEANOR C. ERVING, _Albany, N.Y._
[SUMMER PORTRAIT, By Laura Gilpin, Colorado Springs, Colo.]
SUMMER PORTRAIT
_By _LAURA GILPIN, _Colorado Springs, Colo._
[SUNLIGHT—TAOS, By Forman Hanna, Globe, Arizona]
SUNLIGHT—TAOS
_By _FORMAN HANNA, _Globe, Arizona_
[DICK’S STALL, By G. W. Harting, New York City]
DICK’S STALL
_By _G. W. HARTING, _New York City_
[BETH-EL, By Edward Heim, New York City]
BETH-EL
_By _EDWARD HEIM, _New York City_
[THE TOILERS, By Eugene P. Henry, Brooklyn, N.Y.]
THE TOILERS
_By _EUGENE P. HENRY, _Brooklyn, N.Y._
[ARCHES OF THE MUNICIPAL BUILDING, By Atoinette B. Hervey, New York City]
ARCHES OF THE MUNICIPAL BUILDING
_By _ATOINETTE B. HERVEY, _New York City_
[MORNING—PLYMOUTH, By Lillian M. Hobart, Northborough, Mass.]
MORNING—PLYMOUTH
_By _LILLIAN M. HOBART, _Northborough, Mass._
[LAST OF THE SQUARE RIGGERS, By G. Buell and Hebe Hollister, Corning,
N.Y.]
LAST OF THE SQUARE RIGGERS
_By _G. BUELL AND HEBE HOLLISTER, _Corning, N.Y._
[WAR VETERANS, By Millie Hoops, New York City]
WAR VETERANS
_By _MILLIE HOOPS, _New York City_
[STILL LIFE, By D. S. Horne, Princeton, N.J.]
STILL LIFE
_By _D. S. HORNE, _Princeton, N.J._
[THE SUNSHINE OF JOHNNIE’S SMILE, By Roberta Hostetler, Davenport, Iowa]
THE SUNSHINE OF JOHNNIE’S SMILE
_By _ROBERTA HOSTETLER, _Davenport, Iowa_
[SUN DRYING, By H. A. Hussey, Berkeley, Cal.]
SUN DRYING
_By _H. A. HUSSEY, _Berkeley, Cal._
[PORTRAIT, By Doris U. Jaeger, New York City]
PORTRAIT
_By _DORIS U. JAEGER, _New York City_
[THE PIPES OF PAN, By Myers R. Jones, Brooklyn, N.Y.>]
THE PIPES OF PAN
_By _MYERS R. JONES, _Brooklyn, N.Y._
[IN AN ITALIAN VILLAGE, By H. A. Latimer, Boston, Mass.]
IN AN ITALIAN VILLAGE
_By _H. A. LATIMER, _Boston, Mass._
[CROW’S NEST RESTAURANT, By Sophie L. Lauffer, Brooklyn, N.Y.]
CROW’S NEST RESTAURANT
_By _SOPHIE L. LAUFFER, _Brooklyn, N.Y._
[THE QUARRY, By GEORGE P. LESTER, Bloomfield, N. J.]
THE QUARRY
_By _GEORGE P. LESTER, _Bloomfield, N. J._
[DETAIL OF CALIFORNIA BUILDING, By Florence Burton Livingston, Mohegan
Lake, N.Y.]
DETAIL OF CALIFORNIA BUILDING
_By _FLORENCE BURTON LIVINGSTON, _Mohegan Lake, N.Y._
[SUNBEAMS, By Ben J. Lubschez, New York City]
SUNBEAMS
_By _BEN J. LUBSCHEZ, _New York City_
[ALONG THE CANAL, By William Elbert Macnaughton, Brooklyn, N.Y.]
ALONG THE CANAL
_By _WILLIAM ELBERT MACNAUGHTON, _Brooklyn, N.Y._
[SPRING, By Holmes I. Mettee, Arlington, Md.]
SPRING
_By _HOLMES I. METTEE, Arlington, Md.
[SYMPATHY, By Hervey W. Minns, Kenmore, Ohio]
SYMPATHY
_By _HERVEY W. MINNS, _Kenmore, Ohio_
[THE MEADOW, By Robert B. Montgomery, Brooklyn, N.Y.]
THE MEADOW
_By _ROBERT B. MONTGOMERY, _Brooklyn, N.Y._
[THE RAILWAY STATION, By Henry Hoyt Moore, Brooklyn, N.Y.]
THE RAILWAY STATION
_By _HENRY HOYT MOORE, _Brooklyn, N.Y._
[Cultivating, By L. Pokras, Brooklyn, N. Y.]
CULTIVATING
_By _L. POKRAS, _Brooklyn, N. Y._
[PORTRAIT—MISS F., By Arthur Racicot, Quantico, Va.]
PORTRAIT—MISS F.
_By _ARTHUR RACICOT, _Quantico, Va._
[TO THE UNKNOWN SHORE, By Lawrence C. Randall, Columbus, Ohio]
TO THE UNKNOWN SHORE
_By _LAWRENCE C. RANDALL, _Columbus, Ohio_
[THE EAST RIVER, By D. J. Ruzicka, New York City]
THE EAST RIVER
_By _D. J. RUZICKA, _New York City_
[CLOSING OF AN AUTUMN DAY, By J. G. Sarvent, Kansas City, Mo.]
CLOSING OF AN AUTUMN DAY
_By _J. G. SARVENT, _Kansas City, Mo._
[THE VANISHING ROAD, By Otto C. Shulte, San Francisco, Cal.]
THE VANISHING ROAD
_By _OTTO C. SHULTE, _San Francisco, Cal._
[THE HOUR OF TWILIGHT, By William Gordon Shields, New York City]
THE HOUR OF TWILIGHT
_By _WILLIAM GORDON SHIELDS, _New York City_
[A SONG, By Guy Spencer, New York City]
A SONG
_By _GUY SPENCER, _New York City_
[OPEN-AIR PULPIT, GRACE CHURCH, By Elizabeth G. Stoltz, Marion, Ohio]
OPEN-AIR PULPIT, GRACE CHURCH
_By _ELIZABETH G. STOLTZ, _Marion, Ohio_
[L’ENTRE’ACTE, By Mankichi Sugimoto, New York City]
L’ENTRE’ACTE
_By _MANKICHI SUGIMOTO, _New York City_
[FARMYARD, By George P. Swain, East Orange, N.J.]
FARMYARD
_By _GEORGE P. SWAIN, _East Orange, N.J._
[CARLOTTA, By Lacy Van Wagenen, Orange, N.J.]
CARLOTTA
_By _LACY VAN WAGENEN, _Orange, N.J._
[MRS. PICKFORD, By Mabel Watson, Pasadena, California]
MRS. PICKFORD
_By _MABEL WATSON, _Pasadena, California_
[THE LITTLE ART SHOP—WOODSTOCK, By Anthony J. Weis, New York City]
THE LITTLE ART SHOP—WOODSTOCK
_By _ANTHONY J. WEIS, _New York City_
[THE DANCE, By Delight Weston, Blue Hill, Maine]
THE DANCE
_By _DELIGHT WESTON, _Blue Hill, Maine_
[SISTERS, By Clarence H. White, New York City]
SISTERS
_By _CLARENCE H. WHITE, _New York City_
[SAND DUNE, By Mildred Ruth Wilson, Flushing, Long Island]
SAND DUNE
_By _MILDRED RUTH WILSON, _Flushing, Long Island_
_THE_ PICTORIAL PHOTOGRAPHERS _OF_ AMERICA
The objects of the Pictorial Photographers of America are to stimulate and
encourage those engaged and interested in the Art of Photography; to
enlist the aid of museums and public libraries in adding photographic
prints to their departments; to stimulate public taste through
exhibitions, lectures, and publications; to invite exhibits of foreign
work; and generally to promote education in this Art so as to raise the
standards of Photography in the United States of America.
Meetings of the Association are held in New York City on the first Monday
of each month. During the winter of 1919-1920 the following lecturers
addressed the Association at these meetings: Mr. Robert J. Cole, Art
Reviewer, New York Evening Sun, on “Man and the Camera;” Mr. H. J. Potter,
of the Eastman Kodak Company, on “Both Ways from F-8;” Mr. Albert Sterner,
on “Before the Click of the Shutter;” Mr. Pirie MacDonald and Mr. E. B.
Core, on “The Pictorial Side of Professional Photography;” and Mr. Walter
G. Wolfe, on “The Use of the Soft Focus Lens.” Mr. Allen Eaton, Field
Secretary of the American Federation of Arts; Mr. William M. Ivins,
Curator of Prints, Metropolitan Museum of Art; Dr. Frank Weitenkampf, of
the New York Public Library; Prof. Charles H. Farnsworth, of Columbia
University, and Walter L. Hervey, Ph.D., also made addresses.
Another feature of the meetings which added to their interest and
usefulness was a monthly print competition. Prints were submitted by
members from all parts of the United States, judged by a committee in
advance of the meeting, and a selection of ten prints presented to the
members for their consideration. From these they chose each month the two
best prints.
The Pictorial Photographers of America this year for the first time
arranged an exhibition of prints in Europe. Acting on the invitation of
the Copenhagen Photographic Amateur Club to cooperate in celebrating its
Twenty-fifth Anniversary, about 350 prints from leading pictorialists all
over this country were assembled and forwarded in July to Copenhagen.
At home, in cooperation with the American Federation of Arts, the
Pictorial Photographers of America exhibited at the following museums the
hundred prints which are reproduced in “Pictorial Photography in America
for 1920.” The John Herron Art Institute of Indianapolis, The Jackson Art
Association of Michigan, The Boston Society of Arts and Crafts, The
Mechanics Institute of Rochester, The Arnot Art Gallery of Elmira; and
during May, at the University of Virginia.
During the past season the Association has cooperated with other
organizations of a similar nature in planning for and establishing an Art
Center in New York City. The plans for this have been successfully worked
out, funds are already in hand for its accomplishment and buildings
purchased for occupancy. This will provide a home for our Association, a
splendid gallery for exhibitions, and thus make certain of immediate
accomplishment plans for our future which have seemed impracticable up to
the present time.
In publishing “Pictorial Photography in America for 1921” the Association
has invited the cooperation of pictorialists whether or not members of the
organization. We hope that it will interest in our work men and women,
whether photographers or not, who are interested in the development of the
Art of Photography. The Secretary will gladly give more detailed
information about the work of the Association and its plans for the coming
year to any who are interested.
JERRY D. DREW, _Secretary._
National Arts Club, 119 East 19th Street, New York City.
[Advertisement: Pinkham and Smith Company]
[Advertisement: Eastman Kodak Company]
[Advertisement: Ansco Company]
[Advertisement: Ica-Contessa]
[Advertisements: Kalogen; Willis and Clements]
[Advertisements: Japan Paper Company; George Murphy, Inc.]
[Advertisements: Fred’k W. Keasbey, Abe Cohen’s Exchange]
[Advertisements: Wollensack Optical Company; Willoughby’s]
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