Longest Wet Plate Exposure Times

[Tin Can]

The Sally Mann Documentary shows 3 and 8 minute indoor portrait exposures

The longest a selfie, not sure if it worked

The 3 minute definitely did and the sitter did not blink

[cuypers1807]

Blinking is so fast over the course of a long exposure that it won’t show up on the plate. I have shot still life and macros to about 6 min exposures. The plate gets harder to develop successfully the more it dries out.

[alex from holland]

My longest one was over 20 minutes. Outside.
Of course the camera was in the shade.
And can always place a wet towel inside the bellows to prevent the plate from drying.

[paulbarden]

I think my longest was about 12 minutes. It CAN be done, if you know how to do it. Obviously you aren't going to be able to do this if the temperature is 95F.

There is mention of this in some of the old literature: you can re-sensitize the plate after a LONG exposure by putting it back into the AgNO3 bath for a couple minutes, and THEN develop it. I've considered trying a ridiculously long exposure and using this technique to see if it works as described.

[Mark Sawyer]

I don't like to go longer than 5 minutes (indoors) as the plate can start to dry and the image suffers. Knowing Sally Mann's work, I don't think that's as much of an issue for her.

[Tin Can]

Sally Mann does admit she likes and accepts flaws

She also wonders how the pioneers of early wet plate made such great plates under very wild circumstances

Lastly did the oval matte become popular for it's masking of edge flaws?


I don't like to go longer than 5 minutes (indoors) as the plate can start to dry and the image suffers. Knowing Sally Mann's work, I don't think that's as much of an issue for her.

[RichardRitter]

I got to see a 20 x 24 plate made by William Henry Jackson the plate was flawless.

[Tin Can]

What is known about historical wet plate exposure time of day?

They had watches, clocks, notebooks

I imagine high noon may have been common for fastest times

Historians may have studied shadows

Practitioners may have shot, failed, cleaned glass and re-shot

saw Sally Mann cleaning a large failed plate in the movie

[goamules]

"What is known about historical wet plate exposure time of day?"
The proof is in the pudding. Look at some Brady or Gardner shots, compared to Mann. They were very good at exposure. And then there are hacks that blather about "artfully placing artifacts on the plate."

Mathew Brady outdoor portrait of Gen. R. E. Lee, 16 April 1865.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4f/Robt_E_Lee_%26_Staff_by_Brady%2C_1865.jpg/875px-Robt_E_Lee_%26_Staff_by_Brady%2C_1865.jpg Larger here (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4f/Robt_E_Lee_%26_Staff_by_Brady%2C_1865.jpg).

[Tin Can]

I am no expert at analyzing lighting of photographs

Looks to me an overcast day under a portico

I see catch-lights in sitter eyes, but not in the 2 standing, strange, perhaps a mirror or reflector or a hand touch up enhancement

No bright highlights on shiny shoes.

DOF seems to indicate smaller aperture and longer exposure

Reflection in side window may be the reflector

A plate made of General Lee standing same date and location was small

Interesting choice of example, an important date. Sitter passed from stroke that year

Several sites indicate location,

https://www.thehistoryreader.com/us-history/april-9-1865-robert-e-lee-surrenders-ulysses-s-grant/

Colorized, later too https://i.imgur.com/eXjTefP.jpg

[AlexGard]

The longest exposure I've made was something like 16 minutes outside. I didn't have any problems with drying which was a surprise. This was on a wet, mild day. I've done up to 8 minutes on a bright sunny day before.

[Jimi]

There is an account of Carleton Watkins doing hour-long exposures in the book "Carleton Watkins - Making the West American" by Tyler Green, though it seems Green got this information from some other source, and it is not related how this was possible. I don't have the book available at the moment. Perhaps it was some sort of dry collodion recipe?

[Two23]

There is an account of Carleton Watkins doing hour-long exposures in the book "Carleton Watkins - Making the West American" by Tyler Green, though it seems Green got this information from some other source, and it is not related how this was possible. I don't have the book available at the moment. Perhaps it was some sort of dry collodion recipe?

I would assume it was dry plate. Wet plate does indeed dry out as the ether evaporates.


Kent in SD