How to imitate the contrast of wet plate

[ic-racer]

I would like to get a contrast in prints similar to that which we see in wet plate. Does anyone have any suggestions? Am I dreaming?

David

The silver shows as white/gray on a black background with wetplate. Conventional printing paper, the silver shows as black on a white background.

You can prepare and present negatives with the emulsion side up against a black background and get a positive image if viewed correctly.

Here is a conventional negative held against a black background producing a Left/Right reversed positive image as a wetplate would.


I presume you have familiarity with wet plate images viewed in person and are not trying to reproduce these fake images seen on internet:

[Jim Noel]

It is hard for me to understand why people want ways to duplicate wet plate, or platinum prints, or any other process instead of learning to do the process. Is it lack of material availability, or money. or space, or mental or physical laziness? I suggest it usually is the last two of these.
If you want to learn a process get a good book on it, or take a class or do as many of us who learned it in the past did - dive in, study and work hard and you will get far more satisfaction from your achievement.

[gypsydog]

It is hard for me to understand why people want ways to duplicate wet plate, or platinum prints, or any other process instead of learning to do the process. Is it lack of material availability, or money. or space, or mental or physical laziness? I suggest it usually is the last two of these.
If you want to learn a process get a good book on it, or take a class or do as many of us who learned it in the past did - dive in, study and work hard and you will get far more satisfaction from your achievement.

+1

[paulbarden]

It is hard for me to understand why people want ways to duplicate wet plate, or platinum prints, or any other process instead of learning to do the process. Is it lack of material availability, or money. or space, or mental or physical laziness? I suggest it usually is the last two of these.
If you want to learn a process get a good book on it, or take a class or do as many of us who learned it in the past did - dive in, study and work hard and you will get far more satisfaction from your achievement.

I get what you're saying, I do. But I've been making wet plate collodion photographs for five years now, and even though I'm pretty good at making collodion on glass negatives (my preferred method), I admit that it gets to be tedious and tiresome, and can be very limiting. I'm fed up with taking my wet plate darkroom on the road. Its just so much work. So I can understand why someone might want to create "the look" without investing many hours of practice, hundreds of dollars in materials and tools, and potentially still struggle to get good results consistently. Its not a forgiving medium, and there are so many variables at play. "Perfection" with wet plate is a constantly moving target - weather and the condition of your chemistry both conspire to get in the way of making a good plate.

If someone is willing to really dedicate themselves to learn and master the process, then yes - they're going to get a lot more satisfaction out of their work. But I also understand why someone would want to emulate "that look" without having to commit to an expensive, difficult process.

[jnantz]

It is hard for me to understand why people want ways to duplicate wet plate, or platinum prints, or any other process instead of learning to do the process. Is it lack of material availability, or money. or space, or mental or physical laziness? I suggest it usually is the last two of these.
If you want to learn a process get a good book on it, or take a class or do as many of us who learned it in the past did - dive in, study and work hard and you will get far more satisfaction from your achievement.

hi Jim

sometimes it has to do with lack of funds to spend on materials, and photographic materials cost a fortune. my chain of events had to do with not having money to spend and having a lot of materials I could use and push to their limits.
I can't speak for anyone else but my intention was never to duplicate anything but to make something. YMMV

[Vaughn]

With silver gelatin film/paper and chemistry, one can get all sorts of 'looks'. Golfball grain to fine grain, short or long tonal ranges, and so forth. If the tonality of wet plate or a particular version of a non-silver process is appealing, why not use that tonality as a point of departure in discovering what silver gelatin can be made to do? Silver gelatin prints are not required to look like silver gelatin prints. Alt process prints are not forbidden to look like silver gelatin prints.

[maltfalc]

David, using a color filter is only going to get you partway to your goal. I recommend using a red blind film instead. The Arista Ortho is inexpensive, totally red blind (meaning you can develop it in trays under a safelight: an asset, since you can visually inspect the film for correct development) and with some extra effort, you can get usable "pictorial" contrast with it. Its a very slow film (3 ASA) and will only give the best results if pre-flashed with white light. (You have to do this with an enlarger, and determine the right amount of exposure by testing)
If that sounds like a lot of work, well - it is, unless you are an experienced darkroom technician. Of course, you can always learn wet plate collodion and hit the bullseye.

wet plate is not orthochromatic or "red blind". it's a plain silver halide emulsion, uv, violet and blue sensitive. a blue-violet passing filter will work fine.

[paulbarden]

wet plate is not orthochromatic or "red blind". it's a plain silver halide emulsion, uv, violet and blue sensitive. a blue-violet passing filter will work fine.

Seriously? This needed to be said??

[Axelwik]

The toxicity of the chemistry required kind of keeps me away.

[maltfalc]

Seriously? This needed to be said??

you recommended not using a technique that will give a similar look to wet plate and instead using a film that won't... so yes.