Hi all,

After seeing some of the amazing examples on this website, I would love to get into wet plate photography. I don't mind the dangers for myself - I work with some pretty nasty organophosphates for a living. I have the personal protective equipment and have been mixing chemicals for years.

The only thing is, I have small children. I keep reading the warnings on collodion about the fumes and explosive nature and I just don't think I want it in the same house as my family. What do other people here do? Chemical safe? Are the chemicals really that bad?

Is an outdoor storage shed an option? Would it have to be temperature controlled? The temperature in this area of the country goes down to 15 degrees F in the winter and up to 105 in the summer. Is collodion much more explosive than the gallon of gasoline I keep in my garage?

Potassium cyanide is not an option for me. the other fixers are fine. It is really the collodion that I am concerned about.

Thank you for any responses,

Brian