Toronto. Modern snap shooters have it easy. Digital technology accurately records the scene (given a decent amount of light) and the snapper can see the result immediately and if pleasing (or not) send it to anyone, anywhere pronto!
Not so with photographers about a century and a half ago (or the camera and colour process inventors). While the inventors too used the Young-Helmholtz theory of how we see colour, the cameras were at first massive and created a trio of B&W negatives through filters and mirrors. Tripod bound, these hulking beasts were too slow for animated subjects. Worse, the old dyes are unstable and only approximate colours in nature. In some cases the dyes were also inconsistent in the colours they did create.
Later on, means were developed to add the filters directly to the B&W plate so ‘regular’ B&W cameras could be used – in fact dozens of ways were invented. Basically the best of the bunch was by the Lumière Brothers and their Autochrome process (the other dozens were also-rans, some sold commercially, many not).
On the 15th of this month we had the pleasure of hearing Ms Janine Freeston in Oxford, England speak on the old colour processes. She covered both subtractive and additive colour processes. The use of on-plate filters resolved one issue but prompted another. The most promising additive process, the Autochrome, could be up to 60x slower than B&W demanding the use of a tripod and a very still subject.
Ms Freeston gave a nod to the PHSC in her talk by mentioning three of our late members who were deeply into the old colour processes (two were also editors of our journal) and a pair of old photographers who created very early colour prints of Canadian scenes.
The bulk of her talk used some of the research she did during the writing of her book on colour (currently a work in progress). Those of you who missed Janine’s talk can contact Celio Barreto via program@phsc.ca to see if the talk is available as audio or video.
Note: I used the 1975 song by Paul Simon. “50 Ways to Leave Your Lover” as a source of inspiration for the post title.