Category Archives: history

an easy way to try film

Posted on November 9, 2023 by Robert

Toronto. An easy way to see if you like the look of film-based prints is to pick up a disposable camera! How-to Geek recently posted an article titled, “How Do Disposable Cameras Work, and Why Do They Still Exist?”. The … Continue reading →

Posted in history | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on an easy way to try film

if so inclined

Posted on November 8, 2023 by Robert

Toronto. Various incline and funicular railways were built to allow families with small children, plus the elderly, the frail, and the casual walkers to ride in comfort from one steep height to another – usually a few hundred feet. Often … Continue reading →

Posted in history | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on if so inclined

what’s in a name

Posted on November 6, 2023 by Robert

Toronto. … or so Will Shakespeare is credited as writing in his famous tragedy about star-crossed young teen lovers. I thought of Alberta as home of the famous Tar Sands when I was a kid. By the 1960s, the sands … Continue reading →

Posted in history | Tagged , , | Comments Off on what’s in a name

leaf it to beaver

Posted on November 4, 2023 by Robert

Toronto. The landscape photographers recorded the great outdoors over the years allowing us to see the changes – by season and by time. Mountains change, leaves fall, forests are lost. All carefully recorded by landscape photographers over the years. Without … Continue reading →

Posted in history | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on leaf it to beaver

time after time

Posted on November 2, 2023 by Robert

Toronto. In the glass plate/film era, a latent image was captured and developed. If necessary. the resulting image could be reversed and enlarged. The earlier media were insensitive to many visible colours created by less energetic light rays. These media … Continue reading →

Posted in history | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on time after time

a supporting stand

Posted on November 1, 2023 by Robert

Toronto. In this day of smartphones and digital cameras with maximum  ISO settings beyond our wildest dreams in the film era, camera supports are seldom necessary (other than to take selfies or closeups where framing is critical). In the early … Continue reading →

Posted in history | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on a supporting stand

tossed upon cloudy seas

Posted on October 31, 2023 by Robert

Toronto. Cloud photography was a challenge in the earlier years of our art. The media were mainly blue light sensitive. Both sky and cloud showed dark on the negative material when the landscape or person was suitably exposed. To correct … Continue reading →

Posted in history | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on tossed upon cloudy seas

the best of times

Posted on October 30, 2023 by Robert

Toronto.  to quote Charles Dickens and his book, “A Tale of Two Cities”. The 1970s was when the PHSC was formed (1974). In the 1970s  camera collecting, image collecting and photo history were growing in popularity. Collecting clubs formed, books … Continue reading →

Posted in history | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on the best of times

moonlighting …

Posted on October 29, 2023 by Robert

Toronto. … by the dim ruby red light. One thing the digital crowd misses in photography is the darkroom. Digital photo files are corrected – developed – either in the smartphone or on a computer, then printed on an inkjet … Continue reading →

Posted in history | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on moonlighting …

gooey stuff

Posted on October 28, 2023 by Robert

Toronto. The positive/negative process most common in plate/film photography uses a characteristic of silver halides (silver salts). This characteristic is a sensitivity to light. The more light, the more silver halide bonds that are broken leaving more tiny atoms of … Continue reading →

Posted in history | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on gooey stuff