Make it Monday: Wet Plate Collodion Process

Keeping on a similar topic as the latest "Pho·tog Friday Post on photographer Alex Timmermans," I'd like to share a video tutorial that walks you through the entire process of creating an image using the Collodion Process, also known as the Wet Plate Collodion Process or the Collodion Wet Plate Process.  No matter what you call it, this method of creating an image was invited by Frederick Scott Archer in 1848 and was later introduced to the world in the 1850s.  Given that this photographic process is over 160 years old, it's important to understand the patience that's required when creating a wet plate.

Zimmerman, Mark, Untitled, 2013.

This video below was created by Mark Zimmerman, who strapped a GoPro to his head while going through the process of making a wet plate of an old camera (pictured above).  You see Zimmerman pour the collodion onto the plate, referred to as "flowing the collodion."  Next, Zimmerman places the plate into a bath of silver nitrate for three minutes, which allows for the plate to become "light sensitive."  After the silver bath is complete, the plate is removed, put into a plate holder and attached to the back of his camera.  Zimmerman exposes the plate and returns to the darkroom.

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01. Zhang, Michael. "Wet Plate Collodion Photography from a First-Person Point of View." PetaPixel RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 June 2014.
02. "Main : Mark Zimmerman." Main : Mark Zimmerman. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 June 2014.
03. "Collodion Process." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 06 Dec. 2014. Web. 16 June 2014.
04. "Frederick Scott Archer." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 15 June 2014. Web. 17 June 2014.

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