Tintype Photography

Tintype Photography

Back before film was used for photography, in order take a photo of a landscape or a portrait people used what is called Tintype photography. Tintype photography uses the collodion process (a kind of chemical) which significantly reduces exposure time compared to previous time periods. Before the collodion process older cameras would be around 5-7 minutes of exposure time while the collodion process reduces exposure time to around 5 seconds.

The process for tintype photography must be completed in under 20 minutes or the shot would not turn out. The process requires a plate of metal, generally aluminium, that is painted black and is smooth. It begins by pouring collodion on top and then back off leaving a nice layer on the plate. From there you place the plate inside of a tank of silver nitrate which is the chemical compound that then makes it sensitive to light so you can actually capture an image on it. After about 3 minutes you take the plate out of the tank and then wipe of the excess silver nitrate. Once you are done with that you set it into the transfer box that you place in the camera. Then you remove the block so that the plate is not covered inside of the camera anymore. Once you have done that then you open the shutter for the desired amount of time and then close it again. After you have closed it, you put the block back in and pull out the transfer box from the camera. Then return to the darkroom and pull the plate out and pour on developer. You must only allow the developer to work on the image for about 15 seconds because the developer works very quickly. In order to keep it from over developing, you wash off the developer using water. Following the developer you use the fixer which washes off all of the excess silver that was not affected by the light leaving you with your completed image.

This type of photography is actually becoming more and more popular today, not because it is better or more practical, but because it is unique and photos using it have a very different look to them. They are unique because the one that you take is the only one like it, no Tintype is the exact same and they can’t be duplicated. Tintype photography is a very cool and creative way to make your photos more interesting and to stand out.

I really like this photo because of the detail in Adam's beard. Also because it is a a picture of Adam from Mythbusters

I really like how dark her hair turned out and how well it contrasts with the her skin tone and the background

The depth of field looks so good in this picture, I love how it pulls you straight to looking at his eyes

I really like how much detail was captured in the mans skin it makes the image much more real looking

The catch light in the guy's eyes looks really good and makes his eyes really stand out

I like how the light is shining on these two and how it gives the effect of a vignette

I just like this picture because the little girl is so cute and her eyes look super cool

 I like the how dark the glasses are and how well they contrast the image

 I like how this guy had his arms in the picture as well and that he wasn't just sitting there like most other portraits

I like this image because it is cool how it shows how small the focus area is and how blurry everything else gets