[alt-photo] Re: DESICCATE! DESICCATE! DANCE TO THE MUSIC!

[Alberto Novo]

Diana,
> And while I also teach photography, and alt processes, most of the  
> classes I teach are for students who are just delving, ever so  timidly, 
> into the alt process realm, though they have been long-time  
> photographers.  I can tell you, without hesitation, that if I were to  
> present some of the material in the way it was presented here-- to  those 
> beginning classes-- I'd lose a lot of students and turn a lot of  folks 
> off to alt-processes.  (Sometimes I think that's the point here?)

And why not to present how the technology and knowledge was developed (and 
not underdeveloped, likely we perhaps think about) at the time of the first 
photographic discoveries? For example, silver plating of copper for 
daguerreotypes had been possible also because the Daniell cell (or battery) 
was in use since a few years. The Daniell battery had a more stable voltage 
and current than the previous batteries, making electroplating a practicable 
task. This is what I mean when I say that they were using BAT (Best 
Available Technology), an acronym widely used now. The same for the anodic 
oxidation of ferrocyanide into ferricyanide, tested by Herschel a few months 
after its first production, and so on. 

Alberto
www.grupponamias.com
www.alternativephotography.com/articles/art102.html