From: Devon John (tbidjohn@mindspring.com)
Date: 04/25/02-03:29:21 PM Z
on 4/25/02 11:32 AM, Christina Z. Anderson at zphoto@montana.net wrote:
> Anyone have any info on this? It is in the Antiquarian Avant-Garde book
> several times, and I checked the archives to see but could find no Le Gray.
> Maybe there is a different term I should search under? It seems from the
> book that the neg is waxed first and then silver nitrated and potassium
> iodided or something? Maybe it is no dif than the regular calotype neg
> except that it is waxed, but was wondering if anyone has done it and how.
> I have the notes that someone posted a while back on the calotype--who
> did that extensive posting so I can put your name there with it in my files?
> But i saw no mention in there about wax.
> I wonder if there is a quickie way of doing this waxed neg thing...
> Chris
>
I have a great deal of information on this and other of the waxed paper
processes, but have never tried them. You are right in assuming that the
only huge difference with Le Gray's process versus Talbot's is waxing prior
to sensitizing instead of afterwards, but this caused a great deal of
problems for the photographers in terms of sensitizing. Just about every
photographer working with the pre-waxed process had a different method of
sensitizing to get around this.
I can't say whether or not a quick and dirty approach is possible, but I
could mail you some photocopies of period manuals if you can't find them in
a library somewhere. The Arno Press History of Photography Series has a
bunch of books in it that spell out the different processes in great detail.
If you can't find them, let me know and I'll look through my files.
Devon
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