File:The American annual of photography (1919) (14780174124).jpg

Identifier: americanannualof3334newy (find matches)
Title: The American annual of photography
Year: 1919 (1910s)
Authors:
Subjects: Photography
Publisher: New York : Tennant and Ward
Contributing Library: Harold B. Lee Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Brigham Young University

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r allthose delicate tone gradations of light and shade which as arule are sacrificed in an ordinary flash light picture. Amongthe many material advantages which may be enumerated infavor of this type of illuminating medium is its non-explosivequality, the facility of handhng, and last but not least its com-paratively low cost, owing to the very small quantity which isused for each exposure. In my recent experiments in indoor portraiture it occurredto me to employ a small strip of magnesium ribbon as myilluminating agent. Of several tests which I made varyingthe length of the strip from 1-1/2 to 1/2 I found that about3/4, or at the most i inch, will yield the most satisfactory re-sults. Let it be understood here that I used this method ofillumination not as one would employ a flashlight, that is tosay to obtain a broad effect, but more for the purpose of get-ting the spotlight impression, that is to say to concentrate therays upon one particular spot; thus accentuating that portion 116
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Figure i. Illustrating article Spot Light or Magnesium Ribbon Photography, by S. A. Schwars. 117 of the portrait and in a measure rendering it the most prom-inent element of the picture. This abiHty to emphasize anyparticular section or sections of a picture opens a new phasein photography which I may safely say has not, at least not toany appreciable extent, been explored. The wide range ofpossibilities as well as the simplicity of handling the materialat hand, the absolute control the operator may exercise in mak-ing his exposure are all factors worthy of consideration.. Take the Smoker (Figure i) outside of a few suggestionson my part, and they were in the most very general, the atti-tude as well as the pose were selected by the sitter himself, anadvantage which greatly assisted me in rendering the picturesimple and at the same time striking the keynote of all por-traits—naturalness. The preliminaries which are essential features in all pictures,and which with slight variations o

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