Bringing back to Glory Mr.Wolcott's.Closed in a glass bell

On October 6th 1839, the firm of Alexander Wolcott & John Johnson commenced working on the daguerreotype process announced in August of that year, and on the 7th of October, 1839 they were able to produce a portrait daguerreotype. Wolcott & Johnson have claimed to be the first to produce a life portrait, however, it is unclear if this honor belongs to Wolcott, Morse or Draper.

In March 1840, with the aid of a new invention referred to as the mirror camera, Wilcott opened, which may have been the world's first portrait studio. On May 8, 1840 Alexander Wolcott, with the assistance of John Johnson Sr., received the first American patent for photography (US Patent No. 1582) for their Daguerreotype mirror camera, which did not have a lens. The camera was based on a concave reflecting mirror built by an associate Mr Henry Fitz, similar to those used for making celestial telescopes. The Wolcott & Johnson patent camera enabled the successful taking of life portraiture by significantly reducing the subjects sitting time from 30 minutes to only 5 minutes, while still using Daguerre’s chemical formula. Mr Johnson Sr paid Daguerre 150 pounds for the use of his process William S. Johnson who was John Johnsons father, traveled to England marketing the Wolcott & Johnson photographic camera. An English entrepreneur Richard Beard, had secured the only license for making Daguerreotypes in London from Daguerre and he agreed to jointly secured the Wolcott & Johnson camera patent for Britain with Mr. Wolcott, which was recorded on June 14th 1840. Beard then opened the first portrait studio in England. In 1842 wolcott discovered a combination of chemicals, known in London as Wolcott's mixture which reduced sitting time and was very sensitive to the action of light.  In 1844, Alexander Simon Wilcott died leaving behind a pioneering accomplishment as the very first American to secure a patent in the field of photography and open a portrait studio.

Wolcott's an ingenious New Yorker, patent model for a daguerreotype camera with

concave reflector. It was the first U.S. patent for a photographic invention.

The camera is approximately one fifth the size of the working version and is the only complete model

of the Wolcott camera known to exist. (PATENT No.1,582, May 8, 1840)

Morning work in afternoon thermal bath

Relaxing in Gallery

a full shopping cart.

American - English type.  1, Copper frame. 2. Glass plate (thick). 3. Copper passepartout. 4. Paper strips for sticking around. 
5. Daguerreotype plate. 6. Velvet covered cardboard frame. 7. Case.

This type is a case or box simi1ar to the Eastern-European one, the only difference being that the hinge is on the longer side and its top is made of ornate velvet. The picture part cannot be folded out of it but the bottom of the box surrounds it as a fratne. It can be removed from this very easily. At the very back, on the part taken out, the back plate of the sheet can be seen and sometimes there is also another metal plate behind it. On its edges the edge of the frame pressed of copper plate can be seen and this is folded on. 

The plate is followed by the copper mount with pressed decoration. 

The opening is oval or rectangular with sides of "}" form. The glass and the above embossed copper frame can then be seen together with the adhesive tape underneath. This type of frame is shown in the diagrams of every technical book on "How to treat daguerreotypes". The disintegration of the adhesive tape used and the decomposition of the glass are most common problems, as well as the loss of the protective case. 

Typically the shape of an oxidized frame appears on the surface of the dag plate where the copper mount touches the plate. Further deterioration can be prevented by lining the copper mount with paper. 

Thus the side opposite the plate is covered with paper. It is very important to remove the adhesive tape stuck cound it. If there is enough room it is advisable to place an additional glass plate behind the daguerreotype plate (for more isolation) or at least a cardboard.

 A thicker than usual (3-4.5 mm) front glass plate was used since adhesive paper stuck round would show under the thin copper fcame; it is therefore only present on the edge of glass.

 The copper parts of the mount are also subject to corrosion and their treatment is the task of the metal conservator. There is also the question of what damage the remains of cleaning agents might cause to the picture over a longer period since these might get into the microclimate.

Early (German) type. 1. Gold coloured decoration strips (optional). 2. Paper strips for sticking around. 3. Glass plate.
4. Passepartout. 5. Daguerrotype plate. 1. Back cardboard. 7. Back covering paper.

This type was probably dominanl throughout Europe in the first half of the 1840s and remained in use in Germany, mostly in the east, longest of all. Typically it had a board at the back, then the sheet which was frequently suitable for the round Petzval Voigtländer camera, then the mount made of white paper usually with an octagonal window. The frame was usually outlined for decoration and the German versions were frequently more elaborate. The signature of the photographer and the exposure time are often visible on the lower part of two (askew) sides. The plate is held by the black cover and the mount is stuck to it. Very often a separate raised edge was prepared for the internal fixture. Then came the glass plate. The back cover and the sealing tape around it is made of glazed black paper and in the case of Hungarian versions is finished with a little cardboard strip stuck to the mount and the glass which improves the seal. If it remains intact it provides good security. The weak points are tbe back covering which is too thin, and tbe adhesives used on it which oxidise the copper. Undamaged examples are rare and it is usually the glass ar the adhesive tape which are damaged.

The (Central) Eastern European type. 1. Velvet cover for passepartout. 2. Cardboard holder for
passepartout. 3. Cardboard strips for holding the glass plate. 4. Glass plate. 5. Daguerrotype plate. 6.
Silk hanger. 7. Combined back  covering paper and cardboard for propping the picture up. 8. Case.

This is the most complicated type. The majority of Hungarian daguerreotypes and those found in Hungarian collections which were made in the second part of the 1840s are in
this type of installation.

I'll talk about another time ;)

In the practice many plates were cut to different sizes than the "standards". 1-2 mm difference is usually not significant.

There are some differents between the sizes of continental Europe and English countries. The European sizes origined from the 6x8 Parisian inch (=2.701 cm) size whole plate, while the English plates used English inches (=2.54 cm).

Well done.new camera

still life

The Wood Camera is made from Wood, Aluminum, Copper, Steel, Acrylic, and Insects. Most of the camera parts were found in Death Valley, CA. The camera has an interchangeable front plate used to float objects in front of the pinhole. With pinhole photography the focus is infinite. Objects which are a quarter-inch in front of the pinhole are just as in focus as objects 20 miles away.

"Boy of Blue industries"

Pinhole

Using the pinhole technique is one of the most authentic ways to record photographic images.
The technique is based on the principle of the camera obscura which is centuries old. Basically it's nothing more then a lightproof box with, in the middle of one side, a tiny little hole instead of a lens.
The light works its way through the pinhole right into the enclosed room and that is how at the opposite side of the pinhole an image appears which is upside down. We can preserve the image by putting material which is sensitive to light at the side where the image shows up and develop it after exposure.
However photography was only invented in 1839 the principle of the pinhole has been known since ages. As early as the 4th century B.C. this phenomenon was mentioned by Aristotle in one of his writings. Light falling through a small opening between the leaves of a tree gives a perfect projection of the sun on the ground. Even though the opening between the leaves has a shape which is irregular and is not perfectly round, yet the image on the ground is. Aristotle could never explain this.
This happened much later in the 16th century, because scientists were
frequently experimenting with the pinhole technique.
All this started in the 13th and 14th century.
Different scientists used the pinhole principle in order to study the eclipse of the sun and the wave-lenght of the light.
In the 15th century the technique was used by artists as an aid to make their drawings.
Leonardo da Vinci was the first to hit upon the idea of using a box for it.
He described how
one could get an image on a transparant screen and trace it on the outside. But it was not until the 16th century until this idea had come to its full development.
Lenses excisted in this century but people still used the pinhole principle to study the sun.
Scientists often stared through their (pinhole)telescopes and looked directly into the bright sunlight.
As a result they suffered from blindness. Just to spare the eyes, scientists started to use a camera obscura (darkroom) so they could study the projected image of the sun instead of looking at it directly. From this moment on it didn't take long before artists started to use the camera obscura frequently.
In the 18th century the principle of the camera obscura becomes generally known and even travellers are starting to use the phenomenon. They are using the portable version of the camera obscura just to trace the things they see during their journeys. These "snap-shots" are pasted into their book of travels and kept as a souvenir.
If people didn't possess a camera one payed money to enter a permanent camera-room. Here the surroundings could be seen by means of a rotating mirror. The moving images were projected on a white table.
All this was very popular until the official invention of photography in 1839.
From this moment on there was no need to trace images anymore and the pinhole principle was completely forgotten.
Until the most famous pinhole picture of that time showed up, a photograph of 1890 from George Davison, The Onion Field. This picture won the highest price at the annual exhibition of the Photographic Society in London. This particular picture was the beginning of the popularity of the pinhole camera which would last for several years.
There were some american companies that put pinhole cameras on the market and even a
special pinhole disc that could replace the lens of a regular camera.
From the 20th century the pinhole camera lost popularity. Making images with a camera like this was considered to be inferior. The reason of this was most probably the growing need for speed and mass production of photographic equipment. Finally the principle was only used to teach people the basic techniques of photography. Between 1940 and 1960 the pinhole technique was completely forgotten.
From 1960 until now pinhole photography is being used sporadically by artists.