Robert Christian Malmberg’s “Converse sneakers”
Many photographers today are reviving the photographic processes of the Civil War era. A California news article reports on several photographers in San Francisco who are producing photographs with the wet-plate process. Even Louis Vuitton highlights wet-plate photography in his digital project Double Exposure for the Fall/Winter 2011/2012 ad campaign. Notice how both the news article and film clips emphasize the portrayal of character in wet-plate photography. What do you think are some reasons for the nostalgic return to nineteenth-century processes?
Read the article on San Francisco-area photographers here:
Watch a video on Sam Taylor-Woods, one of the photographers on the Vuitton campaign:
It is interesting and important for photographer to have an experience on wet-plate collodion. I think wet-plate collodion can help photographer to learn how the photography come out. Also, the wet- plate collodion gives people the real feel of the photography. Like those photography that we always see around, people use photo apps to edit those picture. I think that picture will lose their spirit after editing by photo shop or some other photo apps. As stated in the New York Times article, “Look at Hipstamatic or Instagram, where you get a look of old photographs by just laying over a filter.” Photo apps can let people edit their picture into many different styles; however, these are just a fake layer place on their pictures. Unlike the digital printing, the wet-plate collodion can give people the sense of reality. By using the wet-plate collodion, people cannot edit anything on their picture. So, it can keep the photography in their original way. And I like the Converse photograph – “Converse. Still Life” that is attached to the New York Times article. From this picture, I can really feel the history and the mood of Converse.
I really liked this post, because it proves that I’m not the only person who’s more interested in the early-technology than the new ones. One of the main reasons why people are becoming more interested in the wet-plate collodion is because of its magnificent yet unbelievably smooth effects. No matter how much filter we use in order to create similar effects for our photos today, it wont be the same. For example, the article on NYT mentioned that people use “Instagram” in order to create old looking photos by filtering out a few things. Yes, it might give us the similar effects that we want, but it wont feel the same way as having a photo taken in the wet-plate collodion method. According to Sam Taylor Wood in the video, the old-photography has a feeling of stillness to them that makes it hard for us to take our eyes off them. Their quality is very soothing and no matter when we were born, they give us the nostalgic feeling. It feels like it has more feelings and emotions to it than photography that we do today.
Reihaneh Hosseini
The nostalgic return to nineteenth-century processes is very important to photography. It is important because, photographers or people who takes photo’s today and dont’ know the history of photography could comprehend the proccess of wet plate collodion.When you compare the old proccess and the new advertising is two different level of art,detail that are showing in the pictures.Most photographers rely on the new advertising digital photo. It work fast and it give you what you want right away. But the camera is doing all the work that is producing to them and the world.The old proccess is classic and it give you all the details you ned in the picture or portrait.The wet plate collodion take time and patient to produce what you need in the picture.It capture everything and the image come out perfect with the art showing in the picture.
I believe the wet-plate photography is returning because of the unique quality it produces. The processes involves the photographer to work quick and having everything planned out. Therefore when producing this image its one of a kind. These images have an aged appearance, which brings you back to the era the process was created. I agree that the photographs really give the viewer a different experience as to just taking a digital image and applying a filter as said in The New York Times article. Even though this process may be more time consuming for the photographer its a more rewarding process. When each photograph is taken, all the time taken to make it happen has a better quality then just quickly snapping and having a photograph instantly when taken digitally. To me this form of photography is very interesting and quite inspirational. I hope one day I can try this process and other forms of old types of photography just to see how the outcome and quality of each photograph.
i feel that the reason that many people are going back to the wet plate process is because of the way that the photographs come out. something that i found very cool was the idea of making modern technology look old. for example taking a picture of an ipad and then using a wet plate to process the picture it will make the ipad look very old. so it would kind of be a contrast of some of the oldest technology to some of the most advanced technology today.
fashion and style always comes back, its been seen that all the trend of past have returned into the fashion works. having that taken using of wet plate photography is an interesting direction to apply once again. To reintroduce the history of photography with a newer ( advertising ) message can be a show stopper. Its was a creative way to introduce photography now its a creative way to use it for advertising, they both use the same platform.