The Wet Plate Process

The Wet Plate Collodion Process:

The wet plate collodion process is one of the earliest forms of photography that dates back to the mid 1800’s. It is a photographic process that produces hand poured images which are suspended in a liquid film called collodion. This chemical is hand poured onto metal or glass and then the plate is soaked in a bath of silver nitrate to create a photo sensitive surface. Images that are captured using this process that are on metal are called ferrotypes and are commonly known as tintypes, while images that are captured on glass are called ambrotypes.

Due to the chemical reactions involved in this unique process, the wide range of color in which the human eye naturally sees is translated quite differently than current photographic technologies. This unique visual difference in the process transports the mind to a distant past aesthetic of mid 19th century photography. This unique aspect of the process gives each image an ethereal depth, a look that is otherwise impossible to achieve with more modern photographic processes. Also, as each piece is hand poured, unique artifacts and noise occur with each image. This in turn makes each photo a true one of kind piece of art that can never be reproduced.

The chemistry that is used to make our ambrotypes are mixed by hand, using recipes that date back to the 1850’s. This ensures each ambrotype’s maximum archival integrity.

We have several one of a kind, hand made ambrotypes that are currently available for purchase and we will periodically update the website with new pieces as they become available. All current available ambrotypes can be found under the ‘SHOP AMBROTYPES’ page below.