From Chemistry to Image: The Wet Plate Process Revealed

Step into the world of 19th-century photography, where images are not captured instantly, but carefully crafted through chemistry, timing, and handwork. In this engaging 30–40 minute program, wet plate photographer David Rambow introduces audiences to the collodion process—an early photographic method that produces one-of-a-kind images on metal or glass using silver nitrate and light. Blending historical artifacts with live demonstration, Rambow walks viewers through each step of the wet plate process: preparing the plate, sensitizing it in silver nitrate, exposing the image in camera, and developing it by hand—all within a narrow window of time while the plate remains wet. As the image slowly appears, audiences gain a rare, firsthand look at photography as it was practiced in the 1850s and 1860s.This presentation is part of the Milton House's Civil War Living History Days event and part of Northern Rock County's America 250 celebration.