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690 THE PHOTOGRAPHIC NEWS. LOcTOBER 30, 1885. tive. The ideal shutter should then give a minimum exposure of not more than zJu of a second, and a maximum of perhaps , a second. Let us suppose that the aperture between the lenses is one inch in diameter. The slot, if single, must then be capable of moving with a maximum velocity of two inches in r&o of a second. Theoretically this could be obtained by the force of gravity alone only by a fall of sixteen feet. But a shutter of these proportions is evidently out of the question ; therefore, for rapid exposures, one must resort to springs. Thesea re of three kinds—india-rubber, metallic coiled, and metallic spiral. The former are convenient and cheap, but cannot be relied upon to give uniform results. Coiled springs, after they are wound up two or three turns, unwind with a nearly constant velocity, so that, if there is to be much variation in the exposures (for example, a ratio greater than 1 to 3 or 1 to 4), we must resort to complicated gearing. For those who are satisfied with these small ratios and comparatively long exposures, as those who are engaged in photographing yachts exclusively, a coiled spring leaves little to be desired, as it is compact and readily carried. On the other hand, if one wishes to vary the exposure through a large range, such as 1 to 100, or to get an exposure of less than s‘ of a second, the drop-shutter arrangement offers peculiar advantages. THE PHOTOGRAPHIC EXHIBITION. [Fourth Notice.] Morgan and Kidd send a number of enlargements on gelatino-bromide paper (Nos. 62, 84, 234, 256, and 517), and two (Nos. 301 and 327) on opal glass, the same material that some exhibitors describe as porcelain. The enlargements are good, but the original negatives show various grades of artistic merit, and are presumably the work of several hands. Harry Tolley sends a number of views (Nos. 70, 85, 532, and 533) displaying considerable judgment and taste, but some of them are injured by the printing-in of the sky over the trees and distance. “Grasmere ami Rydal ” (No. 72), a panoramic view by T. A. Green, is a picture to look at and remember with pleasure. There is one drawback to it in a shade on the water near the middle of the picture, which strikes us as being artificially produced. No. 561 is a scene with a tree in the foreground, the branches of which reach to the top of the picture, and stand out clear against the sky. The natural brightness which freedom from halation and arti ficial treatment gives, is made the more striking by the proximity of a photograph in which the edge of the foliage is weak from being shaded, to allow of printing-in an artificial sky, that has been in turn partly printed over the weakened foliage. Of Adam Diston’s “ Mending the Nets” (No. 76), and “A Smoker” (No. 77), we prefer the latter. A “View at Morpeth ” (No. 81) is by J. George Gibson, who also shows a picture of a boat (No. 207). The mast and rigging are much weaker than the hull, as if they were enveloped in a special fog of their own, ap parently due to their having been partially shielded during printing, and then having a “ sky ’’ printed over them. “Blackberrying” (No. 86), by E. A. Maxwell, would be very gool but for the figure to the right, whose hand has moved a good deal, and who lacks the naturalness of pose of the other model. Nos. 225, 226, and 227, are woodland scenes with figures representing action. No. 490 isaframe of views with some powerful effects, but in one or two the trees are somewhat harsh, as if from under-exposure. “ Caldicot Castle” (No. 88), by II. Forsyth, is one of a series of large photographs mounted in optical contact with the glass. Of these we prefer No. 659, “Clifton Suspen sion Bridge.” “ Sandown Bay ” (No. 96), and “ A Rolling Wave” (No. 263), by J. Milman Brown, are photographs with sea and sky that remind us of the effective pictures produced some thirty years ago by Gustav Le Grey ; we think, however, that the first named picture has suffered somewhat from partial masking during the printing. Other exhibits by the same hand are Nos. 131, 447, 558, and an “Old Oak Tree, the Landslip” (No. 571). This charming picture represents a fine old tree in the fore ground, boldly delineated, yet without harshness, and foliage well marked as belonging to vatied distances. In a path, some little way off, stand two figures, just where they assist the picturesque effect, without any of that consciousness of forming the subject of a photograph that is often apparent. It is a pity to have to find any fault with such an excellent work, but there is a little halation in the upper part of the branches which somewhat mars the perfection of the whole. In No. 99, “At Rivington,” by Edwin Smithells, the foreground and middle of the picture compose very well. Some trees to the right are rather heavy in the trunks, and at the top the foliage is in parts weak. “A Bit on Loch Katrine,” by the same exhibitor, is a really fine picture. The sky is here not printed too dark, but of a clear delicate tone, which at the same time allows the white clouds to tell, and the trees to stand out with their proper force. This picture, and others by the same hand (Nos. 578 and 615), show good, genuine photography com bined with artistic perception, and the style produced by this union is worthy of study. Charles Reed sends “ The Meet,” a hunting scene, which shows naturalness of grouping, and is good, considering the difficulties of the subject. The figures are, however, somewhat under-exposed, and the tree-tops out of focus. No. 292, “ The Gipsies,” is a frame containing several groups of the character indicated by the title. “ Forbidden Fruit” (Nos. 102 and 103), by Malcolm II. Clerk, strike us as stagy ; other exhibits by the same hand are Nos. 652 and 673. Lieut. C. E. Gladstone contributes a frame of interiors of Salisbury Cathedral (No. 104), printed in platinotype. The illumination in these pictures is remarkably equal; the avoidance of large heavy shadows, so common in photographs of interiors, gives to these pictures a good deal of the character of fine engravings. “ At Southampton” (No. 108), a quarter-plate seascape, is by John Lewis, who also shows an enlargement of the same (No. 574). In this picture the whole is in harmony—the sky apparently natural; the water with its merry ripple in the front, and the vessel in the centre, make up an admirable whole. Lieut. Hawker sends an interesting series of photo graphs, showing the rise and fall of a column of water thrown up by a submarine explosion. G. F. W. Sage ex hibits Nos. 100, 237, 500, and 612, of which No. 500, “A Whale,” is the most striking. “ Prince Alfred’s Shrine,” three views by G. Fowler Jones, printed in platinotype, have very much the dingy appearance of faded silver prints. One of them, however, is very picturesque; “ Studies of Fir Trees” (No. 515) are bright and clear. .1. T. Blair sends a frame of seven “Views in North Wales” (No. 116). The centre picture of this set is a very striking example of a fault which occurs in too many of the landscapes exhibited. The edges of the treesand the distance have been so vignetted away to make room for printing-in the sky, that the effect is produced of a dissolving view during the change from a tree picture to a cloud one. There is something of the same effect in the central picture on the frame (No. 672), “ Weeping Birches.’ F. W. Broadhead contributes a fine set of interiors of Belvoir Castle (Nos. 117 and 253) ; one from the last- numbered frame forms the subject of our supplement this week, and another is reproduced on a small scale on p. 691. Two other frames (No. 229). “ Ihe Sleeping Photo grapher,” and No. 230, “ The Village Blacksmith,” serve to d'splay the artist’s ability in another field. Nos. 118 to 121 are four scenes by Thos. Galloway, of which the Fish Quay, North Shields, would be really good if the sky had not bean printed unnaturally dark. No. 174, “ The Sunny Hours of Childhood,” is so much under-exposed, that the chidren’s faces have to be lo ked for, and in the case of one of the children, the search proved, so far as we were concerned, unsuccessful. A hat and body suggested that there should be a face between them, but we could not