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June 29, 1883. | THE PHOTOGRAPHIC NEWS. 405 which we here reproduce. He works with large squares of bare glass, and then uses this gauze screen, which is nothing more than a light wooden frame with fine open stretched muslin over it. The screen is not more than three feet broad, and follows the form of the roof above ; that is to say, it consists of an upright frame about eight feet in height, and another frame above, bending inwards with the line of the roof, measuring another three or four feet As screens of this kind are very light and movable, they are easily adapted by the photographer, who places them close to or far away from the sitter at will, thus modifying the illumination. Mr. Midwinter, of Bristol, employs a gauze or cambric screen, very similar to that of Mr. Slingsby, on the light side of his sitter; and on the shadow side uses, when necessary, another screen of singularly ingenious construc tion. The latter is of calico, with a canopy at the top, bending over at right angles above the sitter, this canopy being raised or lowered to suit the height of the sitter. The canopy is of a blue or slate colour, the working of the whole being as follows:—The structure consists of two side screens, one above the other, and an over-hanging or head screen. Of the two side screens, the lower one re mains stationary, but the other one, which overlaps, may be made to rise to its full extent; in our sketch it is half way up. The structure may, in fact, be raised to 8 feet, or lowered to 4 feet. The head-screen rises and falls with the side screen, and, provided with the lever arrangement shown in the sketch, may be made to assume any angle. The lower cord raises or lowers the side screen, and the upper cord regulates the angle of the head screen or canopy. Small screens of a movable and handy nature, similar to the one immediately preceding, are exceedingly useful in the studio for local use, either to heighten the illumination of a lady’s head-dress or other portions of attire, or to throw it into the shade. In Adele’s studio in Vienna we saw a very elegant occasional screen. It was simply a sloping wooden frame, about five feet high, over which was negli gently thrown two pieces of gossamer satin, one blue, the other white. Either one reflecting surface or the other was employed near the sitter, the delicate silken sheen of the glossy surface—white or pale blue—yielding a very soft reflection, while to the spectator' the pretty screen, with its shining fabric unstretched, was particularly pleasing. Still, with all screens and reflectors, no matter what their nature or shape, it is necessary that they be employed with taste and discretion; the most skilfully contrived among them are obviously useless in the hands of the careless and undiscriminating. THE GLASS ROOF. A glass roof that does not leak nor drop moisture is a bless ing rarely known ; and our contemporary the Sl. Louis Photographer tells us how it may be assured by a few proper precautions. First. We will suppose that your light is built with sufficient pitch to give a free current to the rain that falls upon it. What is known as a quarter-pitch will do, but a little more is of course preferable. Second. We will suppose your muntens are calculated for glass 12 inches wide ; 20 by 12 inches, being a common size for glass, is perhaps the best size to use, but the size makes no difference in the method of preventing leakage. For illustration, let us suppose your glass to be 20 by 12 ins. Take your diamond, and cut a pointed piece off each corner of one end of your glass. Let this piece be five inches long, a point at one end, and three-fourths of an inch wide at the other. This will leave a square centre two inches wide for the lower end of the glass. As this is of the utmost importance, be careful that you fully understand it. Take Col. Crocket’s advice to the youth who wanted to marry his daughter, and apply it to this case: “ Be sure you’re right, then go ahead.” Thirdly, as the parsons say, take strips of heavy tin one inch long and one-fourth of an inch wide, and bend them into S-shaped hooks—the distance between the loops of the hook to be exactly one-quarter of an inch. Having made these preparations, we will now proceed to lay the glass. Draw a line along the bottom piece of the frame, at least two inches from the upper edge ; on this line, exactly midway between the muntens, drive a short, stout nail for the lower glass to rest against. Lay the centre piece of the bevelled end of your glass, hollow side up, against this nail, to prevent its slipping downwards. As the beauty of the light depends on the regularity of the laps, “ be sure you’re right ” in laying the first glass, and securing it against slipping. Having got the first glass in position, place one of the tin hooks under each upper corner, resting on the munten, and secure the glass in position with glazier’s three-cornered points. Next lay your second glass in its place, hollow side up, resting in the hooks on the corners of the first glass, and, as in the case of the first glass, secure with glazier’s points. Be careful to drive a point directly over the hook to provide against the very unlikely, but possible, straightening out of the tin hook. Proceed in the same manner with each glass until the sash is filled ; then apply putty in the usual manner, outside and inside, but leave the laps clear.