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THE PHOTOGRAPHIC NEWS. Vod. XII. No. 513.—July 3,1868. CONTENTS. PAGE 313 .. 314 .. 314 315 .. 316 .. 317 .. 318 .. 319 .. 320 Expression in Portraiture Critical Notices Echoes of the Month. By an Ohl Photographer Foreign Miscellanea Pictorial Effect in Photography. By II. 1’. Robinson Photo-zincography in Practice. By J. Waterhouse, R.A. Mr. Piercy’s Patent Method of Artistic Printing M. Carrier's Sensitive Paper The Coffee Process. By M. A. de Constant -e PAGE 320 321 322 On the Reproduction of Engravings and Line Drawings. By F. Fink Detection of Hyposulphite. By M. Carey Lea Recent Patents Experiments with Filtering Papers Correspondence—Carbonate of Lime in Toning Talk in the Studio To Correspondents 323 323 323 324 EXPRESSION IN PORTRAITURE. In the discussion which followed Mr. Pearce's excellent paper on Portraiture at a recent meeting of the South London Society, the Chairman deprecated the practice common amongst some photographers of requesting the sitter to fix his eyes on “ a knob,” rightly adding, that whilst there was nothing interesting in the knob, there was nothing reassuring in the adjuration to “ keep quite still,” which generally heralded the commencement of exposure. Mr. Blanchard suggested that a portraitist of judgment would, he thought, avoid both courses; he would merely request the eyes to be directed in a given direction, which seemed easy and natural for them, and he would carefully avoid startling the sitter by any stern injunction not to move. He would rather I endeavour, by conversation, to interest the sitter, and when a pleasant expression was secured, would seize the oppor tunity of exposure, possibly requesting the sitter to main tain that expression and position for a few moments. The management of the sitter in securing ease and natural ness is a thing which can scarcely be taught, as it depends more upon natural temperament and general culture than upon any rules which can be laid down ; nevertheless it is a subject well worthy of the most careful study by all por traitists. A true and pleasing expression is the last and highest grace in any portrait, photographic or otherwise; most difticult to attain, and most prized when secured. Its presence will condone many technical shortcomings; its absence will often make the highest technical excellence valueless. In a painting, it is attributed to the skill of the artist; in a photograph, it is supposed to be due only to the sitter. In both cases it is, however, the result of combined action ; the painter must see the expression before be can paintit; and, to see it, he must often, by interesting his sitter, educe it. The photographer must also seo the expres sion before he can photograph it, and he must also often educe it before he can see it. The painter possesses, how ever, two special advantages over the photographer in this re spect : he sees his sitter on several occasions, has opportunity for conversation and for studying his sitter, and, having once seen the face properly lit up with feeling—-seen “ the mind, the music breathing in the face ”— he possesses the facility of transferring the fleeting expression to his canvas from memory. The photographer secs his sitter generally but once, and that once often for a few minutes only. Moreover, the camera has no memory, and can only fix the expression worn by the face during the moments of exposure. The desired expression must therefore be secured just at the critical moment, or it cannot appear in the photograph. The hint thrown out by Mr. Howard, if practicable, might assist in giving the photographer some of the advantages of the painter. He suggested that as technical difficulties had, to a great extent, been mastered by professional por traitists, and higher demands were made by the public than in the infancy of the art, he thought a higher standard, involving more time, greater ability, and more cost, might, without impropriety, be aimed at. by first-class portraitists; that instead of taking each sitter just when he came to sit and with the hasty estimate of the best effect for each por trait which could be found in one often hurried sitting, the photographer should have a previous interview with his sitter, in which he could form a deliberate idea of the result most desirable, and some degree of acquaintance or famili arity—o)', at least, mutual confidence—between the artist and bis sitter be established. Of course, to render such oppor tunity for previous thought and arrangement of any avail, the photographer must be, in some degree, master of the difficult art of portraiture; but with an understanding of its requirements there can be little doubt that such a course would conduce to the production of higher results ; and the suggestion is worth the consideration of portraitists who aim at the highest results, and can command the terms which would be remunerative for the expenditure of the time and consideration necessary for carrying out such a project. The possibility of securing the portrait whilst the sitter was unconscious of the ordeal has often been desiderated by nervous persons, and has generally been regarded as an un practical thing. It is, however, not altogether impossible, A lady recently sitting to Mr. Robinson expressed consider able apprehension as to the possibility of preserving a natural expression when the moment of exposure came. She had been requested to rest herself without any concern on that bead until the preparations were made; and when, a short time afterwards, she exclaimed, “ If you could only take me when 1 didn't know it, I am sure the result would be better,” the answer returned was, “ Madam, I have obtained four portraits of you already 1 ” some of which were, to her great delight, in every way satisfactory. She bad been placed at the outset, with little fuss and circumstance, in an easy, quiet position, and, the light being good and chemicals working well, the four portraits were secured whilst she imagined that the photographer was merely arranging bis camera. We have seen Mons. Adam-Salomon effect a similar result. Having duly arranged the sitter, who was requested to re main tranquil, and not speak for a few moments, he continued the conversation, to which the sitter listened with a look of interest, expecting to be informed in a few moments that the exposure would commence, only to be informed that it was over. To attain results of this kind it is scarcely neces sary to say that the photographer must study something more than photographic processes, and that, whilst his technical conditions should be perfect, his knowledge of human nature, and of portraiture as an art, must be sedulously cultivated.