Volltext Seite (XML)
544 THE PHOTOGRAPHIC NEWS. [July 31, 1891. Motes. The great progress that has been made in the methods by which rapid movements can be analysed is well seen in a series of photographs lately taken by Anschiitz, of Lissa, who has already given to the world some of the best instantaneous pictures ever taken. The subject of the pictures at present under consideration is a dog jumping over a small bush. In the act of making one jump the animal has been photographed twenty-four separate times, and each picture is not a mere silhouette, as was the case with Muybridge’s first attempts of this kind, but a little picture showing half-tone and detail. Some of the attitudes are, of course, comic in appearance, for they represent phases of a movement which the eye is un accustomed to, and cannot possibly appreciate. Notably Is this the case in the commencement of the jump, when the dog’s hind toes only touch the ground ; and again at the finish of the jump, when his legs are gathered together in a heap. In spite of the greater facilities for patenting inventions In the United States, the number of specifications relating to photography are very few in comparison with those taken out and paid for at so much greater cost at the English Patent Office. What is the reason of this ? We fancy that the answer to this question must be found in the circumstance that, in America, the small fee charged includes the expense of a search through existing specifi cations, so that no “ notion ” can receive protection more than once. In the old country, on the other hand, the same idea is patented over and over again, and the heavy fees are taken each time by the authorities without a blush. It is a pity that personal morality and the official variety are such extremely different things. Photographers who have the misfortune to have pictures left on their hands, or returned to them, cannot surely be many in number, for prepayment is, or should be, the invariable rule. But still, there may be some who are Victimised, and they will doubtless be glad to hear of a plan for getting rid of their surplus stock. We must confess that the method is entirely new to us, but it is said to work well, and, like any other formula, it may be worth a trial. It consists in placing a placard in the gallery labelled “ Misfit photographs for sale.” We have heard of misfit clothes, misfit boots, and misfit carpets, but a misfit photograph is quite a curiosity. Yet we have the assurance of a writer in Chambers's Journal that the inscription quoted above appears over a certain photographic gallery, and that it brings many customers. “Mothers, for instance, who have little children, often buy pictures of children with long hair when the hair of their loved ones hasn’t grown, and send them round to friends at a distance. Brides’ photographs are also said to sell very well.” We are not told what is done with the brides’ portraits, but possibly they too are used for the purpose of gammoning friends at a distance. But who is the wily photographer who does these things? We are almost tempted to believe that “ there aint no sich pusson.” American lady tourists have invested the passage across the Atlantic with a new terror. Prince George of Greece, it seems, during his journey from New York, was pursued by 150 ladies, all armed with cameras, who persisted in photographing him, despite his protests and his attempts to cover his face. This is really a social nuisance, which ought to be sternly repressed. Celebrities are, of course, the chief victims; but should the fashion spread, no one on his or her travels will be safe. An announcement of “ no photographing allowed abaft the funnel ” would enable the victims to promenade in peace ; but who can effectually guard against the pertinacity of a lady photographer? The letter of a correspondent of the Optician, comment ing on the system of advertising ordinary spectacle lenses as articles of special and peculiar excellence, reminds us of the hundreds and hundreds of worthless photographic lenses which at the present moment must be in existence, to the plague of the unfortunate amateur who is unlucky enough to buy one. These useless pieces of glass are usually to be found on the dusty shelves of the pawn broker’s shop, and the only thing which can be said of them is that the longer they remain there the better. In the early days of photography the market was flooded with common French lenses, most of which were incapable of producing a decent picture, but amongst which, occa sionally, was one with marvellous powers. It was, of course, quite a matter of chance, but the mischief was that the rash amateur, hoping to get a prize on the cheap, often wasted his money. The general opinion now is, that if you buy a nameless lens you may pick up a bargain, but that if you buy one of an accredited maker you are certain to get your money’s worth, even though you may pay a long price. The Transvaal Mining Conference now sitting at Praetoria is in sad need of a photographer. An applica tion about to come before the Transvaal Parliament for the sole rights of manufacturing cyanide of potassium was hotly discussed by the Conference, the chairman de nouncing the application as an “ iniquitous ” one, while others were as strongly in favour of it because the granting of other concessions had turned out well Ultimately the matter was postponed, in order that the members of the Conference might find out what cyanide is! The view-finder attached to most detective cameras has suggested to the captain of a French man-of-war a means of sighting and firing guns with accuracy and, as far as possible, safety. On the cannon is fixed what is virtually a camera having a thick ground glass, upon which is marked a sight; over the cannon, in the side of the ship, is a small hole containing a simple lens. This is the whole of the apparatus. The gun is moved until the object to be fired at is seen on the ground glass, and this accomplished, the gun is fired. The name given to this method is Tir Optique, and its efficiency is said to have been amply proved by practical experiments. The oddest photographic craze that we know is that of a worthy and respected collector of old armour who has had himself photographed in every suit, and as the collection is extremely varied, the photographic album which has resulted is one of the most curious which can be imagined. A wicked friend has maliciously said that he looks best in a helmet with the vizor closed. The foible is a harmless one, and we do not see why it should not be indulged in if it pleases the collector. The armour certainly gains by the process, because the wearer is able to throw a little animation into what would otherwise be a lifeless figure.