I spent this weekend learning wet plate collodion at the Double Negative Darkroom in Hackney.
Taught by John Brewer, we learned how to create ambrotypes and tintypes pretty much from scratch, shoot them on large format cameras, develop and finish off with varnish.
The results were spectacular – the incredibly fine focus and depth of field, the ‘imperfections’ and tones and the sheer intensity you get from having someone stare at the camera for 11 seconds.
I learned so much in two days from John and the Double Negative team and met a great group of photographers. I would really recommend the course for anyone hoping to get practical and lasting knowledge of the wet plate process.
The portraits of me were taken by John Brewer and Edward Draper.