  How few amateur photographers there are who thoroughly enter into the enjoyment of the art-science as a pastime. Many of these, perhaps, must be excused for the reason that they are ignorant of its capabilities. Indeed, how many there are who imagine that the art of photography consists in making negatives and, from these, prints—good, bad and indifferent. All the friends and relations are called into requisition "to be taken." At first they do not mind, thinking it a fine thing to have a portrait made for nothing; but when they see the result they very naturally object to be caricatured, and the amateur loses many a friend, and the maiden aunt leaves all her money to the home for stray cats. If he is a married man and delights in a happy, cosy home, neatly and artistically decorated, photography can be of very great assistance to him—how much, few realize. There are a thousand different ways in which it can be of use, and the photographer has always before him some permanent record of his travels and skill. FIG. 22. Let us take, for instance, the making of transparencies. These are very simply made. Any moderately rapid dry plate can be used for the purpose. Every amateur becomes possessed after a time of a large number of negatives, good, bad, and indifferent. Let him carefully go through these, selecting all the printable ones and the pictures that he most The craze of the present day appears to be in the direction of bright and gaudy colors, except with the more highly cultivated, who recognize the artistic value of unobtrusive colors and delicate tints. A photograph, provided it is a good one, is always to be preferred to colored pictures unless the latter are by good artists. We once constructed with a half dozen of transparencies a very neat lamp shade. Some idea of it can be obtained from Fig. 23. FIG. 23. A brass frame is first constructed, and any wire worker will execute this so as to hold the six or eight pictures. The transparencies are made, cut down to the size and shape required and fitted in; then ground glass of the same size and shape is fitted, small brass tabs at the back being used to keep them in their places behind the transparency. The glasses should not fit too tightly in the brass frames or, on expanding by the heat, they will crack. A hall lamp can be treated in the same way, the colored glass removed and photographic transparencies substituted. Photos on glass can in the same way be used for a variety of other purposes, such as fire screens, candle shades, etc. Next look up your stock of prints, scraps, waste prints, etc. Often from a large, spoilt picture you can get a neat little bit about a couple of inches square or less; look up all these and from them a photographic chess-board can be made. Our illustration in Fig. 24 is intended to show what is meant, although our artist has not been happy in the selection of his material to represent photographic views and portraits. First mark out a square the size you wish the chess-board to be. Divide it into sixty-four squares and draw a neat border round it. Thirty-two of the squares are then neatly pasted over with selected photographs as varied as possible in subjects. Sixteen are fitted one way and sixteen the other. Our illustration is incorrect in this respect. The sixteen pictures should be placed the right way on the sixteen squares nearest to each player. When the photographs have all been pasted on and dried the whole is sized and varnished. If, however, it is desired to preserve this photographic chess-board, and at the same time to use it frequently, a better plan is to cover over with a glass plate and bind all round the edges to prevent dust from entering. FIG. 24. In a similar way a neat card table can be manufactured. Fig. 25 is intended to illustrate the top of the table covered with photographs and protected by a glass plate. A little consideration will no doubt give various other similar ideas to the reader. Those who can work the carbon process successfully have it in their power to transfer photographs in various colors to all kinds of supports, to wood for instance. The panels of a door can be very considerably improved by the insertion of photographs on fine grain wood, varnished. FIG. 25. Pictures can in this manner be transferred to plates, china and ornaments of every description. Various methods of printing on silk and various fabrics have from time to time been given. Perhaps the best for our purpose is the primuline process, as various colored images can be produced, with but little trouble, on all kinds of material. A description of the process will be found in another part of this work. (See Page 39.) These the amateur can hand over to his better half or female relations, who with the natural feminine abilities will produce all sorts of pretty artistic articles for decorating the room. We are well aware that we have by no means enumerated one half of the various means in which photography can be employed for decorating the house, but hope at least to have given the reader some idea of what its capabilities are. |
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