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Photographic Auction Ambrotypes 1851-1865
In 1847 Ezekiel Hawkins made the first ambrotype (Daguerreotype on glass). This process use a new collodion liquid that was spread on glass and coated with light sensitve chemicals. Because the chemicals had to be moist until exposed, it became known as the "wet plate process". These glass plates had to be exposed and developed quickly because the light sensitive coating deterorated as it dried. These images could be made as a negitive or a positive with a black background. The Ambrotype was short lived because paper photos were becoming far more dominate in 1855
In 1851 England, F.S. Archer was credited with developing the wet plate process of an image on glass
The following pages explain each photographic process and offer many images showing photographic styles and techniques.