QUEER ASPECTS OF PHOTO GRAPHY.

Otago Witness, Issue 2171, 3 October 1895, Page 45

QUEER ASPECTS OF PHOTO GRAPHY.

The Man With the Camera Talks. 11 ' A littlg more to the right, pleaae. Now smile. Ah I tbanks,' is not the only part of our business," said my photographic friend. Much of the work of the camera in practically unknown. Here's a case In point. A. few dajs ago, a well-known West End surgeon came to me. He was about to perform a new and extraordinary operation. Several hundreds of students were to be present at its performance, and for their benefit I wag to take several photographs during the course of the operation. " Elaborate preparations were made, and I attended. In all, 26 instantaneous photographß were obtained, fully illustrating the operation from the first incision to its olo«e. For that job I received £20 and the eminent physician's reference. So quickly did the photographs succeed each other that the course of the blood from one cut could be distinctly traced from beginning to end, 11 Yea, this kind of work teaches you a good deal. I photographed a huge blasting operation quite lately. It was quick work, too. There was only one way to do it. The foreman in charge held a stop watch in on« hand, and the communicator the other. A*

a given point he was to discharge his explosive, and I was to euap my shutter. The refcnit was perfect. A well-known Government authority on explosives told mo . that photograph had shown him more than years of study. "We do a good deal of detective work tvitb the camera. Of course, as you know, photographs aie no longer accepted as eviderce in court ; they are so easily faked. But we often get instructions to follow and enapshot people in different places, and from these they are identified and watched. " A special branch of my business is the preparation of society beauty pictures for the" illustrated papers and other purposes. We use the bust and arena of a epecially selected model, omitting the head. In its place wo print in the face and head of onr Bitter. Thiß is becomirjg quite a fashionable crsze just now, and society women don't cc"cm to mind wearing somebody else's limbs in iheleaet. 11 A branch of my business which keeps me pretty constantly employed is tho photographing of celebrated artista' models -not ho much, pictures of the models themselves aa huge etlargemonts of their hands and arms. Okc R.A. who patronises me sends p.ll the models connected with his important works to the studio. Iv painting in the figuies ho Fays he finds these enlargements plmost indispensable to correct and minute .drawing. " You see this collection ? They ara photographs of tho animals killed by a well-known sportsman, taken to demonstrate the value of a now bullet. In almost every case the passage of the ball is shown, together with the nature of the wound. " There are lots of other interesting subjects, if you oare to look round. Here is one taken by an officer in the recent Ohitral campaign of a soldier bayoneting a tribesman on a hillside. It was an instantaneous photograph. You will notice that he has lifted the poor wretch cleau off his legs on the bayonet end. Ye?, it was a hand oamera photo. By the way, the development and finishiug of hand-camera negatives taken by amateurs is extending our busineßß enormously. An enthusiastic photographer actually came here the other day with the instantaneous photo of a railway collision. How he got it I can't say, but it was certainly a most remarkable production. "My moat interesting experience 1 Well, let me see. I have bad several in conneotion ' with the photographic preparation of patent specifications. Perhaps my eabmarine experiment was uncommon, and It ouly took place recently. I waß aiked if I could get a good photograph of a sunken ship, and a high price and unlimited ezpsnees were offered for the picture. Did I get It ? Why, yes. I practised in the diving dress two or three time?, and then descended with the camera in a Bpecially-made waterproof case. The photograph was taken by electric light. Was it & Buocess ? Personally, I don't think bo. Bat look for yourself. Anyway, it is ..quite unique."