Photography

Photography is undoubtedly one of the most important inventions in history -- it has truly transformed how people conceive of the world. Now we can "see" all sorts of things that are actually many miles -- and years -- away from us. Photography lets us capture moments in time and preserve them for years to come
Today, photography is characterized by a rapid growth in the development of technology and ideas. Each year, millions of pictures are taken and an astonishing array of new films, cameras and imaging systems enter the market. One of the great attractions of the photography field is the ease with which basic skills can be learned.
The word ‘photography’ comes from the Greek term ‘drawing with light’. Without light there is no photograph. Photography is about seeing, balancing and interpreting the light.

Composition of Photography
The Camera: The materials that are usually used in creating a camera are metal, glass, plastic, wood, and mirrors.

The Film:
Collodion: This substance transformed photography. This a viscous mixture of gun cotton that is dissolved in alcohol that then creates a thin film. It is then mixed with silver bromide, silver iodide or silver chloride. This substance reduced exposure time to seconds instead of hours.

Film: The first type of camera film was produced when the collodion was combined with celluloid, a flexible plastic. This film started to be sold with “Kodak” in 1889 along with the worlds first box camera.
Chemicals of Photography

Developer: This substance is what causes the silver iodide on the roll of film to darken as if it has been exposed to the light. Developer is made out of two solutions.

Solution A: 50 ml of water, 1 gram of sodium sulfite, 0.16 grams of hydroquinone, 4.6 grams of sodium carbonate, and 1.1 gram of phenidone.

Solution B: 50 ml of water and 8 grams of sodium sulfite

Stop bath: This substance completely stops the development process
Stop bath is made out of acetic acid but many people just use water in lieu of stop bath to reduce the cost.

Fixer: This substance removes all of undeveloped silver iodide from the emulsion
Modern fixers are usually made out of sodium thiosulfate or ammonium thiosulfate

How to Produce a Photo
Film photography photos are produced in dark rooms by burning the picture on light sensitive paper and then putting it through a series of chemicals to fully develop them. The photos are taken on cameras that have light sensitive film running through the back of them, behind the adjustable glass lens.

Method

Developing Film into Negatives
Collect all equipment and materials and place them on the bench in the darkroom. Ensure that you have all the parts of the tank, cassette cap remover, reel, scissors and exposed film. Make sure that you are comfortable and know where everything is, then turn out the light so that you are in complete darkness. If you do not have access to a darkroom you can use a black bag or a very dark cupboard.
In complete darkness, pick up the film and film cassette opener. Using the opener, pry open one end of the film cassette.
Take the film out of the cassette and hold onto it tightly with one hand. With the other hand pick up the reel and find the two lugs, which indicate the entry to the reel.
Carefully pull the start of the film through the opening of the reel. Continue pulling it through until it is about halfway around the reel.
You may now let go of the film. Place a hand on either side of the reel and rotate your hands back and forth about three to five centimetres at a time. This will wind the film onto the reel. Placing your thumbs on the lugs of the reel will help keep it on track.
When all the film is on the reel you will feel the end of the film, which is attached to a small plastic spool. Using the scissors, cut off the spool and wind on the remaining small section of film.
Place the loaded reel onto the centre support and into the tank, ensuring that the lid is secure. You may now turn the lights on.
Process your Film
Set up the materials and equipment that you will need. There is a variety of brand names and different types of chemicals available. It is therefore important that you know which type of chemicals you are using. In the space provided, record the information so that you are aware of how to use each chemical.
The role of film developer is to develop the negative image onto the film. The type of film you use, particularly the brand and ISO, has a direct influence on the required developing time. Developing times can change quite dramatically from one type of film to the next, therefore it is important to use the for your film type and ISO. If you are required to mix the chemical with water, always ensure that the water is the correct temperature before pouring in the chemical.
When you have mixed the developer and ensured that it is the correct temperature, pour it into the tank, place the cap on to the lid and agitate it (gently rock the tank upside down and back again) for about 5 seconds every 30 seconds. When the developer has been in the tank for the required amount of time, take off the cap and pour it out.
The role of the stop bath is to stop the action of the developer and neutralise the film in readiness for the third chemical, the fixer. When you have ensured that the stop bath is correctly mixed, pour it into the tank, put the cap on the required time. Then take off the cap and pour it out.
The film fixer makes the negatives images permanent.
When you have mixed the fixer and ensured that it is the correct temperature, pour it into the tank. Put the cap on and agitate it for 5 seconds every 30 seconds, for the required time. Take off the cap and pour out the fixer. Some fixers can be refused, so check to see if you can pour the fixer back into the bottle and not down the sink.
On completing the chemical process, use water to wash any remaining chemicals from the film. You may do this by placing it under running water for 7 minutes.
Take the lid off the tank and retrieve the film reel. Very carefully pull the exposed edge of the film away from the reel. Be careful not to put your fingers anywhere except on the edges of the film. Hang your film to dry.
When the film is dry cut it into strips of about 5 or 6 negatives and place them in a plastic negative file.

Discussion

The word Photography comes from two Greek words “photos” which mean light and “graphein” which means to draw. Photographs are made through light or radiant energy recording a picture of an object or scene on a light-sensitive surface

Formerly, photography was satisfied with straightforwardanalouge cameras which make less clearer photos and much harder to repeat, while in todays society and times, cameras have advanced to a progressed time where pictures are adequately traded, transferred, duplicated and modified through an advanced means of digital editing, for instance, photoshop. With simple techniques anyone can turn a dull image to an image only picasso could create, editing images can lead to endless possibilities.