Fictive Portrait Tintype
A tintype, also known as a melainotype or ferrotype, is a photograph made by creating a direct positive on a thin sheet of iron coated with a dark lacquer or enamel and used as the support for the photographic emulsion. Tintypes enjoyed their widest use during the 1860s and 1870s, but lesser use of the medium persisted into the early 20th century and it has been revived as a novelty in the 21st.
Shoot a photo portrait or self portrait that places you in one of two places: either the extreme past(between 1840-1920) or the distant future, one where technology has gone awry and old things are new again(read… steam punk, planet of the apes(the original), fur coats, etc.
1. Shoot 4 or 5 pictures in different setups(compositional placement)where you are rendered indistinguishable from this era. Change your look, your hairstyle, your clothes, etc. The photo must be in close-up, medium shot or traditional sitting. Very little should be done to the picture once it is imported.
2. Go to http://www.befunky.com/ This site has many filters. Do your best to create a weathered, black and white “tintype.” Use the old time filter, tintype filter and tiltshift filter. Play with them. Look at real tintypes and try to “recreate the past.” Or make a new future.
3. Save the picture and resize it to 5x7 or 7x5 inches. Print to transparency.
4. Prepare plate with your instructor. Sand. Chemically age. Super Sauce. Three minutes wait. Gently pull substrate.
5. Frame.
