Styles of Colour

Prompted by the discussion on colour or mono here is an image that I have modified to look as much as possible like an early Autochrome colour transparency.

Autochrome is an early process (1900-ish) that uses starch grains to make up the image. The result is muted and grainy colour.

[IMG]http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff250/johnriley1uk/025-Haddon-Girl.jpg[/IMG]

Nice work John - I've not seen any Autochrome slides but the picture has quite a convincing "olde-worlde" feel to it. Would the colours have been quite so saturated though? I'm thinking in particular of the red dress and the green foliage on the left. Maybe the technology then was better than I give it credit for!

I'm imagining here what a new Autochrome might look like. I don't know for sure because the ones we see can be quite faded, so I may or may not be wide of the mark.

Good point well made

Just looks noisy to me. Am I missing something ?

I don't know. Try googling for "autochrome" and see what you think.

I think for a 100+ year old technology the level of noise looks pretty much spot-on, if anything it may even be a little too clean.

I have been experimenting also, trying to replicate the 84 year old Saul Leiter's past work. He used out of date film and embraced the irregular color processing of the 40s & 50's. It's tricky but I do love the faded colours, I think it adds a quality and atmosphere that is subtle but effective.
My have a go attempt of a pic I took down St Ives :

[IMG]http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u193/lillymermaid/IMGP9549copy.jpg[/IMG]

Fascinating. I have now spent some time reading up on autochrome. Interesting stuff. Thank you.

Kris.

Nice effect Lilly. It's interesting experimenting and trying to replicate old techniques, especially without having to get involved with various noxious chemicals to do it.

Having read the article a few weeks ago in AP about Saul Leiter, I can see the likeness in your shot Lilly.

One of the original shots used in the article, taken through a window in, I think, Paris has the same muted colours you've achieved.

Nice conversion, I was questoining the over use of PS last week. Now I've seen how it can be used I will go away and try myself.

These links showing results from a different process of similar age might be of interest:

http://www.prokudin-gorsky.ru/index.shtml

http://sechtl-vosecek.ucw.cz/en/prokudin-gorsky/sever.html

Very interesting material. There are lots of colour processes that are no longer used and some are capable of stunning results.

The Autochrome was invented by the Frenchmen Louis and August Lumiere and one of the principle igredients of the plates was dyed potato starch!

The Edinburgh Photographic Society HAD a large very fine collecion from around 1905. I had borrowed some for use in a TV series I was making for the BBC on the history of photography when their premises were flooded and these unique photos were lost forever. The only ones remaining are the ones I had.

They are quite remarkably beautiful, much grainier than your picture John, but at a time when monochrome emulsions were getting faster and George Eastman had coined the phrase 'snap shot' this process was slow and entailed exposures almost as long as those in the earliest days. Poses reflected this but add to their dreamy romantic atmosphere.

Here are some from WW1, just over half way down the page.link