Chromophotography

Chromophotography is a technique, somewhere between painting and photography, which evolved in the second half of the 19th century. Firstly, two prints of the photograph were made. One was hand-painted with very bright colours; the other was painted in paler colours, and then made translucent by applying wax to the paper. The second picture was then superimposed over the first, with a small air gap in between, resulting in a three-dimensional effect. This technique was used by only a very few photographers, mostly in Central Europe.

In Bohemia, (now Czech Republic), one of the best known exponents of this technique was Alexander Seik.

The bottom layer of an Alexander Seik chromophotograph. The photograph has been printed on salt paper, with heavy colouring. The border is made from cardboard, to maintain an air-gap between the two layers.

The top layer of the chromophotograph has been made translucent by treating the paper with wax. Either salt or albumen paper may have been used for this top layer. The colouring on the top layer is not typical for chromophotographs by other photographers. The chromophotograph was originally mounted in a decorative frame, with an oval mask.

The original chromophotograph has deteriorated, due to yellowing of the paper. This picture is an attempt to reconstruct the original look of chromophotography, using modern Photoshop technology. First, both layers were colour balanced to remove the yellow cast; then the bottom layer was unsharpened to simulate diffusion by the paper; and finally, the upper layer was made 30% translucent.