Charles Hay Cameron 1864

Julia Margaret Cameron created this portrait of Charles Hay Cameron, using the wet collodion process, a photographic technique that was revolutionary for its time. The wet collodion process involved coating a glass plate with chemicals, exposing it in the camera while still wet, and then developing it immediately. This required a portable darkroom and a deep understanding of chemistry, turning the photographer into a kind of alchemist. It was laborious and time-consuming, yet it offered a level of detail and tonal range previously unattainable. Cameron intentionally left imperfections in her photographs, valuing emotional depth over technical perfection. Here, the soft focus and visible brushstrokes are not flaws, but rather evidence of her hand, imbuing the image with a sense of intimacy. By embracing the materiality of the process, she elevated photography from mere documentation to an art form capable of capturing the soul.