Vineyard of Camulos Ranch 1876

Carleton Watkins made this photograph of the Vineyard of Camulos Ranch using the wet plate collodion process. This now obsolete technique involved coating a glass plate with a light-sensitive emulsion right before taking the picture. Because the plate had to remain wet during exposure and development, the whole darkroom had to be brought into the field! This difficult process imbued photography with social and cultural significance, as the photographer acted as both artist and craftsman. Note the incredible clarity and detail rendered by this method, which Watkins often used to document the changing landscape of the American West. The tonal range is beautifully subtle, a consequence of the process. Watkins’s choice of photography as a medium was not accidental; it offered a unique opportunity to capture the essence of a place, while documenting the labor and industry transforming it. This image offers a compelling case study in how materials, techniques, and context combine to reveal the true depth of an artwork.