This is an old permanent platinotype photograph by renowned photographer Raja Deen Dayal.
Platinum prints, also called platinotypes, are photographic prints made by a monochrome printing process involving platinum.
The platinum tones range from warm black, to reddish brown, to expanded mid-tone grays that are unobtainable in silver prints.
Unlike the silver print process, platinum lies on the paper surface, while silver lies in a gelatin or albumen emulsion that coats the paper. As a result, since no gelatin emulsion is used, the final platinum image is absolutely matte with a deposit of platinum (and/or palladium, its sister element which is also used in most platinum photographs) absorbed slightly into the paper.
Platinum prints are the most durable of all photographic processes.
The platinum group metals are very stable against chemical reactions that might degrade the print - even more stable than gold. It is estimated that a platinum image, properly made, can last thousands of years.
Some of the desirable characteristics of a platinum print include:
- The reflective quality of the print is much more diffuse in nature compared to glossy prints that typically have spectacular reflections.
- A very delicate, large tonal range.
- Not being coated with gelatin, the prints do not exhibit the tendency to curl.
- The darkest possible tones in the prints are lighter than silver-based prints. Recent[when?] studies[citation needed] have attributed this to an optical illusion produced by the gelatin coating on RC and fiber-based papers. However, platinotypes that have been waxed or varnished will produce images that appear to have greater D-max than silver prints.
- A greatly decreased susceptibility to deterioration compared to silver-based prints due to the inherent stability of the process
India nobleman
Raja Deen Dayal
- Product Code: 1B-1
- Condition: Good
- Size: 8.5x10.5 inches
- Medium: Permanent Platinotype
- Year: Late 19th century.
Tags: Old Photographs