1. Never use a flash powder in a reservoir lamp - only plain magnesium.

2. Any good fast plate that the worker is used to is the best for flashlight work.

3. Eight feet from the floor is a good height to place the flashlight for portraiture.

4. To secure the best results with magnesium powder, it should be well dried before use.

5. The well-managed flashlight photograph should not betray the source of illumination.

6. Magnesium or aluminium is the usual means of illumination in flashlight photography.

7. Always keep cool, no matter how wrong the flashlight apparatus may appear to be working.

8. For portraiture the flashlight should always be about three feet higher than the head of the sitter.

9. A backed plate will always give a better rendering of a flashlight subject than an unbacked one.

10. The blow-through flash lamp, burning plain magnesium, is the safest form of flashlight apparatus to use.

11. The light should strike the sitter at an angle of 45 degrees to secure the most satisfactory lighting effect.

12. Keep all lights burning when taking a flashlight portrait. They will help the expression when the flash comes.

13. A strip of thin celluloid - cut from an old film - makes an excellent train on which to fire a flash mixture.

14. Open the windows and doors immediately after taking a flashlight picture, to create a draught and disperse the smoke.

15. A lens aperture of f/8 is the most useful for all-round flashlight work.

16. Master the details of the flashlight apparatus, whatever form it takes, before approaching serious portraiture by flashlight.

17. Magnesium powder, and all flash mixtures, should be kept from the air, or oxidation of the magnesium will impair its brilliancy.

18. Two flashlights used together at different points give much better lighting than only one, and should always be used where possible.

19. Both magnesium powder and flashlight mixtures are more quickly fired and with a more instantaneous flash if burnt on a train of gun cotton.

20. With the flashlight at a distance of 5 feet from the head of the sitter, use 10 to 15 grains of flash powder ; at a distance of 10 feet, use 30 grains ; at 15 feet, use 70 grains ; and at 20 feet, use 100 grains.

21. When a flash lamp is put away after use it should be emptied and thoroughly cleaned from stray magnesium powder, and it should always be kept free from damp and grease.

22. A long-stemmed clay pipe filled with magnesium powder makes a good flash lamp. A piece of wadding or rag soaked in methylated spirit should be tied round the bowl and ignited. If the magnesium is then blown through the flame a brilliant flash results.

23. Flashlight will not do more than daylight under similar circumstances, but will, if treated in the same way, do nearly as much, and oftentimes do it quicker.

24. A reflector of white paper or calico is necessary for softening the contrast and lighting the shadow side of the face, if only one flashlight is used for a portrait.

25. Flashlight mixtures should not be roughly handled ; they are liable to explode.

26. For portraiture the flashlight is always best diffused through a light screen of muslin.

27. It is not necessary to turn down other lights in a room when taking a flashlight portrait.

28. When conducting flashlight portraiture at home, look out for unexpected reflections from mirrors, pictures, etc.

29. Flash mixtures should be burnt on a tray or tile. If placed on gun cotton the flash will be practically instantaneous.

30. An electric fan is a useful accessory for the flashlight photographer. It assists in clearing the smoke very effectively.

31. In addition to the flashlight, no extra apparatus is required by the flashlight photographer if portraiture is attempted.

32. A sliding music stand with an improvised flat top or a tall pair of steps can be recommended as useful for placing the flashlight sufficiently high.

33. Given the necessary means for producing an adequate light, the best principles for good studio lighting are also the best that can be studied for flashlight work.

34. To succeed with imitation firelight studies, a sheet of glass or wet muslin should be placed inside the fireplace, to prevent the smoke blowing out into the room.

35. When photographing a large interior by flashlight spread the light, or lights, over as large an area as possible, but have a principal light to dominate the general effect.

36. A reliable flashlight mixture for simple ignition on a train of gun cotton - not for use in a lamp - is made by carefully mixing mangesium powder, 3 parts ; chlorate of potash, 6 parts ; sulphide of antimony, 1 part.

37. Magnesium powder, 60 grains ; chlorate of potash, 90 grains, is a good flash mixture for ordinary work. It must not be used in a lamp, and must be dried separately and carefully mixed with a feather or piece of stiff paper.

38. When focussing a group by flashlight the position of the members of the group and the details of their faces can be more easily ascertained on the focussing screen by each one holding a lighted match or taper near the face.

39. Flashlight silhouettes can be easily obtained by stretching a white sheet across an open doorway, posing the sitter in profile on the same side as the camera, then turn down all lights and ignite flash on the other side of the sheet.

40. When taking a dark interior by flashlight, measure the distance from the camera to the principal object and obtain correct focus with the camera in daylight of another object at the same distance. Then return the camera to the dark interior for use.