To many beginners in photography there eventually comes a time when a sufficient number of negatives of friends, the interior and exterior of the home, the cat, dog and other household pets, etc., have been accumulated, and the mind craves for work in a field which has less of the personal and more of the artistic character. This impulse is often quickened by some print in a window, or reproduction of a beautiful landscape, or shore scene in a photographic or other magazine, and fills one with a desire to produce similar work. This is not so much due to a wish to be an expert in photography as it is a craving for the artistically perfect, the presentation in the finished print of a view with character and sentiment possessing an intrinsic charm over which we delight to linger and return to with pleasure.

Before we can attain this degree of skill, however, we must learn enough of the processes by which these results are accomplished, to intelligently plan our work, and then be able to follow the plans so that guesswork and chance are eliminated as far as possible.

A proper equipment is the first essential. This does not necessarily mean that it shall be very expensive, but does rule out the so-called fixed-focus cameras, many of which are made mostly for selling purposes. A well-made camera, capable of taking at least a 5 x 7 plate (61/2 x 841/2 is better), equipped with a good rapid rectilinear lens, reversible swing back, adjustable front, rack and pinion-focusing movement, and a well-made leather extension bellows, are all necessary features. A strong, rigid tripod, ray screen and extra plate-holders should also be included, together with various other devices required for special occasions.

Assuming that practice has made familiar the uses of all these fixtures of the camera, and that the holders contain the plates best adapted to the work in hand, we start afield. It should not be an aimless trip, with the expectation that the right view will be found about the time the load becomes so heavy that a rest seems desirable. Quite the contrary. Not only should the objective point of our excursion be previously determined, but the kind of day and the time be carefully considered, so that all the conditions of light and shade will be appropriate to the scene. A well-known artist photographer, whose prints enjoy a world-wide reputation, told once in an interview of a trip during which he waited over two weeks for just the right conjunction of the elements, that he might secure the effect he desired. How many of us have developed the patience and discernment this implies; and yet the results are well worth it. This example also illustrates the necessity of making a careful study of the "make-up" of the scene, usually expressed as the "composition" when applied to pictures. This can perhaps be better understood if we assume that instead of taking a photograph, a water-color or crayon was to be made. Before commencing work careful study would be made of the scene from several viewpoints; the direction of the light, the location of trees, shrubbery, rocks or water would all be carefully noted. The slope of the land, the line of a fence or wall, the angles of a building, and the position of a road or path are all to be selected so that the grouping will be harmonious and well balanced.

The subject of "composition" has been repeatedly written up, and in the minds of some writers is subject to many rules and more exceptions. To the amateur who pursues photography as a pleasure, the reading of a treatise on this subject would be likely to leave only a confused jumble of ideas, far from helpful. After some experience and a study of results, such works can be taken up with profit. One of the best methods for the beginner is the making of three or four negatives of some attractive scene, from as many different positions, and then making a comparative study, that the strong and weak points may be clearly discerned and utilized for future guidance. Also to study the grouping, both as a whole and in part, of photographs by artists of note, which seem attractive. Many a photograph is improved by a judicious trimming of a part. A very common fault with beginners is their desire to include too much in a view. More strength and character is to be found in a picture in which the motif is a single feature, and all the rest a suitable setting or support for it. To summarize : study your own work, and as much as possible the work of those artists which most nearly appeals to your own tastes.

Do not try to find pleasure in work which to you seems unnatural or contrary to your own temperament. We all have our individual peculiarities, and should try to develop them along correct lines. Any attempt to work counter to our natural disposition will but delay, and perhaps destroy, a full development of the artistic side of our nature. Let our work be true, and represent as nearly as possible our best ideals; only in this way will we achieve results that will accord with our highest capability.

Directions for making luminous photographs, published originally in a German paper, are thus translated in Popular Science News: "It is done by means of calcium sulphide, otherwise luminous paint. A sheet of transparent celluloid is coated with an emulsion of nine parts of gelatin, one of potassium bichromate, five of calcium sulphide, and one hundred of water. The gelatin is soaked in the water and melted in a water-bath, the other ingredients being added afterward. When the coated film is thoroughly dry it may be printed upon from a positive through the celluloid film. This precaution is necessary to prevent the image washing off during development, which is done by hot water, as in the case of a carbon positive. Backed up by black velvet or paper the print will appear as an ordinary black-and-white positive by daylight, to which it should be freely exposed, and will be self-luminous in the dark."