Albumen printing was first invented in 1850 by Louis Desire Blanquart-Evrard. It was the first commercially exloitable method of printing a photographic printon a paper base from a negative. It used the albumen found in egg whites to bind the photographic chemicals to the paper. It became the dominant formof positives from 1855 to the turn of the century.
Process
1. piece of paper, usually 100% cotton is coated with egg white and salt then dried. The coating seals the paper and leaves a slightly glossy surface for the sensitizer to rest on.
2. Paper is then dipped into a solution of nitrate silver and water which renders the surface sensitive to UV light.
3. Paper is dried in absence of UV light.
4. A negative is placed in a frame in direct contact over the paper and is then exposed to light until desired levels of darkness are achieved.
5. It is then fixed in a bath of sodium thiosulfate to prevent further darkening.
6. A final option of gold or selenium toning improves photographs tone and stabilizes against fading.
information from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albumen_print
Eugene Atget, ParcMonceau
Eugene Atget, Hotel de Montmorency. 5 Rue de Montmorency
Eugene Atget, Cabaret du Gd. Cerf- Rue St. Martin. 120images from http://206.180.235.131/gallery/atget.html
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