19 Feb
DARKROOM CHEMISTRY, EMULSION, PRINTING PROCESSES, Zebra Dry Plates

The Art of Contact Printing on Zebra Dry Plate Tintypes

Adrian Anderson has been using Zebra Dry Plates for quite some time now, and he absolutely loves them. While he plans to use a camera to expose them eventually, the cost of large-format photography has led him to explore an alternative approach: contact printing. This method allows him to produce beautiful positive plates using digital images, and I want to take a moment to appreciate Adrian Anderson’s invaluable contribution to this process. His meticulous research and experimentation have provided a solid foundation for anyone looking to try this technique. Thanks to Adrian’s work,...

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27 Jan
DARKROOM BUILD, OTHER

A New Chapter for Zebra Workshop: Our 30m² Darkroom Expansion

Back in 2020, I started the Zebra Dry Plate business from a small shipping container. What started as a passion for reviving the art of dry plate photography has grown into a thriving community of creators and a production operation that now reaches enthusiasts worldwide. Over the years, as demand and creativity have soared, so has the need for space—and it’s clear we’ve outgrown our current setup. Every corner of our workspace is currently packed, especially with the excitement of fulfilling our latest Kickstarter pledges. It’s been an amazing journey,...

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25 Dec
EQUIPMENT, KICKSTARTER, WET PLATE PHOTOGRAPHY, Zebra Dry Plates

Customise Your Zebra Sensitising Tanks Your Way! 🦓

Hi friends, I wanted to take a moment to share some exciting updates about the Zebra Sensitising Tanks with you. Many of you already have them in your hands (or on the way!), and it’s been incredible to hear your feedback and see how you’re using them. It’s truly inspiring to know that these tools are helping you in your creative journey. When we set out to design the Zebra Sensitising Tank, one of our goals was to make it as versatile and adaptable as possible. That’s...

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15 Nov
EQUIPMENT, KICKSTARTER, WET PLATE PHOTOGRAPHY, Zebra Dry Plates

Finalising the Design – ZEBRA SENSITISING TANKS GOT EVEN BETTER!

Hello Everyone, We are beyond grateful for the overwhelming support you’ve shown for our Kickstarter campaign for the Zebra Sensitising Tanks! With your enthusiasm and trust, we’ve reached over 340% of our funding goal, and we’re only halfway through the campaign. This incredible milestone wouldn’t have been possible without your backing and invaluable feedback. Your insights have driven us to make the Zebra Sensitising Tanks more versatile, durable, and effective than ever before for the Wet Plate Collodion process. We’re committed to delivering a product that exceeds expectations, with dispatching slated to...

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Building-Darkroom-Drying-Cabinet-for-Dry-Plates-build-guide
29 Sep
DARKROOM BUILD, EMULSION, EQUIPMENT, Zebra Dry Plates

Building a Darkroom Drying Cabinet for Dry Plates: A Comprehensive Guide

Following my last video, many of the viewers and my followers were interested in knowing more about my Darkroom Drying Cabinet for drying dry plates, so I have decided to put together another video and this blog post to give you a better insight into how the cabinet was built and how it performs after two years of heavy use. At the bottom of this blog, you can also find a detailed list of materials as well as links to the STL files for the 3D-printed parts.

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13 Aug
AUTOCHROME

The Rise and Fall of Autochrome: Pioneering Colour Photography

The Lumière brothers, born in France in 1862 and 1864, grew up playing and learning in their father's photography studio, where he not only took photos but also produced black-and-white blue sensitive photographic plates that where very similar to the ones we make these days with Zebra Dry Plates. By 1882, after a severe economic crisis, the family business was on the brink of collapse. However, the return of 20-year-old Auguste from military service marked a turning point. With his brother Louis, they developed new machines necessary for the automated production of photographic...

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17 Jul
AUTOCHROME

The Evolution of Color Photography: From Black and White to Vibrant Hues

Today, we take colours for granted. Capturing the vibrant hues of nature in photographs is so effortless in the digital age that we rarely ponder how it works and how it came to be. My interest in the history of colour photography was non-existent until I encountered an autochrome plate. Its beauty and mystery captivated me instantly. The colour screen, a mosaic of microscopic dyed grains of potato starch, creates a colour photograph. I couldn’t fathom how something that sounded so simple could work so brilliantly. When choosing a topic...

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08 May
WET PLATE PHOTOGRAPHY, Zebra Dry Plates

Plate Photography Connects People: World Wet Plate Photography Day 2024 at Peter’s Place

Hello Zebra Family, another year, another opportunity to meet good friends and share our passion for photography. As always, I was there with Dry Plates to "ruin the party." 😄 Jokes aside, I always look forward to this day because it gives me a rare opportunity to take a shot or two myself, which has become increasingly rare given all the work in the workshop. In my bag, I packed some Zebra Standard Dry Plates, a holder, an Ondu 4x5 Pinhole...

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New Zebra Dry Plates
06 Jul
Zebra Dry Plates

Zebra Dry Plates just got Upgraded!

 Hello Zebra Family,  It's been a while since my last chat with you as you are keeping me unbelievably busy all the time. My main moto in the last few months has been work more sleep less :D Joke to the side I can not complain about how the Zebra brand has been growing lately becoming more and more recognizable in our analog community. I am very happy that Zebra products are now known for their quality but there is always room to improve things. Besides...

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Pyro-510-Dry-Plate-Developer-Test
10 Apr
Zebra Dry Plates

Can Dry Plates be developed with Pyro?

When we talk about Pyro developers it always seems like this is a relatively new and modern invention but that is far from being true. Pyrogallol developer is actually the oldest B&W developer that was widely used in the 19th century but went completely off the radar in the 20th century. It slowly made its proper comeback in the last few years. Back in the 19th century Pyro was the developer of choice by the majority of Dry Plate photographers so I have decided to give it a try.

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