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It was not until the late 1850s, with the introduction of
the wet-plate process, developed in 1851 by Frederic Scott Archer
in England, that photography began to flourish in Japan.
This process was imported to Japan by the Dutch via Nagasaki,
Yokohama and Hakodate between 1854 and 1859. It was still far
away from the "snapshot" and required a great deal
of courage, time and a solid knowledge of the chemicals: collodion
was poured onto a glass plate, which was then turned back and
forth until it was coated evenly. The glass plate was then sensitised
in a silver-nitrate solution and had to be exposed and developed
while it was still wet.
The most common development solution was pyrogallol and the
photographs were fixed with such poisonous substances as sodium
sulphate or potassium cyanide.
For outdoor shootings, this process required a portable darkroom
in the form of a tent so that the plates could be prepared properly.
 Among
the Western 'teachers' of the early photographic technique were
the Dutch physician Pompe van Meerdervoort in Nagasaki
 and the
Frechman Rossier, the first professional photographer, who came
to Japan in 1859 for the London firm of Negretti and Zambra.
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A further simplification of the photographic technique in
Japan came in 1883 with the introduction of the dry-plate process,
which had been developed in England by Richard L. Maddox in
1871.
 Here,
a protective substance was applied in an attempt to maintain
the sensitivity of the dry layer (gelatine). With the invention
of the albumen print, made on paper treated with a solution
of egg white and salt, any number of prints could be made from
one glass negative - a decisive prerequisite for the commercialisation
of photography.
Ueno Hikoma (1838 - 1904), the son of Ueno Shunnojô Tsunetari,
opened a photo studio in Nagasaki in 1862. Until now, he has
been considered the "father" of Japanese photography.
On the basis of new research by Japanese photo historians, however,
increasingly more photographers are being rediscovered who had
likewise helped to establish the new medium in Japan and prepare
the ground for its commercialisation in Yokohama.
 Since
both production and export took place primarily in Yokohama,
it is frequently described as "Yokohama Photography"
(Yokohama shashin, Fig. 1), and recently, there is even talk
about an Ecole de Yokohama. |
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Cf.: Höfel, Klaus op ten, 'Fotochemie und Fototechnik von
1855 - 1880'. In: 'In unnachahmlicher Treue'. ex. cat. Josef-Haubrich-Kunsthalle,
Cologne 1979, p. 83.
Cf.:
Moeshart, H.J., 'The Dutch Teachers of Photography'. In: 'In
the Wake of the Liefde. Cultural Relations Between the Netherlands
and Japan Since 1600'. ex. cat. Bataafsche Leuw, Amsterdam/Museum
voor Volkenkunde, Rotterdam 1986, pp. 120-123.
Association
of Camera Examiners in Japan (ed.), 'Nihon kamera no rekshi'
(The History of Japanese Cameras), 2 Volumes, Tokyo 1975, Volume
1, p. 21.
One
representative of the early period of commercial photography
was, for example, Shimaoka Renjo (1823 - 1914) from Shimoda,
one of the first so-called treaty ports opened for the Americans,
about whose work there is little documentary material. Another
Japanese professional photographer of the early 1860s was Uchida
Kyuichi (1846 - 1874/5), who imported photographic equipment
to Yokohama in 1863 and opened his own studio there in 1866.
A comprehensive list of all photographers active in Japan between
1850 and 1900 can be found in the Japanese publication: 'Shashinshu
Meji no Yokohama Tokyo Nakosareteita garasu kanpankara (The
Meji Period Yokohama-Tokyo Collection of Photographs Printed
from Dry Glass Plates), Yokohama 1989.
Bayou,
Helene, 'Felice Beato et l'ecole de Yokohama', ex. cat. Centre
National de la Photographie, Paris 1994.
Abstract taken from:
Claudia Delank, The Adventure of Japanese Photography 1860
- 1890,
Kehrer Verlag, Heidelberg
Translated from the German by Gérard A. Goodrow,
Cologne.
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