Ink dating accuracy

But even here the effect is more of a softening of detail than a observable texture.Early real photo postcards are small by their very nature and since most were contact printed, not enlarged, there is no visible texture.A studio sometimes grew to the point where additional photographers were hired but all the photographs produced were published with the original photographers name.At other times a studio might buy out the negative inventory of older photographers and reprinted their images under the current studio name.In printed images the grey areas are usually made up of black marks that are spaced to create the optical illusion of greys.Though most of us today are familiar with the concept of photo grain, this is mostly because we have experienced very large prints made from small 35mm negatives.Most old photo papers used silver in their emulsions.

This gives these images a very matte look not normally associated with photography, and making some easy to confuse with collotypes.This too is not foolproof for many publishers had large stocks of photo papers using them for decades after they stopped being manufactured.NOTE: There were many other photo papers manufactured in addition to those listed on this page, and even these could be made in different finishes from matte to glossy.At least 450 different real photo postcard backs can be found but as of this time there is a lack of accurate information regarding all their dates of use, or they were used in very limited quantities.

Kodak controlled 80% of the paper market with their brands Artura, Azo, Aristo, EKC. Cyko by Ansco, Argo by Defender, and Kruxo by Kilborn comprised most of the remaining market.
