Gezicht op schepen op de rede van Soerabaja c. 1860 - 1870

This photograph of ships at anchor in Soerabaja was made by Woodbury & Page, a studio operating in the Dutch East Indies. It uses the wet collodion process, where a glass plate is coated, sensitized, exposed, and developed on-site, while still wet. The final albumen print is the result of a complex series of chemical reactions, each demanding precise control. The process was painstaking, and the finished product, while fascinating, often romanticized colonial life. Note how the tonal range is quite narrow, and the definition soft. This was due to the limitations of the materials themselves. Also think about the labor involved: the photographers hauling equipment, preparing chemicals, and processing plates under demanding conditions. The photograph might seem a straightforward depiction, but it is also the product of a specific time, place, and technology. It reveals as much about the colonial project and the aspirations of its makers, as it does about the ships themselves.