The history of photogenic drawing

Photogenic drawing was William Henry Fox Talbot’s name for the results of his first cameraless photographic process which he announced in 1839. In its simplest form a smooth high quality sheet of writing paper was immersed in a solution of table salt and then dried. Talbot brushed the paper with a solution of silver nitrate. This combined with the salt to produce silver chloride which is light sensitive. Small objects such as leaves and lace could then be placed on the paper and exposed to sunlight. This produced a light image of the object against a dark background; in other words, a negative image. Process -  Soak writing paper in a weak solution of sodium chloride (common salt). -  When dry, sensitise the paper by brushing one side with a strong silver nitrate solution.  This causes silver chloride to be formed on the surface of the paper. -  Take the photo while the paper is still wet.  An exposure of at least an hour may be needed.  This will imprint an image on the paper. -  Remove the paper from the camera and wash it. -  stabilise (or 'fix') the image on the paper by soaking the paper in a strong solution of sodium chloride. -  This produces a negative image on paper. -  Treat a second sheet of paper with salt + silver nitrate, as above. -  Lay the negative created above on top of the newly-coated sheet of paper + expose to light. -  Wait for a positive image to emerge then fix as above.