One Day Wet Plate Collodion Workshop
BASIC WET PLATE COLLODION COURSE
Saturday, 4th of July 2026
Photography as a medium has, over its two hundred-year development, achieved remarkable technical capabilities and has become embedded in every aspect of contemporary life. Yet in this process, it has also lost certain qualities. Today, photography is deeply tied to consumer culture, and it is rarely perceived as a miracle anymore. The pioneering inventor of photography, Henry Fox Talbot, described it as The Pencil of Nature. This one-day workshop offers a chance to unplug. In principle, we do not even need electricity, and we certainly do not need computers or phones. What lies ahead is an introduction to one of the earliest photographic techniques, the wet plate collodion process on glass.
WHAT YOU WILL LEARN
The wet plate collodion process was invented in 1851 and was widely used until the end of the nineteenth century. During this workshop, you will learn the fundamentals of this handcrafted photographic method. You will learn how to prepare glass so that it becomes light-sensitive, which chemicals to use and how to handle them safely, how to use a large-format bellows camera to expose the plate, and how to immediately develop, fix, wash, and varnish it. The goal of the workshop is not only for each participant to create their own portrait on glass to take home, but, above all, to experience photography in its most authentic form, as a meeting of chemistry and physics that still feels like a small miracle. The workshop is limited to six participants and lasts approximately nine hours.
NOTES
Each participant receives detailed printed notes, including all recipes, key steps, and a visual
mind map of the entire process. All materials are included in the workshop.
PRICING
The price for the one-day workshop is 350 EUR per person.
Participants under 25 years will receive a 40 percent discount, making the price 210 EUR.
A reservation fee of 100 EUR is required, and the full amount is due at the start of the workshop.
The number of participants is limited to six people.
WHERE?
The workshop takes place in a historic monastery, the Uršulinski samostan Mekinje, located
in the town of Kamnik, Slovenia.
Monastery (Uršulinski samostan, Mekinje) Polčeva pot 10, 1241 Kamnik
(Google Maps Link)
Bonus
The workshop, is considered as completed basic training that gives you the opportunity to later rent a full kit for this process. The kit includes everything from a large-format camera and tripod to chemicals and a portable darkbox for developing plates.
