✨AI Reimagines the Masters✨ Frederick Scott Archer|63/1000

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Introduce briefly

Frederick Scott Archer (1813 – 1 May 1857) was an English photographer and sculptor who is best known for inventing the photographic collodion process, which preceded the modern gelatin emulsion [1]. Here are some key details about Frederick Scott Archer:

Biography:

Frederick Scott Archer was born in either Bishop's Stortford or Hertford, within the county of Hertfordshire, England [1].

He was the second son of a butcher in Bishops Stortford and later went to London to apprentice as a goldsmith and silversmith [1].

Archer trained at the Royal Academy Schools as a sculptor and found calotype photography useful for capturing images of his sculptures [1].

Invention of the Photographic Collodion Process:

Dissatisfied with the poor definition and contrast of the calotype and the long exposures needed, Scott Archer invented the photographic collodion process in 1848 [1].

He published his discovery in The Chemist in March 1851, which allowed photographers to combine the fine detail of the daguerreotype with the ability to print multiple paper copies like the calotype [1].

Archer chose to publish his discovery without patenting it, essentially giving it as a gift to the world [1].

Contributions and Legacy:

Archer's invention of the collodion process greatly increased the accessibility of photography for the general public [1].

As a sculptor, he exhibited at the Royal Academy from 1836 until 1851 [1].

Unfortunately, Archer died impoverished as he did not patent the collodion process and made very little money from it [1].

His family received a gift of £747 after his death, raised by public subscription, and a small pension was provided to support his three children [1].