Who am I?
How do ye! My name is Michael Rearden, a tintypist local to Charlotte, North Carolina. I started out back in 2019 with film, just as a hobby. My goal was to try and take photos on century old cameras in an attempt to recreate that antique look but capturing modern life. This led me to “Wet Plate” Photography, more commonly known as Tin Types; a photographic process that’s been around for more than 170 years!
What is a Tintype?
A Tin Type is an image on a sheet of aluminum. The process? Well, first the aluminum plate is coated in salted collodion (a liquid adhesive). It is then brought into total darkness and submerged in a silver-nitrate bath for three minutes. This makes the plate sensitive to light and ready for taking the image. Exposure times usually only last 1-3 seconds, although longer is possible. After this care must be taken as the plate is removed from its holder before developer is poured on. This process takes only 20 seconds before a negative is visible. Next, the plate is added to an acidic “fixer” bath that brings out the positive image!
It really is magic.
My Portfolio
Below you’ll see some of my favorite shots, both tintype and film!
