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| | A History of Photography, by Robert Leggat: LATENT IMAGE, The (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-11-07) |
 | | The earliest exposures were very long indeed, and photographers would peer into the camera to inspect the image as it appeared. |
 | | At the time it had been assumed that if the image did not appear, no change had occurred. |
 | | Fox Talbot both independently and, it seems, accidentally, discovered that whilst short exposures produced no visible image, if one were to treat exposed plates with the fumes of heated mercury, an image would start to appear. |
| www.rleggat.com /photohistory/history/latent_i.htm (156 words) |
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