Wet Plate Collodion Day 2025

Presentation of old, wet plate colodion photographic techniques in Rastoke, Croatia, on the Wet Collodion Day, 3 May 2025

A man in an apron and gloves demonstrates Ambrotype photography with an old-fashioned camera to a visitor in a yellow shirt and backpack. The workshop takes place outdoors on a sunny day in picturesque Rastoke, surrounded by trees.

Sometimes, things just come together.

That was the case on May 3, 2025. On the same day, a gathering of photographers called Foto Kapljica and my presentation of old wet plate collodion photographic techniques—ambrotypes, tintypes, and collodion negatives—were held in Rastoke, Croatia.
But that day is also the World Day of Wet Plate Collodion. Is there a more suitable day to present wet plate collodion than World Wet Plate Collodion Day?
The gathering was very well attended, and the weather was great. A large number of photographers and individuals were delighted with the opportunity to see the old photographic techniques that were practiced 170 years ago in person. I set up a darkroom on site, filmed with a 90-year-old wooden camera with an 18 × 24 cm format, and developed plates that participants and visitors could see and “hold” in their hands.
All the photographers present, regardless of their work in digital technology, were openly delighted to see the whole process live. The richness of halftones (dynamic range) of collodions is such that screens cannot display the quality of tones recorded on the plates.

All in all, it was a beautiful and dear event that I will try to repeat as soon as possible.

A group of eight people in traditional clothing pose outdoors near a river, with a bridge and trees in the background, captured as if for Collodion Wet Plate Day. Most stand while two women sit at the front, all looking at the camera. Collodion negative.

A group of photographers with cameras take pictures outdoors, focusing on a large vintage wooden camera covered by a gray cloth during an Ambrotype workshop in a sunlit wooded area.

A person taking part in a workshop uses an old-fashioned camera covered with a gray cloth near trees and a stone staircase outdoors, as part of Collodion Wet Plate Day by Damir Pildek, with a red van and several people in the background.

Tintype photo of a wooden bridge with stone supports crossing a calm river, taken by Damir Pildek using an old photographic process, with a stone arch bridge in the background and trees lining the riverbank.

Ambrotypist Damir Pildek in a red shirt and apron sets up equipment on a tripod near a tree during collodion wet plate day in Rastoke, as groups of people stroll along a gravel path in the sunlit, wooded park.

A group of people outdoors, some in historical costumes, gathers around an old-fashioned camera on a tripod during a workshop by Damir Pildek exploring an old photographic proces. Trees and wooden structures are in the background on a sunny day.

A group of people, some with cameras and press badges, gather outdoors near a wooden bridge in a wooded area on collodion wet plate day. One man in a red shirt and apron appears to be leading an Ambrotype workshop for the group.

Two men stand outdoors on a gravel path; one, in a yellow shirt with a camera, and the other, in a red shirt and apron with gloves, appear to be at an Ambrotype workshop. Other people and trees are visible in the background on a sunny day.

A group of people stand outdoors on a gravel path in Rastoke’s wooded area, some chatting and others taking photos. One man in an apron and gloves faces another person, suggesting an old photographic process workshop; a red tray with ambrotypes lies nearby.

Two men stand outdoors by a red car and a stone wall. One, wearing a badge, holds a camera—perhaps for collodion wet plate day—while the other, in a red shirt and apron, gestures as they converse. Trees and a river are visible in the background.

Nekad se stvari poklope kako treba. Tako je bilo i 3. svibnja 2025. Isti dan se u Rastokama održavalo druženje fotografa pod nazivom Foto Kapljica i moja prezentacija starih fotografskih tehnika mokrog kolodija – ambrotipije i tintipije te kolodij negativa.
No taj dan je i svjetski dan mokrog kolodija. Ima li podobniji dan za prezentiranje mokrog kolodija od svjetskog dana mokrog kolodija.
Druženje je zaista bilo izuzetno posječeno i vrijeme je bilo super. Bilo je veliki broj fotografa i pojedinaca koji su bili oduševljeni prilikom da u živo vide stare fotografske tehnike koje su se prakticirale prije 170 godina. Na licu mjesta je bila postavljena tamna komora, a snimao sam 90 godina starom drvenom kamerom formata 18 × 24 cm i razvijao ploče koje su sudionici i posjetitelji mogli vidjeti i „primiti“ u ruke.
Kod svih je prisutnih bez obzira na njihov rad u digitalnoj tehnici bilo neskriveno oduševljeni kada su vidjeli cijeli postupak u živo. Bogatstvo polutonova (dinamički raspon) kolodija je takav da se na ekranima ne može prikazati kvaliteta tonova koja je zabilježena na pločama.
Sve u svemu jedan lijep i dragi događaj koji ću pokušati ponoviti što prije.