Go Make Something » Altered Photos

Faux Cabinet Cards

Lisa Vollrath — Sat, 16 Feb 2008 16:55:01 +0000

These two antique cabinet cards are complete fakes, made for an altered book layout about a train crash that happened in 1896. They started as a single black and white photo of a train that was taken fairly recently, and printed on glossy stock.

I wish you could hold these cards in your hand, because even when mixed with the real thing, it’s hard to tell they’re fakes. I achieved this effect with a little computer magic and some smart paper choices. Here’s how they were made:

Here’s where I started, with a single black and white photo of a train, and a real cabinet card. I chose this particular cab card because it has a footer that worked for the project—it’s actually from a town in Texas that’s very close to the location of the train crash. It’s also close in size to what I’ll need for my faked photos.

I scanned the train and the cab card, and split them into two files. Using PhotoShop, I recolored the train photo to match the tones of the cab card, and added noise to give the photo a less modern look. Then I duplicated the photo to create my two trains. To keep them from looking so much like a mirror image of the same train, I resized one so it appears larger in the frame.

I printed this on ivory cotton stock, using my color laser printer.

I did a little cleaning of the cab card scan to remove most of the obvious breaks and creases. I also cloned a bit of the frame so the old photo wouldn’t show when the new one was layered over it. I resized the card so the photo would fit on it.

I printed this file on smooth, glossy paper, because the cab card frame is just a bit shinier than the face of the photo. Printing on different papers really helps give the finished product a more realistic look.

I glued the cab card prints to a piece of white chipboard using a glue stick, and paying extra attention to the edges. I really want it to be hard to tell that this top layer was glued in place, since the writing on most cab cards is stamped into the board.

I cut the cards out, rounding the corners slightly.

I cut the new photos out, and glued them onto the cards using a glue stick. These went right over the prints of the old photo, which I used as guides for poisitioning.

Each card was aged with several colors of chalk inks. This helped make them look less like duplicates, and more like individual photos.

Altered Cabinet Cards

Lisa Vollrath — Sat, 06 Jan 2007 16:52:46 +0000

What’s a cabinet card? Here are some examples. They’re old photographs taken late in the 19th century or early in the 20th, mounted on heavy board. They usually have some sort of embossed section on the board, indicating the name of the studio where the photo was taken. They’re called cabinet cards because they were designed to be propped up in cabinets for display, without any sort of framing.

The cabinet cards I purchase for altering are often in pretty bad shape. My favorite antique stores often have cab cards that have been sitting in leaky attics for many years, so they’re usually a little mildewed or foxed. (Foxing is the brown speckled ageing seen on many poorly preserved paper collectibles.) They often start to separate into layers, so before I start altering, I usually do a good once over with a glue stick, gluing down large peeling areas, and also sealing around the whole outer edge for stability.

I had a couple of photos with broken boards. These need a little more than glue stick—they need to be bent back into shape, and glued with a thin layer of Tacky glue or Weldbond, then weighted while they dry. Cards with this much damage also need a little extra planning, since hiding the break may be necessary.

I like to work on the card section separately from the photo, so a little masking is in order. I use tracing paper to trace the shape of the area I want to mask, then cut the shape out.

A little repositionable double-sided tape will hold the mask in place while I work. Even though the tape is designed to be easily removed, it can stick too well to delicate photos. I often run the side of the tape that will touch the photo against my clothing a few times, to pick up a bit of lint, and make it just a little less tacky.

Once the mask is in place, I can give the rest of the dark card a blotchy coat of gesso, applied with a sponge.

When the gesso is dry, a coat of color can be applied. I usually work with several base coat colors, each blended with just a bit of clear acrylic glaze to make it less opaque. Here, I’m working with yellow and two colors of green, from light to dark, overlapping colors a bit. When they’re all down, a quick blot over the whole thing with a sponge blends the colors just a little. Be sure to remove the mask before setting the painted card aside to dry.

Next, I tone the whole background with a little ink. This card got a light coat of green Distress ink dragging over it, picking up the lumps and bumps of the card, as well as the embossed design around the photo. Any ink that sneaks onto the photo can usually be wiped away if the photo is glossy.

To give the painted area a nice finish, and frame the photo, I used a Sharpie to draw a wide line around the oval. Everything gets a good blast of heat from a heat gun to set it.

The photo can be tinted using water-based markers, and a brush. The marker can be applied directly to the photo, and then blended with a slightly wet brush. Try not to work one area for too long, because as the photo gets wet, it begins to absorb differently. Color, brush, and then move on—you can always let the photo dry completely, and then go back and recolor.

I stamped onto the card and photo using some leaf stamps and chalk inkpads. Once again, the whole card gets a good blast from a heat gun to set the inks.

I ornamented this card with some dried flowers. These can be tough to apply without dissolving or crumbling. My method is to apply a good swipe of matte medium, press the flower into it, and then pat a good coat of medium over the flower. Again, a place where you don’t want to overwork—get that flower down, cover it with medium, and then set it aside to dry completely.

Since these cards will hang on the wall when finished, I punched holes on either side of the top edge with a hole punch, then threaded ribbon through and tied bows. The bows are anchored in place with a dab of Tacky glue to make sure they don’t untie when the card is hanging.

I started this second card the same way as the first—by masking off the figure with tracing paper held in place with a little repositionable tape.

Since this card was more photo and less card, I approached it differently, to exploit the glossy surface. I skipped the gesso here, and just blotted on some orange acrylic thinned with a little glaze. I let this dry for a few minutes, then wiped the whole photo with a clean sponge, removing paint in areas where it was still a little damp. I let the photo dry, then dragged a sanding block over the painted areas, roughing it up and removing a little paint here and there.

A little yellow glaze goes over the top of the roughed up surface. Now it’s good and blotchy, and the mask can be removed.

Over the dry glaze, I stamped with an assortment of number stamps and some brown ink. I heat set this immediately, to keep the brown dark, and the yellow-orange bright.

I glued some gears and washers to the card with E6000. Some were already old and aged, and some had to be toned down with a little alcohol ink before gluing.

To clean up the edge of the painted area, and create a crisper glow around the figure, I drew a line around it with an orange Sharpie, then quickly blended the outer edge of it with a little alchol on a cotton swap. I gave the whole photo a good blast of clear spray sealer when it was dry.

I punched holes in the top of the card, and tied some jute twine through them to create a hanging loop. Hanging from either side of the twine, I added some stamped tags and a few metal embellishments.

How To Make Faux Tintypes

Lisa Vollrath — Sat, 03 Jan 2004 16:50:08 +0000

I’ve been collecting vintage photographs for about 15 years. Along the way, I’ve managed to aquire a small collection of tintypes. I thought these would look wonderful in a recent altered book project, but I really didn’t want to give up the real things. My solution was to create some fabulous faux tintypes that were lighter and less fragile than the real things.

(Author’s note: after I first published this article, I had quite a few people write asking me what a tintype is. Bascially, it’s an early form of photo that was printed on a thin sheet of metal. Tins are still available in antique stores and on eBay, but they are becoming increasingly expensive, especially for those of any decent size or quality.)

To make these, you’ll need:

Vintage photos (they don’t have to be tintypes)
A computer
Graphics software (I used Adobe PhotoShop)
A scanner
transparencies compatible with your printer (I used laser transparencies)
Cardstock (I used ivory)
Mylar, foil or flashing (I used aluminum foil)
Adhesive (I used a Xyron machine)
Scissors
Tape

I started out with six old tintypes from my collection. I’ve also used this technique with cabinet cards and old real photo postcards. As long as the image has a good amount of contrast, it can be converted to a convincing tintype.

I scanned my tintypes, and created two copies of the resulting image. With one image, I manipulated the photo portion of the tintypes, cleaning up rough edges, adjusting the brightness of those that were extremely dark, and just generally doing any retouching that was necessary. Once I was happy with the new, improved versions of the photos, I printed them onto a transparency. Since I was low on inkjet ink, I used my laser printer, which gave me black images on a clear background. This technique also works with inkjet printers—it just takes a little longer because there’s drying time involved.

I cut out my transparency images, ran them through my Xyron, and adhered them to the wrong side of aluminum foil. I’ve also done this using both gold and silver mylar, which is shinier, and tin flashing from the hardware store, which gives a totally convincing weight. Since I was looking for less shine and less weight, I decided to give foil a try. Once glued, I cut around the outer edge of my new tintypes, trimming away any excess foil. Those tintypes that came without frames were run through the Xyron again, and adhered to a piece of cardstock to give them a little more body.

With the second scanned image, I made new versions of the tintype frames, and printed them out on cardstock. Since my project called for items that looked aged, rather than cleaning up the frame scans, I actually added a little grubbiness to them. Once printed, I trimmed around the edges and cut away the centers, leaving frames. I taped the new tintypes in place on the back side of the frame. Since these were for an altered book, it wasn’t necessary to finish the backs. If you like, you can finish yours with a piece of cardstock on the back. For a nice touch, do a faux photographer’s mark on the backing before you attach it.

The finished batch of tintypes. In each pair, the original is on the left, and the fake is on the right. Not bad, and definitely the safest way to use some of my lovely tintypes without ruining them.