Wiping the Dust at the Five-Hundred-Stone Grotto Heaven, Vol. 5

...be successful. If one does not understand chemistry, one cannot blend the liquids. In the last ten years, dry plates have become popular. Even if one does not know chemistry, one can buy a copy of the book translated and compiled by Mr. John Fryer original: "Fu Lan Ya" of the Scientific Book Depot, and one can understand it in half a day. However, those photographers who do not know chemistry but understand optics are often far better than the crowd. Truly, when taking a picture, the boundaries of light and shadow are all related to optics. Chinese people who engage in this trade use it to replace portraits for their livelihood. I have heard that Westerners started this art, and there are other meanings in it. Today, all kinds of maps are entrusted to it as a draft. Everywhere there is learning; why should photography be any different?

Since photography began, those who were previously entrusted only to a meeting of the spirit can now see each other clearly. For instance, Gao Taichi Chong of Suzhou, Qiu Zhongchi Jietong of Shunde, Liu Tongxuan Hongzao of Heyang, and Nagai Soseki Wan of Japan. After a long time, they have all become friends with this humble person. These four gentlemen do not live in the same place and did not emerge at the same time. Their distance from me in the southeast is more than seven thousand miles. Ordinarily, there was no communication between us. Zhongchi became friends by reading my poems, Tongxuan by recording the history of orchids, and Soseki by seeing my solicitation for poems.