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In Vibhav Kapoor’s Delhi-region home-studio, a tintype portrait is made by preparing a metal plate, exposing it in a large-format camera, and processing it while the plate is still wet. The result is a one-of-a-kind image on metal—not a conventional print made from a negative. Kapoor’s project, which his portfolio dates from 2024 onward, treats the process as a way to make portraits and explore relationships with the local community.
How a wet-plate tintype portrait is made
Wet-plate collodion is a photographic process in which chemistry is part of the image-making sequence. In general practice, the photographer coats a plate with light-sensitive collodion, sensitizes it, exposes it in a camera, and develops it while it is still wet. The plate must move through preparation, exposure, and processing in sequence; unlike a digital camera, the process does not rely on a manufactured sensor to capture the image.
Kapoor describes making each photograph on the spot with a large-format camera, chemistry, and a darkroom at his home-studio. He says his exposure averages about 12 seconds. That is his stated average for this project, not a standard exposure time for all tintype portraits. The available account does not specify his exact chemical recipe or every darkroom step.
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The finished work is a unique image on a sheet of metal. In general wet-plate practice, the image is developed on the plate rather than printed from a separate negative. A distinct glass-plate process, the ambrotype, also uses wet-plate collodion; Kapoor’s portfolio describes his works as tintypes on metal.
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What sitting for a portrait is like
Kapoor invites people to sit for portraits and says they have complete autonomy over how they pose. He describes the slow, conscious process as building a connection among the photographer, camera, and subject. His portfolio uses the language of “darshan” and an exchange of sight to explain that relationship.
Kapoor also calls the portraits “aura/spirit pictures.” That phrase expresses his own interpretation of the images, rather than an objective claim about what the photographic process records. For the sitter, the distinctive feature he emphasizes is participation: choosing how to present oneself while the photograph is made through a deliberate, hands-on sequence.
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Why the plates can vary
Kapoor embraces imperfections that arise amid North India’s changing weather and the volatility of the chemistry. Handmade wet-plate work can vary from plate to plate, but the available description does not identify a specific chemical cause for any particular mark or variation. An irregularity should not automatically be assigned a precise explanation without asking the photographer.
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Kapoor’s portfolio places the work in the Delhi region, describes the setting as his home-studio, and dates the body of work from 2024 onward. It lists the works at 5 by 7 inches. Those are details of this project, not a universal tintype size or a promise about what is currently available to sitters.
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The portfolio describes the photographic practice, but it does not establish whether Kapoor currently accepts public portrait bookings or offers workshops. It also does not state current prices, session timing, delivery arrangements, or care instructions. Anyone considering a sitting should confirm those particulars directly with the photographer rather than assume that the portfolio documents a current service.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Delhi’s other wet-plate history
Delhi has had other public-facing wet-plate work. A 2022 Mint feature covered photographer Sarang Sena’s Class of Yesterday studio in Sainik Farms, describing an opportunity to experience the 150-year-old technique and reporting that chemistry was prepared fresh in a chemical laboratory before being brought to the darkroom. That is a separate photographer and studio; the report does not establish a connection to Kapoor or confirm whether Class of Yesterday is still operating.
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Sources
- Vibhav Kapoor’s portfolio — the artist’s description of his Delhi-region project, process, exposure average, sitter autonomy, image size, dates, and interpretation.
- Mint’s 2022 feature on Class of Yesterday — local historical context about a different wet-plate studio in Sainik Farms.
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