What Is Plate Day? A Hand-Made Portrait, Made the Old Way
An occasional event in Lambertville, NJ — a handful of sitters, a few tintypes made entirely by hand
Plate Day is a rare chance to sit for a real wet plate collodion portrait — a tintype made entirely by hand, in my Lambertville studio. It's not something I run all the time. Every so often I set aside a single day, open a small number of sittings, and make portraits the old way for whoever claims a slot. When the slots are gone, they're gone, and Plate Day closes again until the next one.
If you've been curious about tintypes but weren't sure how to try one, this is the way in.
An outlaw, made the old way — a wet plate tintype, just like the 1800s. Some legends deserve to be captured in silver.
How Plate Day works
It's simple on purpose. On a Plate Day I open just a few sittings — no more. Each is one person, one plate. You sit, I pour and sensitize the plate by hand, expose it in the camera, and develop it right in front of you. Within a few minutes you're holding a finished plate — a real object on metal, yours to keep, that will outlast every photo on your phone.
Why so few sittings?
The process of making a Tintype can't be rushed. Every plate is coated, sensitized, shot, and developed by hand in the few minutes before it dries — so I can only do a handful properly in a day, and I'd rather make a few portraits I'm proud of than rush a dozen.
The theme
Each Plate Day has a theme, and sitters are invited to play along. We set the theme and look forward to what our customers come up with. You don't have to go all-in, but the ones who lean into it always leave with the most striking plates.
Plate Day, and the full experience
Plate Day is the easy door in — a single sitting, on a set day, for people who want to try the process without commissioning a full portrait session. It's occasional and limited by design.
If you already know you want a wet plate portrait — an individual sitting, an engagement or anniversary portrait, something more considered — you don't have to wait for a Plate Day. Those I take by appointment year-round. Plate Day is simply the once-in-a-while chance to walk in and try it.
Caring for your plate
A wet plate tintype is a real, physical object — and with a little care it will outlast you. A few simple things keep it beautiful:
Handle it by the edges. The image sits right on the surface, so avoid touching the face of the plate. Fingerprints can mark the varnish over time.
Keep it dry and out of direct sun. Somewhere room-temperature and away from damp or harsh light is ideal — the same conditions that suit any photograph or artwork.
Dust gently, don't wipe. A soft, dry brush or cloth for dust is fine. Avoid liquids, sprays, or cleaners on the surface. Your plate is finished with a traditional sandarac varnish, which protects the image, but it's still best treated gently.
Display or store it kindly. If you frame it, use a matt or a spacer so the glass doesn't touch the plate surface. If you store it, a soft sleeve or a small box away from other plates rubbing against it keeps it pristine.
Treated well, a tintype doesn't fade the way a print or a phone photo does — plates made in the 1800s still look sharp today. Yours can do the same.
What to expect
The studio sits at 28 North Union Street, 2nd Floor in the middle of Lambertville, New Jersey. Come as you are, or dressed for the theme. The sitting is unhurried — part of it is learning about the history, getting up close to the cameras and watching a photograph come to life in a tray of fixer, which is something most people have never seen and don't forget. You walk out with your plate in hand in 30 mins.
Rose Dunn tintype wet plate collodion portrait re creation!
How to catch the next one
Plate Days aren't on a fixed schedule, and the slots are few — so the only reliable way to get one is to hear about it before it opens.
Join the mailing list and you'll get first notice of the next Plate Day, plus the theme, before any slots go public.
Prefer to book a full sitting now, or have a question?
Studio: Daniel Leocadi Wet Plate Collodion Tintype Portrait Studio, 28 North Union Street, 2nd Floor, Lambertville, NJ
Call or text: 609.845.4811
