Back in the twentieth century, before digital cameras and Photoshop replaced film and darkrooms, photographers and magazine editors the world over used a light table (or a portable version, a light box) to look at slides. Most color pictures in books and magazines started out as slides; and far more slides were viewed on light tables than were ever projected.
A light table is a rather simple device: a pane of frosted glass with color-corrected fluorescent lights behind it. Put a slide on it— or often, a whole clear plastic “page” of slides— and the colors of the pictures shine through in all their brilliance, better than you’d ever see in a print.
This Web site is my light table. On it you can view some of the
travel,
scenic,
and “fine art” pictures I’ve taken.
Since my light table is virtual— computer jargon for something
simulated in software— the background is black instead of the
glaring white of a real light table. That’s much easier on the eyes!
Using a real light table usually means squinting at slides through a
magnifier. My virtual light table has a virtual magnifier, but you don’t
need to squint. Just click on any small “slide” and you’ll see a page
with a larger version of the picture. The “magnified” page will tell you
the picture’s title and the year I took it, along with any explanation
that might be appropriate. You can try it with the “slides” on this page. Click the blue BACK button at the bottom of each page (or use your browser’s BACK button) to return here.
Larger version of picture |
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On a few pages that are “menus” for a collection of related pages—
such as the Virtual Light Table home
page or the Travel Photo Essays page—
the pictures are samples that link to each page or section.
But you can use the “magnifier” by clicking on the
Larger version of picture link underneath or next to the picture.
I’m frequently adding new pages and pictures to my virtual light table. So please come back and visit often to see what’s new!
| Virtual Light Table Home |