Lippmann Process: The Only Full-Spectrum Color Photography
Science educator Steve Mould's new video explores the Lippmann process, an early color photography technique developed by Gabriel Lippmann in 1891. The process uses interference patterns in a panchromatic emulsion to create structural color, producing full-spectrum images unmatched by modern RGB methods. Lippmann won the 1908 Nobel Prize in Physics for this invention. Jon Hilty, a leading autochromist, provided Mould with Lippmann plates and explains the science. Spectrometer analysis reveals the plates encode actual spectral data. Despite its accuracy, the process has drawbacks: no reprints, long exposure times, restricted viewing angles, and sensitivity to errors. Hilty may be the world's only living photographer using the autochrome process, which superseded Lippmann's method. Mould's video highlights the unique properties of Lippmann plates, which remain the earliest multi-spectral light measurements on record.
Key facts
- Gabriel Lippmann developed the Lippmann process in 1891.
- The process won the 1908 Nobel Prize in Physics.
- Lippmann plates use interference patterns to create structural color.
- They are the only known way to permanently reproduce a full spectrum of color.
- Steve Mould's video uses a spectrometer to compare Lippmann plates to standard photos.
- Jon Hilty is a preeminent autochromist and provided the plates.
- Drawbacks include no reprints, long exposures, and narrow viewing angles.
- The autochrome process by the Lumière brothers replaced Lippmann's method.
Entities
Artists
- Gabriel Lippmann
- Steve Mould
- Jon Hilty
- Auguste Ponsot
Institutions
- Nobel Prize
- Lumière brothers
Locations
- Luxembourg
- France