Photography Encyclopedia:
Sir William de Wiveleslie Abney |
Abney, Sir William de Wiveleslie (1843-1920), influential British photographic scientist whose early interest in photography was encouraged by the army while he was a junior officer in the Royal Engineers. Following service in India, Abney became an instructor in chemistry and photography at the School of Military Engineering, Chatham, a post that allowed him to undertake photographic research and devise a new photolithographic printing process. He left Chatham in 1877 to become a civil servant in the Department of Science and Art, where he soon became a major figure in British photography.
Abney undertook significant research on the chemistry of the newly introduced gelatin halide emulsions and was responsible for the introduction of hydroquinone as a developing agent. His introduction of silver gelatin citrochloride emulsions led to the mass marketing of printing-out paper (POP). He was a prolific author, writing for both specialist practitioners and amateurs. It was Abney who was largely instrumental in establishing a photographic collection at the South Kensington Museum, later to become the Science Museum Collection and form the basis of the National Museum of Photography, Bradford.
— John P. Ward
Bibliography
- Obituary,
Proceedings of the Royal Society (Series A),99 (1921)
