Wet-Plate Collodion

Sunshine Tintypes

Sunshine Tintypes is the work of Raoul, a Sunshine Coast photographer based in Pomona. Using the wet-plate collodion process — the dominant photographic technology of the 1850s — Raoul creates authentic, one-of-a-kind portraits on hand-poured, silver-coated metal plates. The result is not a print, not a file — it is a physical object, luminous in natural light, archival for over a century.

Raoul working with the wet-plate collodion camera

Artist Statement

“My practice is rooted in wet-plate collodion — a photographic alchemy that flourished between 1851 and the 1880s. A metal or glass plate is coated in gun cotton dissolved in ether, bathed in silver nitrate, and exposed while still wet. The image must be made and fixed within five minutes — a constraint that binds me entirely to the studio and the darkroom. I have been learning this process slowly, through portraits of friends, family and colleagues — each plate a negotiation between chemistry, light and time. Consistency is elusive, and I have come to embrace that. The challenge I set myself now is to work in sequences: multiple plates from a single sitting, images that hold together as a body of work.”
— Raoul

Recognition & Legacy

Raoul Slater does not arrive at wet-plate collodion as a hobbyist. He arrives as one of Australia's most decorated and widely respected photographers — a career spanning decades, disciplines and continents.

Before the darkroom, there was the field. Raoul spent years as a nature and wildlife photographer of international standing, his work recognised across countless categories and competitions worldwide. He was a core contributor to the landmark Slater Field Guide to Australian Birds — the definitive reference work written by his parents, Peter and Pat Slater, foundational figures in Australian natural history illustration. Raoul grew up immersed in that tradition of patient, exacting observation. It shows in everything he makes.

His commercial and artistic practice has taken him across the breadth of the photographic world — from wildlife and landscape to fine art commissions, including works created for Floating Land, one of Queensland's most celebrated environmental art events. He has entered, and won, across as many categories as the medium offers.

Now, with wet-plate collodion, he brings that same rigour and artistic lineage to a process that predates the camera roll entirely. The results speak for themselves.

In 2025, Raoul was named a finalist in the National Photographic Portrait Prize — one of the most prestigious portrait photography awards in Australia. He was also recognised as a finalist in the Nyland Awards for his tintype work — acknowledgement from the photographic community that this ancient process, in his hands, is producing work of genuine contemporary significance.

National Photographic Portrait Prize 2025 — Finalist

Preparing for Your Portrait

My ideal session is bare shoulders and naked emotion as you deliver a message through time to your great-grandchildren: “This is who I am”. Maybe you are wearing an heirloom around your neck that will pass down through your family along with the photo.

Keep your make-up simple. Tintypes love big eyes and red lips. They are not so keen on shiny areas, UV sunblock, or rouged cheeks.

Tattoos are unpredictable – sometimes they look amazing, and sometimes they disappear entirely. We can have a go but be prepared for them to be patchy.

We can work something precious into your photo. Old jewellery is good, bling can work, vintage is fantastic. Think grandma’s dressmaking scissors or your dad’s Olympic medal.

Wear something that reveals who you are. Textures and designs are good. Big buttons or sequins. Uniforms. Very black and very white clothes are the enemy of tintype.

Hats can be great, but you need confidence to make them work! I use an eye-lighter which will make your eyes look amazing.

Couples, you should work on how you fit together. Work out where your heads and hands want to be. I’ll move you around a little, but mostly so that your eyes are the same distance from the camera so that they are all in focus. I’d prefer to see some pole-dancing, with one of you as the pole, rather than “American Gothic”.

It is worth working on your expression in a mirror. Unlike digital, we don’t get a lot of goes. You need to nail it. Do you want to be warm or serious? Do you want to be straight on or looking sideways through your hair. I’ll give you feedback in the moments before we shoot but bring something of yourself to the shoot.

Pets and small children are technically difficult. They can move out of focus or blur during a long exposure. I’ve taken some crackers and have a few tricks to reduce the number of dud shots, but you may have to lower your expectations a little.

I’m up for any idea you might have, as long as it will fit in a 3m square studio or on a sloping driveway. I’ve been photographing a long time and know how the process works backwards. If you want to be a mermaid (like Freya did), I can make a pool out of black plastic and fill it with milk. Let’s have some fun together.

Ready to book?

Now that you know what to expect, let’s create something timeless together.

Book a Session

Make a Day of It

The wet-plate collodion process takes time — your plate needs around 90 minutes to fully fix and dry after your session. Rather than waiting around, we recommend making a half-day or day-trip out of your visit to Pomona. The town and surrounding hinterland have plenty to offer while your portrait comes to life.

Spill De Beans

A Pomona institution — part cafe, part jungle. Great coffee, generous breakfasts, and a lush courtyard strung with fairy lights. The perfect spot to settle in while your plate dries.

Pomona Village Kitchen

A warm, welcoming cafe with locally sourced produce, fresh baking, and a genuine community feel. Excellent lunch spot right on the main street.

Pomona Distilling Co.

Small-batch craft spirits made on site. Tastings, cocktails, and a relaxed courtyard tucked behind rustic timber doors. A unique hinterland experience.

Pomona Hotel

A classic Queensland country pub with wide verandahs, cold beers, and honest bistro meals. Been here since 1909 — not a bad spot to raise a glass to your new tintype.

Mount Cooroora

A rewarding hike with panoramic views across the hinterland to the coast. The summit scramble takes about an hour — enough time to work up an appetite and let your plate cure.

Cooroora Creek Park

Shady trees, open green space, and views of Mount Cooroora. Ideal for families, a quiet picnic, or simply stretching your legs between sessions.

Majestic Theatre

One of Australia's oldest continuously running cinemas, built in 1921. Catch a film, browse the vintage lobby, or just admire the heritage facade — it feels like stepping back in time.

Pomona Farmers Market

Every second and fourth Saturday morning. Local growers, artisan produce, plants, and handmade goods. Time your session right and make a morning of it.

An Art Before It Was a Technology

Wet-plate collodion camera and studio equipment

Chemistry as Medium

Wet-plate collodion predates the darkroom as we know it. A metal plate is hand-poured with gun cotton dissolved in ether, bathed in silver nitrate, and rushed to the camera while still chemically alive. The exposure must be made and the image fixed within five minutes — before the chemistry dies and the moment with it. There is no retry. There is no preview. There is only the plate, the light, and the decision.

No Two Are the Same

Every imperfection in the pour, every variation in the light, every shift in the chemistry produces an image that could not have existed any other way. The swirls, the tones, the quiet aberrations — these are not flaws. They are the fingerprint of the moment. Raoul works across traditional metal, stained glass, and pressed vinyl records, each surface lending its own character to the image it holds.

A Living Photograph

Most photographs are discovered later — pulled from a camera roll, edited on a screen, delivered as a file. A tintype is none of these things. You are present for its entire life. You watch the silver respond to light. You watch your face emerge from the chemistry. What you hold at the end is not a reproduction — it is the original, the only, the actual event.

Built to Outlast Us

A well-made tintype will survive a century without fuss. No file corruption. No format obsolescence. No cloud subscription required. The same process that preserved the faces of Civil War soldiers, gold rush prospectors and Victorian families now preserves yours — in a studio in the Noosa hinterland, by a photographer who has spent a lifetime learning how to see.