Dufaycolor
Encyclopedia
Dufaycolor is an early French
and British
additive color
photographic film
process for motion picture
s and stills photography
. It was based on a four-color screen photographic process invented in 1908 by Frenchman
Louis Dufay. Dufaycolor worked on the same principles as the Autochrome process, but achieved its result using a slightly different method.
consisting of a mesh of red, green and blue lines, at approximately one million color elements per square inch, known as a reseau.
When exposed to light through the reseau, the film's emulsion was exposed to a single color of light. Thus the emulsion behind each color element recorded the tones for each primary color.
Upon projection, the reseau served to filter the white projected light, so that the colors of the photograph corresponded to those in the recorded scene; for example, red values were only shown in red. The same principle applied to green and blue components.
(1934) for two sequences, and Sons of the Sea
(1939), an all-color film directed by Maurice Elvey
. Dufaycolor was also used in some short films; Len Lye
, for instance, used Dufaycolor for his short films Kaleidoscope (1935), A Colour Box (1935), and Swinging the Lambeth Walk (1940).
Although less expensive than Technicolor
, Dufaycolor was still expensive in comparison to black-and-white
film. As color became more common in motion pictures, Dufaycolor was superseded by technologically superior processes, such as Technicolor
and Kodachrome
. Dufaycolor remained the only successfully implemented additive film stock for motion pictures until Polaroid
designed a system using similar principles in the 1970s.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
additive color
Additive color
An additive color model involves light emitted directly from a source or illuminant of some sort. The additive reproduction process usually uses red, green and blue light to produce the other colors. Combining one of these additive primary colors with another in equal amounts produces the...
photographic film
Photographic film
Photographic film is a sheet of plastic coated with an emulsion containing light-sensitive silver halide salts with variable crystal sizes that determine the sensitivity, contrast and resolution of the film...
process for motion picture
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
s and stills photography
Photography
Photography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
. It was based on a four-color screen photographic process invented in 1908 by Frenchman
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
Louis Dufay. Dufaycolor worked on the same principles as the Autochrome process, but achieved its result using a slightly different method.
How it worked
The film base was dyed blue, printed with a mosaic using a resistive greasy ink and bleached. The resulting spaces were then dyed green. The process was repeated at an angle, the new spaces being bleached and dyed red, forming a mosaic of color filtersFilter (optics)
Optical filters are devices which selectively transmit light of different wavelengths, usually implemented as plane glass or plastic devices in the optical path which are either dyed in the mass or have interference coatings....
consisting of a mesh of red, green and blue lines, at approximately one million color elements per square inch, known as a reseau.
When exposed to light through the reseau, the film's emulsion was exposed to a single color of light. Thus the emulsion behind each color element recorded the tones for each primary color.
Upon projection, the reseau served to filter the white projected light, so that the colors of the photograph corresponded to those in the recorded scene; for example, red values were only shown in red. The same principle applied to green and blue components.
Development
In 1926, the Dufaycolor process was purchased by British paper manufacturing firm Spicers. The firm then funded research to turn Dufaycolor into a workable color motion picture film process. In 1932, Spicers finally released Dufaycolor as a motion picture process.Use in motion pictures
Dufaycolor was used in only two British-made feature films; Radio Parade of 1935Radio Parade of 1935
Radio Parade of 1935 , released in the USA as Radio Follies, is a British comedy film directed by Arthur B. Woods and starring Will Hay, Clifford Mollison and Helen Chandler.-Plot:...
(1934) for two sequences, and Sons of the Sea
Sons of the Sea (film)
Sons of the Sea is a 1939 British drama film directed by Maurice Elvey and starring Leslie Banks, Kay Walsh, Mackenzie Ward and Cecil Parker.-Synopsis:...
(1939), an all-color film directed by Maurice Elvey
Maurice Elvey
Maurice Elvey was the most prolific film director in British history. He directed nearly 200 films between 1913 and 1957. During the silent film era he directed as many as twenty films per year....
. Dufaycolor was also used in some short films; Len Lye
Len Lye
Len Lye, born Leonard Charles Huia Lye , was a Christchurch, New Zealand-born artist known primarily for his experimental films and kinetic sculpture. His films are held in archives such as the New Zealand Film Archive, British Film Institute, Museum of Modern Art in New York City, and the Pacific...
, for instance, used Dufaycolor for his short films Kaleidoscope (1935), A Colour Box (1935), and Swinging the Lambeth Walk (1940).
Although less expensive than Technicolor
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
, Dufaycolor was still expensive in comparison to black-and-white
Black-and-white
Black-and-white, often abbreviated B/W or B&W, is a term referring to a number of monochrome forms in visual arts.Black-and-white as a description is also something of a misnomer, for in addition to black and white, most of these media included varying shades of gray...
film. As color became more common in motion pictures, Dufaycolor was superseded by technologically superior processes, such as Technicolor
Technicolor
Technicolor is a color motion picture process invented in 1916 and improved over several decades.It was the second major process, after Britain's Kinemacolor, and the most widely used color process in Hollywood from 1922 to 1952...
and Kodachrome
Kodachrome
Kodachrome is the trademarked brand name of a type of color reversal film that was manufactured by Eastman Kodak from 1935 to 2009.-Background:...
. Dufaycolor remained the only successfully implemented additive film stock for motion pictures until Polaroid
Polaroid Corporation
Polaroid Corporation is an American-based international consumer electronics and eyewear company, originally founded in 1937 by Edwin H. Land. It is most famous for its instant film cameras, which reached the market in 1948, and continued to be the company's flagship product line until the February...
designed a system using similar principles in the 1970s.
See also
- Color motion picture film
- List of color film systems
- List of film formats
- GasparcolorGasparcolorGasparcolor was a color film system, developed in 1933 by the Hungarian chemist Dr. Bela Gaspar. It used a subtractive 3-color process on a single film strip, one of the earliest to do so....
- Early Color Feature Filmography
External links
- Color Photography - Dufaycolor, a 1938 article on the process.
- Dufaycolor - The Spectacle of Reality and British National Cinema, a recent article on the process and the history of its use.