Wet Plate Collodion Emulator

Transform modern digital photographs into authentic wet plate collodion images using a physically-based simulation of the 19th-century photographic process.

Launch in browser Download for desktop

Free · No account · Photos stay on your device

Inspired by the darkroom

Explore the response of blue-sensitive silver halides, hand-poured collodion, glass and iron plates, and hand-coated photographic paper. Coating and aging patterns are generated procedurally, with a new arrangement for every seed.

Build a treatment from an editable stack of effects, or start with one of sixteen presets. Compare them in Browse, hover to preview, and randomize to find variations that suit your photograph.

The model follows photographic mechanisms with estimated coefficients. It is an artistic simulation, not a calibrated reproduction of a particular chemical recipe or storage history; RGB images cannot recover ultraviolet information.

Wet Plate application

Interactive preview with real-time parameter adjustment

Physically-Based Simulation

Spectral Sensitivity

Silver iodide and bromide crystals respond to UV and blue light, rendering reds dark and blues bright. Adjust the bromide mix to shift the spectral response.

Collodion Tone Curve

The Hurter & Driffield characteristic curve of collodion: extended toe, short straight-line section, pronounced shoulder. Interactive curve editor.

Halation

Light passes through the emulsion, scatters off the glass back, and re-exposes from behind. Creates the characteristic glow around bright highlights.

Emulsion Variance

Hand-poured collodion creates spatially-varying thickness: flow ripples, drying patterns, and developer streaks. Every plate is unique.

Edge Effects

Collodion thins at edges, pools at the pour corner, and stops with an organic irregular boundary. Layered border transition with chemical fog and silver fringe.

Depth of Field

Simulate the shallow DOF of large format cameras. Linear (tilt-shift) or radial blur with automatic face detection for focus placement.

Choose where to create

Wet Plate 0.5.0 · October 2026

In your browser

Try the complete editor without installing an app. Open local photos and export at full resolution.

Launch in browser

Desktop Chrome tested
Device memory limits apply to large exports.

macOS

The native app for large files, faster exports and opening photos directly from Finder.

Download for macOS

macOS 11+ · Apple Silicon
Signed & notarized · ZIP archive

Windows Experimental

A portable x64 build. Extract the ZIP and run wetplate.exe from the extracted folder.

Download for Windows

Unsigned · Not yet tested on Windows
Includes the required runtime libraries.

How It Works

1. Load an Image

Open a TIFF, JPEG, or JPEG XL file — or drag and drop onto the window. Works with any RGB image, any bit depth.

2. Adjust Parameters

Tweak the spectral response, tone curve, halation, emulsion texture, edge effects, and depth of field. Preview updates in real time.

3. Save & Share

Export as TIFF (8 or 16-bit), JPEG, or JPEG XL. Output bit depth matches your input. Save presets for consistent looks across images.

FAQ

How is this different from Photoshop actions or phone apps?

Wet Plate combines a photographic response model with procedural coating, lens effects and surface aging. Patterns respond to their controls and random seeds rather than repeating a fixed texture overlay. You can enable and tune individual effects in a stack.

What input formats are supported?

TIFF (8 and 16-bit), JPEG, and JPEG XL. The app works with any RGB image. For best results, use 16-bit TIFF or JXL from your raw processor.

Does it work with raw files?

Not directly. Process your raw files in Lightroom, Capture One, or similar, then export as TIFF or JXL. Color profile detection (sRGB, Adobe RGB, ProPhoto) is automatic.

How fast is it?

Interactive previews use smaller images while full-resolution exports retain the source dimensions. Speed depends on the effects, image size and device. The native app uses multiple CPU cores; browser rendering runs in background workers and large exports take longer.

Are my photos uploaded?

No. Both editions process photos on your device. The browser downloads the application, opens files you select, and saves exports through your browser. Your presets and settings can be stored locally in that browser.

What can the browser edition export?

Full-resolution TIFF, JPEG and lossless JPEG XL. TIFF and JPEG XL preserve 8- or 16-bit source precision; JPEG is 8-bit. A 31-megapixel image has been tested in desktop Chrome. Very large files can exceed browser memory limits; use the desktop app if that happens.

What does it cost?

Wet Plate is free.

Contact

Wet Plate is developed by Ryan Mack.

Feedback, bug reports, and example images are welcome at wetplate@mackman.net.