A Lighthearted Demonstration - RPLOG
From Rusted Promises
Participants
Date
18/3/477
Log
A soft murr leaves Flora's muzzle, the feline moving along the streets, guiding Sveta towards her loft-apartment rather excitedly, grinning like a madwoman. Not that that's anything unusual for the... Excentric feline.
Sveta follows the excited Flora through the streets, the goshawk's wings held close to her body as they push through the mid-morning crowd in Saint's Square. Flora's demeanour is quite infectious - at least, to her, but she keeps her face straight as she follows Flora onwards and...well, through. "I'm a bit surprised you asked me to come over," she says. "I take it this is related to your...um, latest project?"
A grin on Flora's snout, a few quick nods, and the feline points at the projection on the wall, noting the few papers hung up to capture the light. "Flora is making three pictures each day. For testing, yes. Flora is working hard on stabilizing the image, too!" she murrs with a big smirk, before gesturing at the chemical baths. "And Flora had friend Selena make her some lenses to test! Flora is jotting things down and making observations. Flora thinks... Maybe by the end of the week, if Flora is lucky and not distracted. Maybe, yes," she mumbles. "Though Flora still needs to find a cheaper method. The process Flora uses is expensive and complicated."
Sveta looks back and forth, from the papers hung up to dry, then to the image, and finally to the chemical baths. She looks adequately impressed for several moments, then her expression grows comtemplative, especially at the mention of Selena's name. "I think I'm beginning to understand what's going on here," she says. "Correct me if I'm wrong...the lenses capture light and bring it to the paper, much as a telescope does. The light changes the chemicals, causes them to darken. And after the excess is washed away, you get a picture. No doubt I'm immensely simplifying your process, that is the gist, isn't it?"
Flora nods a moment, before pointing at the sheet of of leather. "No lenses... Yet. Flora wants to understand them before she uses them, yes yes," she mumbles softly, silently looking over the room a moment and grinning lightly. "Flora's making good progress, yes... Flora thinks the last time, developing went wrong because there were impurities. Or maybe there was too much light, but Flora tried to shield everything, yes."
"Well, it looks like you're making good progress. Mind if I have a seat?" Sveta looks over at Flora a moment expectantly. "Well, what do you hope to do with your invention when you're finally done with it? That's the main problem that's looming - have you talked to Fenris about it? I don't think artists will be going out of work or fashion because of your invention, but I can imagine some folk being glad they won't have to come for multiple sittings just to have their likeness captured on canvas."
"Flora... Isn't sure yet. Have a seat, yes. Flora doesn't have a lot of places to sit. No touching anything without asking, though. No taking anything," she mumbles, looking out over the room again, tail twitching lightly. "Flora... Flora met this riddlefox yesterday... Flora made a riddle for him, yes. Will ask him and get a picture out of it, yes."
Sveta flaps a bit and finds a suitable place to sit amidst the slightly cluttered confines of Flora's place. "I see. Most of your things look fairly fragile - unlike Angus, I'm not in the habit of touching things just because they're unfamiliar. We're not the Academy in that regard, but most apprentices who go around poking and prodding usually end up with burns, or worse." She coughs. "Anyway, I did hear what happened in the city yesterday - it was impossible not to, to be honest. Although...you have a riddle for him? I suppose..." she looks back and forth between Flora and her setup. "How do you intend to get him to stay still for long enough for a picture to be taken? I believe you told me it takes a while, and he's not the kind to stand still as far as I know. Unless the riddle has something to do with it?"
"Flora will ask it as a prize for giving him a riddle he can't solve, yes. Flora has the best question to ask," she mumbles with a large grin on her snout, her tail twitching lightly as she moves over the optical setup she's jury-rigged together. "Flora is using this to figure the lenses out... Flora thinks... Maybe Flora should use a mirror so Flora can see what she's taking a picture off, then move it away to take the picture... Doesn't have to be fast... Picture takes hours right now... Flora hopes to make that less with the lenses, yes."
"By concentrating the light such that the silver salts react faster. I see. And being able to see what you're going to take a picture of beforeahnd...does that mean all the pictures you have were taken without -" her words pause a moment. She was definitely going to have to talk to Fenris about this. Unless properly presented, it was likely a whole line of me-toos would descend upon this marvellous invention and snap it up. "It seems all so simple after you've explained it, and yet it's surprising how no one has thought of it - until now, that is. But so is a magician's trick."
Flora nods a tad, tail twitching lightly as she looks up at Sveta. "All previous pictures were taken on the wall, yes. Flora could see the image. But if Flora's going to take images of faster things, Flora needs to look via the... Via the box. Flora has a box to show. Does the same as the window. With a mirror. For drawing," she murrs, pulling up a simple camera obscura and offering it to Sveta. "Won't work well here. Works better in the light, but if Flora makes the mirror mobile..."
Sveta gingerly takes the box in hand, full aware of the value of what she's holding. "If it's light you need, I think any apprentice mage would find it easy to conjure one up. First things first, though...how do I use this thing? I'll admit, I'm hesitant to go about fiddling with it lest I break something. Could you guide me?"
Flora nods again, ears flicking. "Light goes in the hole at the front. Point it at the thing to see. The light moves to the mirror, moves to the glass. Can put paper over the glass to draw on... Or a paper with lightpaint-coating, yes."
Sveta turns the box over in her hands and clicks her beak. "I see. So we just put appropriate paper over the glass, point the box at whatever it is, and open the hole?" She looks about her, both at the chemical baths and at the pictures on the walls. "I take it we should go somewhere else for this? Enough light to make a good picture would probably ruin whatever you have going on here."
"Pictures take three hours with the room... Longer with the box, yes. Smaller hole, shorter distance to the screen, less light can go through the hole ,takes longer," she explains softly, silently looking at the images for a moment. "Flora needs to test more to make it faster. It's just impractical now, yes. But Flora can show the process, if friend Sveta wants. Can show how it works without actually doing it, yes."
"I would be glad to see how it works," Sveta replies with a tilt of her head. "A practical demonstration is oftentimes much better than trying to explain with words. Three hours is quite some time, but it still isn't longer than waiting for someone to finish working with paint and canvas. And if you can make it faster...why, everyone could be an artist without having to resort to a soul gem. Even common folk!"
