The negative retouching studio

At ground floor level in the negative retouching studio, in front of a curtained window, to reduce the glare, the negative retoucher is at work; he sits at a specially-equipped desk where a mirror directs the light under the negative, which lies on a frosted glass, with its sensitive surface upwards. A magnifying glass, scrapers, brushes and poster colours, rubbers and pencils, varnish and turpentine are the main tools.