Ives got his start as a printer’s apprentice in Ithaca, New York. After two years of learning the ins and outs of the printing process, he began managing the photographic laboratory at nearby Cornell University. He spent the rest of the decade experimenting with new photography techniques and learning about cameras, printers, and optics. In 1881, Ives had a flash of insight regarding a better printing technique. “While operating my photostereotype process in Ithaca, I studied the problem of h...