Ethel

As promised, the third and last real photo postcard from the Philippine (?) envelope.  No, I can't be 100 % sure that all three photos from this small envelope of cards are from the Philippines, but this one looks more  a sure bet than the last one.  There is some information written on the back, "Ethel, one of old pose," but that doesn't give a true location.  Obviously, it's the clothes that do not say North America, so considering the Carving P.I. label from the first card, well why not jump to the conclusion.

Now, for those who have wondered about the "AZO" that is often seen around the stamp block on photo post cards.  The first two cards from this mini series had an "ARTURA"  identifier, while this one has "AZO."  So, what's the difference?  To start with, both are Kodak products.  Artura was made by Kodak from 1905 to 1921, and while the label is almost always seen on pre-manufactured postcard stock, the paper was actually available in a variety of formats.  It was usually used as a contact paper, and since Kodak and a number of early camera and film companies  made products that yielded a negative that was postcard sized, it was a natural for the market.  It tended to produce images with a very slightly green tone.  Artura was discontinued after Kodak lost an antitrust suit, and had to either divest or eliminate some of it's products.

Azo, was also a slow paper best used for contact prints, and like Artura, it came in a variety of sizes.  Azo was noted for having a wide tonal range and could  easily give rich blacks and hold highlights, making it a favorite with amateur printers and photo labs alike.  Azo was originally manufactured by The Photo Materials Co. in Rochester, New York in 1898.  Kodak bought the company the same year, and kept Azo in production until 2005.  It was the longest continuously manufactured photographic paper in history.  In one of the photo labs where I used to work, we would make contact prints  from 8X10 negatives on Azo.