RB Design

All Things Photography

1. Michael 01.14.10 / 6pm

   RB
   my memory may be as foggy as the paper but I keep thinking that it was a portrait paper made for machine or volume processing ektalure, panalure — wasn’t panalure the one for printing b&w from color negs?
   Was it one of those papers with some developer in the emulsion (stored too warm starting to self develop??)

   good luck with the lith, you may have to reserve it for photos with no whites.
   Good luck on the adventure
2. RB 01.14.10 / 7pm

   Michael,

   Ektalure was only available in a single grade it was a fiber paper and definitely not designed specifically for machine processing. I do not believe it was a DI paper based on how slow the image comes up (even good stuff that I used to use when fresh).

   Here is Kodak’s blurb:

   KODAK EKTALURE Paper is a medium-speed, single contrast, warm-tone, double-weight, black-and-white, fiber-base paper. It is designed for making enlargements and contact prints with reduced illumination. EKTALURE Paper is particularly suited to portraiture and to display and salon work. You can also use it for copy and restoration work, fine-art applications, and hand-coloring.
   It is available in G surface in a variety of sheet sizes.

   RB
3. Michael 01.15.10 / 9am

   OK, I remember the G surface with an ever so slight “tooth” to facilitate hand coloring or pencil retouching in portraiture.
   The one grade was “enough” because it was a studio paper and you were supposed to tailor your lighting & development to produce negatives that printed well.
   I never used it but it brings back memories of 5×7 split back negatives, retouching stands, pencil retouching on the negative, and hand opaquing with rustoleum colored water based goo.
   As well as Rembrandt Portrait cameras with fixed fronts and rise/fall, tilt/swing, & shift on the back standard.
   “Focus on the near eye, swing to the far eye”, Packard Shutters, & big hot lights 2k’s 1k’s, broads, & inkies.
   Oh, I can’t forget “The Drape” for the young ladies.
   I still have a 5×7 sliding split back somewhere.
   I think I’ll leave it where ever it’s resting .
4. Michael 01.15.10 / 9am

   RB
   Since the paper is fogged to some degree, it is essentially “Flashed” – partially exposed to get over the threshold of exposure–a technique used to help with supercontrasty negatives so I see where you’re going with the Lith developer.
   You could also try solarization (exposure to light while in the developing tray to provide a partial reversal of tones).
   Ive never been a huge fan, but for certain subjects it can work and give a look unobtainable in any other way.
   Good Luck
5. RB 01.15.10 / 9am

   Michael,

   Yep that is the paper – the surface is unique.

   My thought on the lith is that I am going to need 2 to 3 times more exposure than normal essentially nullifying the “flash” fog exposure (even in the highlights at G 2 1/2) and then play around with the lith dilutions / water baths to get the tonal relationships that I want for a particular negative. It’s warm base and emulsion will make for an attractive lith print – the print that I am playing with at the top of the post actually has a slightly lith “feel” to it if you squint your eyes a little because the fog overlay is not 100% even – it is actually very patterned sort of like you get with the lith infectious development effect.

   RB

   Ps. Even the print that I scanned is attractive in it’s own way in person.
6. Michael 01.15.10 / 2pm

   RB
   It’s actually a good lesson in using processes and materials to bring out unique qualities of a special or difficult negative or in your case making a special negative in order to take advantage of a special material or process.
   Literally a gray area between photography and traditional print making, that is illustrative of the power of the darkroom.
   Good luck.
   Before 8×10 polaroid I would occasionally develop a test shot in strait dektol – comes up fast gets contrasty fast, you could try that. ??

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