Happy Monday everyone! Jen Perena here with a behind-the-scenes look at the kallitype process of prepping the paper.
If you’ve read some of my other posts, you know I have been struggling a bit with getting a smooth and even coating. When the coating is uneven the resulting print shows the brushstrokes and can look streaky, patchy, and in some cases, shows spots that were completely missed. While some of the prints are still really interesting (I personally love seeing the mistakes because that image, while not perfect, is still one of a kind!), they are not what I have in mind for my exhibit, so I continue to work at it.
In this post, I wanted to share a little of how I am prepping the paper. The first step, after selecting the paper, is to mix the chemistry emulsion. I am using the standard kallitype solution: x number of drops of ferric oxalate (yellowish) and the same x number of drops of silver nitrate (clear), mixed in a shot glass (add the drops, swirl the glass), and am using this to coat the paper.
I am using a paint brush that we used in class (where I learned the process), though it is not the kind of brush recommended for the process…..but so far my results are mostly good, and being a little superstitious, I am not switching (even though I did buckle down and buy new hake brushes, which are the recommended type….).
The idea is to pick up the chemistry by dipping the brush into the shot glass, then apply the chemistry, in low light, to the paper.
You brush back and forth, criss crossing the paper in all directions, to move the chemistry around and ensure the surface is evenly coated. The light is low, so you do your best, and when the paper dries (and I should have tried to get a pic, but I forgot – sorry!), it is yellowish (from the ferric oxalate) and should show if the coating is mostly even.
If you use less chemistry, you can coat a smaller area, and that is what gives you the brush stroke detail at the edges of the image; if you use more chemistry you can coat outside the ‘borders’ of the negative/image dimensions, and that is what gives the thick dark brown/black border showing the brushstrokes.
I am in the habit of letting the paper ‘rest’ for a few minutes before I force dry it. If you had enough time to wait for the paper to fully dry you could skip force drying the coated paper, but due to the humidity in the room, and my desire to use my time in the darkroom efficiently, I use the hair dryer, on the low setting, drying the back first, then the front, til the paper is ‘bone dry’. You test it by lightly touching it with the back of your hand. If you detect any moisture/coolness, you keep drying. (If you are in a hurry and don’t dry the paper all the way, the ink from the digital negative will stick to the paper during exposure, ruining the negative….I have personally learned this lesson…lol)
Once the paper is dry, you put it in the light box with the negative. It is a contact print, so you have to align the negative within the coated area, which, luckily, even in dim light you can see, making sure that there are no hairs or debris ‘stuck’ in the coating that could impact the print.
Then you expose the image for the desired number of minutes. I am doing 5-6 minutes for each one right now.
In my next post I’ll share a little about the development, toning and fixing stages!