My darkroom

My Darkroom is in the basement of the house my friends and I are renting, it occasionally floods after a rainstorm. The set up cost was about 50 USD. The light proofing comes from tinfoil on the windows, and the 'walls' of the darkroom are 3mil contractor plastic. The basement is super gross so after I hung the plastic I cleaned the floor with a vengeance.

Poitevin's Direct Positive Process: Part 2

I've spent another afternoon in the laboratory trying to get a readable print with Poitevin's process. I posted a plea for help on apug but no luck so far. To advance any further than I have with my efforts I'm going to have to suck it up and buy A Treaty on Photography which will hopefully have some more tips. The failed procedures after the break.

'Poitevin's Direct Positive'

Its a snow day here in maine, and i had the required chemicals around so I just gave the formula found here a go. The source appears to be similar to this version except at appears to be leaving out the gelatin. After a 30 min exposure and a water development i have something of an image (really just some recognizable dark shapes visible against the staining). My second attempt was with a stoffers step wedge and is found at the start of this post.

Attempt 1: Result Failure

Mix the two ingredients together then brush apply to a gelatin sized printmaking paper (I used bfk white).

1/4 inch cube of artist grade liquid watercolor paint

5ml of sensitizing solution

Sensitizing solution:

5 grams ferric chloride

1.5 citric acid 50 ml water

(remember to add acid to water! I forgot and got an awesome steam puff)

Exposed for 30 minutes with negative and test wedges, then developed in hot running water.

Attempt 2: Result Failure

Make a 5% gelatin solution by adding 1 packet of knox gelatin (about 7 grams) to 100 ml of cold water. Let swell for 15 minutes then add cold water to bring the solution to 150ml water. Bring solution to 140* f and maintain the temperature until all the gelatin is disolved. Add 1/4" cube of pigment to the gelatin and stir until an even mixture is created.

Publish Post

Float/brush apply to paper, then while wet float on the same sensitizing solution found in attempt 1.

Expose with test wedges for 30 minutess and develop in hot running water.

Trash-o-type

Whats with the obsession with "-o-types"?

The above image is what I've been calling a trash-o-type. It is made (or should I say discovered?) when a piece of photosensitive paper is discarded. As the paper sits in the trash it will come into contract with photochemistry residue from all sorts of darkroom related trash. It is 'finished' by a prewash, a fixer bath, then a final wash. After the jump is a narration of the creation process for a typical trash-o-type.