Gum-Bichromate and Platinotype Printin <^%is Modern Printing Processes Gum Bichromate and Piatinotype Papers The Preparation, Printing and Developing of Gum Bichromate Papers. The Manipulation of Piatinotype Papers by the aid of Glycerine and Bichloride of Mercury, Etc. BY HENRY G. ABBOTT, Author of Modern Photography in Theory and Practice, Progressive Lessons in Photography, Etc. CHICAGO GEO. K. HAZLITT & CO., PUBLISHERS. Copyrighted 1900 By Geo. K. Hazlitt & Co. PREFACE. As a rule, the painters of this and other countries are prejudiced against photography and they argue that it is simply a mechanical process and hence can never be recognized as Art. Their argument has always been that a work of art must possess a dis- tinct individuality ; that a mere copy of nature, a chunk of so many feet cut out from a landscape, just as it happened to appear to the man with the camera, is not Art, no matter how faithfully nature is copied. They hold that a person viewing a land- scape does not see all of it with equal distinctness, and that the prominent object or objects, whether situated in the foreground or middle foreground, must be more prominent than the balance of the picture, and that right here is one of the great faults of photography ; that the lens sees all parts of the view with equal clearness or sharpness, and that this sharpness is the chief detriment when the picture is viewed from an artistic standpoint. Knowing the sentiment of painters in regard to photography, and having carefully noted their criticisms, certain work- ers have revised their methods of focusing and ex- posure, so as to make the results conform more closely to the tastes of the critics ; but even then the results were not satisfactory, when ordinary printing-out papers, with extremely high finish, were employed in making the prints. Papers, then, which gave softer results, were looked for and the choice of such workers naturally fell upon platinotype and gum- bichromate papers, the former to be purchased from any dealer and the latter to be made by the photog- rapher. These papers were chosen because the operator could, by their use, put more or less of his individu- ality into his work, and the resultant print need not be a mere copy of nature. This is more largely true of gum-bichromate than of platinum prints, and, in fact, it may be said that no two gum-bichromate prints from the same negative are exactly alike. Given, then, a negative with any reasonable amount of artistic value in it and the worker can produce results in pictorial photography which certainly will pass for art with the public, providing he has ability in this line himself. The mere negative and paper will not of themselves produce artistic results any more than any other photographic process, and the operator to produce such results must have more or less artistic feeling. The Philadelphia salons of 1898 and 1899, the Chi- cago Salon of 1900 and the various exhibits given at camera clubs, have done much towards educating amateur photographers to a higher standard and many who were content with glac£ prints are now working the more artistic processes. The two papers tinder discussion, together with carbon, are recognized the world over as the most permanent in their nature and the life of the print is limited only by the life of the stock which is coated. The only exception possible is the platinotype print which has been toned with bichloride of mercury or uranium. Uranium and mercury are unstaple com- modities, and their actions vary greatly under dif- ferent chemical conditions. Of the gum-bichromate print it may truthfully be said that it is as permanent as it is possible to have anything in photography, and the resulting print is nothing more or less than a water-color picture, produced semi-mechanically, there being nothing but pigment and paper. With this brief summing up of the subject let us proceed to the practical side, starting with the gum- bichromate process. H. G. A. Digitized by the Internet Archive in-2016 https://archive.org/details/modernprintingprOOabbo The Gum-Bichromate Process. It is quite essential that those who contemplate working the process should have at least a general knowledge of the principles underlying it, for there are few photographic processes which are so simple that they will work out their own conclusions, and this process is not one of them. To read over many of the hand books on the subject one would be led to believe that it is only necessary to mix together so much gum, pigment and bichromate, expose and then place the paper in cold water and nature does the rest. As a rule these books do not point out the failures and their remedies and they deal with the quantities in a very vague way, so that many who have tried the process and met with fail- ure from the start, have given it up in despair. The principle underlying the entire process is that many, if not all gums, when mixed with the bichromates and exposed fully to light, become insoluble, more or less, in cold water. This princi- ple is taken advantage of by mixing certain pig- ments with the gum, which does not seem to effect the results, except in a limited way. The process is worked out in two different ways but the results are identical. The paper may be coated with a 10 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. mixture of gum, pigment and bichromate, or the paper may first be sensitized with the bichromate and a mixture of gum and pigment applied over it. The prepared paper is then dried in the dark and printed either in the sun or a good light, under an ordinary negative. The printing being completed, the paper is placed in a tray of cold water, say for ten or fifteen minutes, when that portion of the pig- ment which has not been affected in any degree by light will begin to melt or soften and run away in the water. The half-tones of the picture next dis- solve slightly and thus give form to the picture. Those who have worked the carbon process will readily understand the action of the light and water, as the two processes are more or less similar. In the carbon process a heavier coating of pigment is given and the sensitizer is applied to the face of the pigment, so that a transfer is necessary in order to prevent the half-tones washing away. In the gum- bichromate process a light coating is given the paper and with care there is no danger of the important half-tones washing away and so no transfer is neces- sary. Some of the half-tones do wash away and are lost. The action of the light and water on line paper will be perhaps better understood by consult- ing the annexed figure. By examining this figure it will be seen that if fully exposed, the pigmented surface will be printed MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. I I clear through to the paper on those portions which lie under the clear glass of the shadows and those portions which lie under the half-tones of the negative will be printed more or less through the pigment, according as the light is allowed to penetrate through the developed film of the negative. Again glancing at the figure, we can readily see that if the coating on- the paper be too heavy there will be great danger of the half- tones being undermined by the unexposed por- tions softening and washing away and the half-tones then having no support are also liable to collapse and be entirely destroyed by the water. From this, then, w r e learn that a thin coating is quite necessary and this is a point which must be borne in mind, for it is just where fifty per cent of the failures occur. Now as to the paper to be used. Almost an)' linen stock will answer, providing it is thick enough to handle w hile coating and washing and has a sur- face smooth enough to coat evenly. If the paper be too thin it will watp while coating and curl while drying and washing and give trouble generally and 12 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. for this reason a medium weight paper should be selected ; if not a linen stock it is liable to tear, or, in fact, go to pieces in the water, for between devel- oping and the final washing the print gets a pretty good soaking and only the best stock will stand it. What is known technically as a “ laid ” paper should be avoided, unless it is well calendered down, for with such papers it is very hard to get a nice, even coating and the consequence is you have a mottled print. A “ laid” paper is one which, when held to the light, shows lines running in both directions. These lines are produced by the wires on which the paper is dried. If the paper has a very rough sur- face, as some water color and crayon papers have, then it should not be selected, for it will be readily seen that the pigment will collect in the depressions and an uneven coating result. Whatman’s hot pressed, Steinbach’s, Michallet, Lalanne, Julio and Allonge, are all reliable papers which are made for water color or charcoal sketching and will stand any amount of washing. Some are laid and some wove. The fact that many who have attempted this pro- cess have selected a soft stock with little or no sizing is the reason of the many failures. If the paper be unsized the pigment will soak inlo the pores, and although the exposure may be a correct one, you will fail to wash out the pigment even by prolonged soaking. As a rule, the greater the sizing the more MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 13 contrast the print will have when finished. This fact may be taken advantage of in using various negatives. As a general rule, you will make no mistake if you give your paper a sizing before coating, even if it be a sized paper, for it is better to be safe than sorry. The sizing may consist of a three per cent hot solu- tion of arrowroot, a one to sixty solution of gelatine or a five per cent solution of gelatine mixed with a two per cent solution of chrome alum and applied hot. Or a five per cent solution of gelatine may first be applied and the sheet then passed through a ten per cent solution of formaline to harden it. An insoluble solution of gelatine is undoubtedly the best if we desire pure whites in our highlights. This sizing will also help materially in getting a nice, smooth coating, as many papers act greasy when the pigment is applied to them if not treated with a sizing bath. If a good linen stock is selected, such as Crane’s, Parsons’, Brown’s, etc., a tinted paper can often be used to advantage and in this way a picture out of the ordinary may be secured. For example, a primrose paper may be selected and coated with a burnt umber, and the result will be a brown print on a very light brown background. A very light green paper coated with a dark green pigment is applicable for forest scenes, etc. By a judicious 14 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. selection of papers and pigments the worker may produce very artistic pictures which could not be produced by any other process. Having selected our paper, let us proceed with the work. The larger the sheet of paper the more difficult it is to handle it and for this reason it will be found easier and better to handle several small sheets rather than one large one. Cut your paper so as to leave at least a half inch all around ; that is to say, at least one inch larger each way than the finished print is to be. If you want to make prints from 35x7 negative cut your paper to 6x8 or larger. This not only gives you an edge to handle the paper hy, but it also gives you room to trim before printing, which is quite necessary, for the pigment gathers in coating at the edge, where it is generally thicker than in the middle. Secure a flat piece of board somewhat larger than your paper, a drawing board will do; cover it with a sheet of paper and sponge both sides of your sheet with water by means of a tuft of cotton or soft sponge. Do not apply enough water to make it run down the sheet, hut merely enough to dampen. When you have dampened all the paper you are ready for the sizing, which should he applied hot. This can be done, if a small sheet, by pouring the size into a tray, immersing the sheet in it for a minute and then drawing it out over a glass MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 15 stiring rod in order to remove the surplus size. Care must be taken to break all air bubbles as soon as formed, otherwise the sizing will be uneven and will show in the finished print. It is also well to size both sides of the paper, so that either side can be coated at will. By immersing the sheet in the bath it will also prevent all curling and if the sheet is a heavy or medium weight it will hang out smoothly on the line. If a large sheet the sizing may be applied with a soft sponge or camels hair brush and if so desired only one side of the sheet may be sized, but in such a case the other should be A Clip. marked with a lead pencil so that the proper side be sensitized or coated. At this point it is well to note that gelatine, when treated with chrome alum, is nearly if not quite insoluble in hot water and it is well to mix these ingredients in some open vessel which can be readily cleaned out after use. The sizing being effected the sheets should be pinned up to a strip of wood or held in clips which are attached to a cord or rope. The clips will be found to be the most convenient and can afterwards be used for i6 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. drying the sensitized paper. The sizing should be thoroughly dry before the pigment is applied. The sheets can be hung in a kitchen or any other warm room and should dry in a half hour or less, depend- ing, of course, on the temperature. The paper be- ing thoroughly dry we are ready for the next opera- tion. As explained, there are two methods of using the sensitizing fluid ; one by applying it to the paper and when dry coating with the gum and pigment, and the other to mix the sensitizer, gum and pigment and apply all at once. It matters little which method you adopt, though with the former a less exposure is required. We will describe both methods, starting with the one in which the paper is first sensitized. The sensitizer may consist of a saturated solution of bichromate of potassium or equal parts of a satur- ated solution of bichromate of ammonium and bichromate of potassium. This solution is poured into a tray and a sheet of the paper floated upon it for a minute. Remove the sheet, break any air bells and immerse the sheet fully. Where the paper is sensitized before coating^the wrong side should be marked with a pencil, or otherwise each side will have to be inspected carefully. When the first sheet has been freed from air bells and immersed, follow with a second and so on until your tray will hold no more. Then lift the bottom sheet to the top, MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 17 again inspecting and breaking any air bells, and so on until the first sheet is again in the bottom of the tray. Allow the sheets to soak in the sensitizer for three or four minutes and then remove them, one at a time, by drawing them over a glass rod, and hang them up in clips to dry. Bichromate is poisonous and some skins are very susceptible to it and for this reason it is well to wear a set of rubber finger tips when sensitizing the sheets. The sensitizing can be done in a subdued light, but the drying should be done in the dark room. Drive a few tacks in the walls of the dark room, say seven or eight feet from the floor and stretch strings across from one tack to the other. As fast as your sheets are sensitized fasten the clips to them and hang the clips upon the string. The length of time to dry will depend upon the temperature of the dark room. Sensitized paper, if kept between blot- ters or in a book in the dark will keep for about six weeks, so that a supply of paper can be sensitized in one evening which will last for a month. Should occasion require it, paper may be sensitized, coated and printed all within a half hour. The writer has done this successfully many times and with good results, but the method cannot be recommended for general work. It can be effected as follows : Select a room having a yellow or colored curtain of a light shade, so you can see to work and yet the light is of 1 8 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. a color which will not affect the sensitive paper. The room should have a coal, gas or oil stove, in order to dry the paper. Sensitizeas directed, place in clips and hang directly over the stove and the coating will be dry in five minutes or less. While the sensitive coating is drying prepare the pigment coat and when applied again hang over the stove and by the time the negative has been selected and placed in the printing frame the pigment will be dry and ready to print. But to return to our sensitized sheets which are drying in the dark room. If the sheets are sensitized in the evening they will be ready for the coating the next morning. Take them from the clips and pack them away in a plate box with a few blotters here and there between them. So long as the sensitized surface presents a brilliant yellow color, as it had when packed away, it is in good condition, but when the color has changed to a dirty green-brown the paper is no longer fit for use. The pigment or color is the next thing to con- sider. This pigment is nothing more or less than a water color ; or, in fact, fine charcoal may also be used. As a nice, smooth surface is indispensable to good work, it will be readily recognized that the color used must be carefully ground to free it from all lumps and gritty particles. The pigment may be From a Gum Print Henry G. Abbott. MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. IQ dry powder, moist colors in pans or tubes, or even solid cakes. Moist colors in tubes are the most con- venient, although more expensive than dry or pan colors, vet they are, as a rule, thoroughly ground and no lumps or gritty portions will be found in them. If dry colors are used they will have to be thoroughly ground by means of a pestle and mor- tar or a glass muller and piece of plate glass, or lithographic stone will answer equally as well. If you grind your own pigment from dry colors it should be strained through a piece of fine muslin to remove any hard particles overlooked in grinding. Any colors may be used, but the most desirable are burnt umber, Indian red, red ochre, sienna, Vene- tian red, indigo and black. There are many shades which are perhaps as desirable which may be mixed, and there are other colors, like lemon yellow, umber, Vandyke brown, Prussian blue, sepia, etc., which do not answer very well by themselves, but which are very useful for mixing the various shades. I should advise the beginner to purchase chrome yellow, Venetian red and Prussian blue, as with these colors he will be able to mix almost any shade he may desire. If charcoal is used, Moist Colors in Tubes. 20 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. considerable difficulty will be encountered and I should advise postponing its use until you are thor- oughly acquainted with the process. As a rule, charcoal does not mix readily with the gum and water, and should be first ground into the gum and the mass thinned-afterwards with water to the right consistency. Too much grinding will be ruinous to the identity of the substance and we might just as well use black paint. The best way to use charcoal is to first sift it through bolting cloth or a fine sieve and then work it thoroughly into the gum as ex- plained above. A well calendered laid paper is the most prefer- able for use where charcoal is used as a pigment. The next question for consideration is the colloid which is to be used. While there are a number of gums which when treated with bichromate and ex- posed to light become insoluble in water, yet there are none which are as satisfactory as gum arabic. Your druggist should be able to furnish you with this ingredient and if possible the gum which comes in the form of clear drops or beads, technically known as “tears,” should be purchased. Such a gum you can depend upon as being pure, while the variety which comes in lump form may or may not be so. This gum will dissolve by means of water if kept in a warm place over night. To each ounce of gum add three ounces of cold water and when it has MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 21 thoroughly dissolved allow it to cool and then test it for density with the hydrometer. It should then be reduced with warm water to about i6 J or i8° . It should then be filtered through a piece of muslin and a little boracic acid added to prevent it mould- ing. If the gum is of the common lump variety it is well to test it with litmus paper and if found to be distinctly acid it should be corrected by means of a drop or two of ammonia. The gum need not be neutral ; a slight excess of acid will not be detri- mental but too much is harmful. Our sized and sensitized paper being ready, the pigment being selected and our gum prepared, let us proceed to coat our first sheet. Pour a little of the gum on a piece of plate glass, an old negative glass previously cleaned will answer, and squeeze a small quantity of the color from a tube upon the opposite corner of the glass and by means of a pallete knife grind or work up some of the color with the gum to the consistency of cream. The exact con- sistency cannot be definitely stated because much depends on the pigment used, the darker shades re- quiring a thinner body than the lighter and more transparent ones. The consistency also depends on the paper to be coated. Soft, laid, crayon papers, like Julio and Michallet require a thinner pigment than the hard linen stock made by Brown and Crane. When the gum is thoroughly mixed with 22 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. the pigment the whole should be strained through a piece of muslin which has been previously wet and the surplus water scpieezed out. At this point it will be well to consider the brushes 4 necessary in applying the pigment. At least two are requisite, a flat camel’s hair brush for the appli- cation of the pigment and a blender made of badger hair for smoothing and blending down the ridges left by the brush. A two inch camel’s hair will an- swer very well for all the smaller sizes of paper. This can be purchased for about 50 cents and a small round blender will cost you 75 cents. A bet- ter outfit, however, would consist of a two inch MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 23 camel’s hair and two inch softener and a three inch flat blender. In the accompanying illustration No. 1 is a two and a half inch camel’s hair, No. 2 a two inch softener, No. 3 a round blender and No. 4 a three inch flat blender. The camel’s hair brush should be well charged with the pigment, so that it will not be necessary to dip the brush a second time for a sheet 5^ x 8^ or smaller. It should be tried first upon a piece of plain white paper to see how the color works and covers. It is well to first wet the brush and then squeeze the surplus water from it before putting it in the pig- ment. This will insure a more even coating than using a dry brush. The coating should just cover the paper and be so thin that the white paper will just barely reflect through it and the color no denser than the deepest shadows of the picture are to appear. Take a drawing board or any other flat piece of soft wood a little larger than your sensitized sheet, spread over it a sheet of newspaper and lay your sensitized paper upon it, fastening it down at each corner by means of thumb tacks or strong pins. Fill the brush with the pigment and with light, even strokes, pass it over the paper, starting at the top of the sheet and gradually working towards the bottom, avoiding streaks of pigment as much as possible. The strokes should not overlap one an- 24 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. other but should join so as to have an even or nearly even coating. If the paper is not thoroughly cov- ered turn the board and brush over at right angles to the direction in which you first brushed it. Now pass the softener over the sheet with light rapid strokes, starting at the top and working to the bottom. Then turn the board and soften length- wise of the sheet. Now take the blender in your hand, holding it in a vertical position and pass it rapidly but lightly over the paper in both directions, paying particular attention to those portions which show streaks of color. Coating the Paper. All this will have to be done rapidly, much more rapidly than it takes to tell it, for the color dries very fast, and once it has set the blender will have no MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 25 effect upon it. Your first efforts may not be satis- factory, and for that reason I should advise that you practice the coating on some ordinary writing paper. The Pallette Knife. With a little practice you will be able to spread the pigment quite evenly and the softener and blender will remove any faulty streaks. If you use cake colors it is well to grind them in a small saucer or individual butter dish. Put a few drops of the gum in the dish and then grind the cake in it by giving it a circular motion. If dry color is used it must be ground with the gum by means of a glass muller or pallete knife, and must always be strained through muslin before using. If not strained, little hard lumps of pigment will get into the coating, which cannot be successfully removed and which appear in white or colored spots in the finished print, depending on whether they stick or are washed 25 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. away. Another method is to coat the paper by means of an atomizer. The atomizer consists of two glass tubes placed at right angles to each other. One tube is placed in a small vial containing the mixture of gum water and color and the other is placed in the mouth. By blowing in the tube a fine spray of the liquid color is diffused over the paper, and by mov- ing the atomizer up and down and from side to side the sheet can be, with a little practice, very evenly coated. A very little blending will be required after you become expert with the atomizer. The tin atomizers used for spraying charcoal and crayon drawings are not satisfactory as they do not produce a fine enough spray. The paper being coated successfully is placed in clips and hung upon the lines in the dark room to dry. In the event that you wish to coat with the pigment sensitized, proceed as follows : ‘ Mix to- gether equal parts of the gum solution and the satu- rated bichromate solution in a small saucer, and to this add the moist or dry color as described above. The coating is applied to the paper just as in the case of the sensitized paper. At a glance this will appear to be the simplest and quickest method, as the previous sensitizing of the paper is done away with, but the result is a paper which is less sensi- tive. The results are as good in one case as another, so it matters little which practice you may follow. MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 27 Now all this may seem quite tedious and compli- cated to those who have never worked the process, and yet, as a matter of fact, there is no more, if as much work involved, as in completing a picture on printing-out paper. In regard to the negatives to be selected for this process, I would say that every negative will not give pleasing results, and this might just as well be under- stood from the start. A negative which is dependent upon details for its beauty will not be an appropriate one. This does not mean that only negatives which are fuzzy or apparently out of focus should be used. It means that any negative may be used ; but as the paper does not reproduce the very fine details any negative which is dependent very largely on these details to procure a picture will, if printed in this process, probably be disappointing. Very thin negatives do not produce desirable results in this process. On the whole the negative which will give the most pleasing result is one which might be termed a strong negative ; a negative with considerable contrast, not over-burdened with innu- merable small details. Among portraits, those which portray the face rather than the clothing; busts and heads rather than half-length and full-length fig- ures, are the most appropriate. In landscapes, those which depict a single object and subject all others, as a tree or rock, and particlarly when the tree is 28 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. devoid of foliage, give the most pleasing results. A negative which will produce satisfactory results on any rough developing paper will, as a usual thing, produce a pleasing print in gum-bichromate. The two prints, when compared side by side, will not be at all alike, but yet the gum-bichromate picture will be if anything far more artistic of the two. Nega- tives that are too contrasty, too full of extreme lights and clear glass shadows, will be found as unfitting as those which are fiat. A good even negative, in- clined to be soft, with gradual shadings, will be the most satisfactory. Under all circumstances I should recommend that you varnish the negatives you pro- pose to use for the gum-bichromate process, provid- ing you place any great value upon them. This should be done for two reasons, first, there is a very slight possibility that your paper may not at all times be thoroughly dry before printing, though it should be, and therefore sticks to the face of the negative ; and second, the pigment face of the paper is inclined to be more or less gritty and has a ten- dancy to scratch the film if carelessly handled. Now a few words in regard to exposure, develop- ment and fixing. As in any other printing process, the duration of exposure will depend largely on the strength of the light and the kind of negative used. Roughly stated, gum-bichromate paper will print in about the same MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 2 9 time that any ordinary printing-out paper will. An ordinary negative will print, say, in three minutes in the sun on a bright day. It will not do, however, to guess at it, for much depends on the length of the printing, for if we print too deep the pigment may refuse to leave the paper and if we print too little the image may wash away en- tirely. To print intelligently you must either use an act- inometer or place another negative similar to the one you wish to use in a frame beside it, using a printing- out paper as a guide. When the printing-out paper, say Solio, is printed to the pro- per depth for toning, then your gum-bichromate paper will be very nearly printed correctly. It may want a little more or a little less, depending on the color used. A few experiments will determine the right exposure. The actinometer is a simple instrument used for comparative timing. See the accompanying illustration. It is very simi- lar to an ordinary printing frame on a small scale The Actinometer Back and Front . 3o MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. except that a piece of glass with from one to fifteen thicknesses of tissue paper pasted upon it takes the place of the negative. The strips of tissue are numbered according to the number of layers, from one to fifteen. A strip of printing-out paper is placed in the frame and the actinometer is placed beside the frame containing the gum-bichromate paper. When the paper under the sixth or seventh strip of the actinometer has printed to a deep cherry a bichromate print from an ordinary negative will be sufficiently printed. A few trials, at least, will determine the proper depth to print. When you have found this depth the negative envelope should he marked, say, u Gum-Bichromate 6,” and if at any other time you should desire to make a gum print from the negative you can strike the proper expo- sure at once by consulting the envelope. The ex- posure given above applies to paper which is first sensitized and then coated, but if the sensitizer be mixed with the gum and pigment, then, as a rule, a longer exposure will be necessary ; say print to number ten for the first trial. It will be readily seen that the length of exposure is largely governed by the amount of sensitizer which the coating contains. It is therefore wise to always use a definite proportion of sensitizer, and if the colloided pigment requires thinning, to do it with water and not with the sensitizing fluid. The same MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 31 is true of the gum water. Always use a definite proportion. 1 find that the reds and browns require a little longer exposure than other colors, not even excepting black. The thickness of the coating on the paper also affects the length of the exposure materially, as it takes much longer for the light to penetrate through a thick than a thin coating. Be- fore proceeding further with the question of expo- sure I desire to explain the method of development, since in this way the reader will better understand what is required. The development, so-called, is not truly a devel- opment but is a washing-out process, since the water simply removes those portions of the pigment which have not been hardened by the action of light. The removal of this unaffected pigment may be secured in various ways. If the negative is perfectly satis- factory and you wish a print similar in general details to an ordinary print made from the same neg- ative, then if the proper exposure be given the print will develop out entirely in ordinary cool water. The print is placed in a tray of water face down- ward and allowed to remain for ten minutes. At the end of this time turn it over carefully, grasping the paper at the corners, and examine the face of it. If the exposure was a correct one you will generally find that a slight image is visible, that is, the pig- ment that lav under the highlights has softened and 32 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. run away in the water. If you use a mask in printing you will find that the pigment that lay under the mask shows a tendency to soften and run away. If, on the other hand, there appears to be no ten- dency to soften, then turn the print face down again and allow it to soak for another ten minutes. Now Developing the Print. turn it face up and again examine. If it shows any signs of softening at the edges place it on a piece of zinc or plate glass, hold it in position by means of a clip and gently bathe it with the cold water by pouring it from a graduate or other vessel. Do not pour the water directly on the print but let it strike the glass above the paper and flow over the print in a gentle stream. This will usually remove MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 33 the greater part of the pigment from the highlights and half-tones ; but should it prove a little obstinate in places then pour the water directly on these places. If after a print has soaked for a half hour in cold water there is no sign of softening, then fill the tray with warm water and again allow it to soak. If this means has to be resorted to then you know that it has been over printed and you may have to soak the print for hours or perhaps days. If you are in doubt at all about the paper or the pigment you should soak a small piece of the pigmented paper which has not been exposed to light. At the end of fifteen minutes soaking the pigment should leave the paper easily upon bathing it with water. If it does not, then the trouble may be that there is too much gum in your coating or the paper was not properly sized, or the gum has acidified, and in the latter case it should be tested with litmus paper and a few drops of ammonia added to it to make it neu- tral. Again, you may find that the coating softens and comes away easily after soaking an unexposed piece of the paper, and that after exposing under the negative it does the same thing, but no image, or only a partial image, appears. This is an indica- tion that your coating is weak in sensitizer if a com- bined coating is used, or that your sensitizing solu- tion was weak or the paper not soaked in it long enough, if the paper be sensitized prior to coating. 34 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. If the edges of the print soften after coating and the highlights appear rapidly, followed almost in- stantly hy the half-tones, then the print was under- exposed, and great care will have to be exercised to prevent the water from washing away the whole print. If slightly over-printed the dish containing the print can be rocked back and forth or the print drawn through the water if the tray be large enough to admit of it. If it is still further over-printed the water may be changed to warm, say 85°, and the pro- cess repeated ; or the print may be fastened to the glass and warm water poured over it or warm water mixed with fine boxwood sawdust. Thesawdustacts as abrush and helps to remove the superfluous pigment. In very obstinate cases the blender may be passed lightly over the face of the entire print while wet, and this often starts the coating so that it will con- tinue to dissolve by the application of warm water. If this fails add a small quantity of ammonia to the wash water and try again. It is always well to first make a print from the negative on ordinary printing-out paper, as this print will prove useful to you when working the gum- bichromate process. It will show you just where the highlights are that you wish to work on and where the shadows are located which you do not want to disturb. Should you wish to modify your print from the Wmm From a Gum Print F. K. Lawrence* MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 35 results you would get from a mechanically developed print, then the exposure and treatment will have to be somewhat different. The exposure in such cases should be longer than normal. Over expo- sure allows manipulation with sawdust and brush, which a normally exposed print could not with- stand, and such a print is usually softer and of a different grain. To modify your print you may first pass lightly over it with the blender, keeping it well covered with water. Now by comparing your solio print with the one in hand you can locate the highlights of your picture and pay special attention to them either by means of the sawdust stream or a soft camels hair brush. Having worked these out to your satisfaction you next give your atten- tion to the half-tones. It may be that if the neg- ative is a trifle flat you may wish to add strength to the highlights, and this may be effected by the use of a fine-pointed camels hair brush, which when lightly applied to the parts readily loosens up the coating and it flows away. Extreme care must be exercised at this kind of work or you may remove very much more than you intended, for the coating is extremely delicate while wet and the least touch severs it from the paper. Demachy uses a coating of glycerine when manipulating prints to any extent. The glycerine is brushed over the face of the print and acts as a cushion to prevent the individual hairs 36 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. of the brush leaving marks upon the face of the print. While it is quite possible to print in the sky from one negative and the foreground from another, yet it is much easier to get your sky effect by manipula- tion. Should your negative be solid black in the sky, thus protecting the coated surface of the paper so that the coating softens and runs away when soaking, it may be easily obviated by sunning. Hold a piece of card or black paper over the pre- viously printed paper, exposing the sky portion to the action of the sun for a few moments, and the sky will then be printed deep enough to withstand considerable friction of the brush. The card should not be held stationary, but moved up and down, so that there will be no harsh line at the horizon. Now by means of a broad brush you can easily work in a good sky effect. In order to determine the horizon line on the print, take both print and negative from the printing frame and with a lead pencil make marks on the edges of the print at the horizon line. In sunning, either the foreground must be covered entirely by means of a card or black paper or else a card large enough to cover the entire print must be used, for otherwise the fore- ground would be set by the action of the light and your print ruined. The print having been developed to your satis- MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 37 faction is removed from the tray of water or sheet of glass, as the case may be, and is hung up in a clip to dry. When it is thoroughly dry it is then treated to a bath of bisulphate of soda and water. A five per cent solution has been found sufficiently strong for the purpose. A two per cent solution of alum or a five per cent solution of hypo may also be used for fixing. These baths not only harden the pigment but dissolve and remove any surplus of bichromate that may remain, and the paper comes out as clean as before treatment. If the dull surface is satisfactory then your print is ready to mount, but it may be brightened up and improved greatly by spraying it with a solution such as is used for fixing crayons, pastel and charcoal drawings, which consists of one dram of mastic varnish to six drams of ninety per cent alcohol. The spraying is applied by meant of the atomizer referred to for coating the paper. Before fixing and spraying, however, all defects should be touched up in the following manner : Should you have removed by accident the pig- ment from any part of the print, leaving an unde- sirable white spot, or should there have been a hole in the negative, printing in a dark spot which you have intentionally removed, then these spots can be filled in by mixing up a little of the color with the bichromate and gum solution to the proper shade 38 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. and applying it with a small brush. In fact, a solid background of an entirely different color can be painted in. The print must then be exposed to the light for a few minutes in order to harden the pig- ment, washed slightly and then fixed. Another method is to spot after fixing and washing and be- fore spraying. This is done with the water color, mixed with water only, to the proper shade, the spraying compound being relied upon to hold it securely in place. Highlights and halftones may be strengthened by the judicious use of a rubber eraser. The rubber should be pared to a point and the work done on the dry print prior to fixing and spraying. Prof. R. Namias, after a long series of experi- ments, has worked out a very ingenious method of securing various colored images on a bichromated sheet without the aid of a pigment. The process is based on the fact that bichromated gelatine loses the property of absorbing certain saline solutions after exposure to light for a certain length of time. The paper is first coated with insoluble gelatine and when this is dry is coated with gelatine sensitized with bichromate of potassium. The paper is exposed under a negative for, say, three minutes in sunlight, and is then washed in water until nearly all traces of the color have left the sheet. It is then soaked for fifteen minutes in the First Saline Solution, and MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 39 FIRST SOLUTION. SECOND SOLUTION. COLOR PRODUCED. Chloride of Barium. Sulphate of Soda. White. Nitrate of Uranium. Ferrocyanide of Potassium. Dark Red. Sulphate of Copper. Ferrocyanide of potassium. Light Red. Chloride of Iron. Ferrocyanide of Potassium. Blue. Chloride of Cadmium. Sulphide of Soda. Yellow. Acetate of Lead. Sulphide of Soda. Black. without washing it is placed in the Second Solution, which reacts on the first and causes a colored pre- cipitate. A five to ten per cent solution of the salts is found to be the best. Printing and Toning Platinotype Papers* Platinotype papers are of two types, those which yield a full and those which yield a partial image. Etching Matte belongs to the former type while Willis & Clements’, Bradley’s, Millen & Wallace’s and the Western belong to the latter. Those papers which yield a partial image are known as develop- ing papers, and while there are two kinds, the hot and the cold developing, yet the hot developing vari- ety is so little handled in this country that we shall devote our entire attention to the cold developing type. The advantages of platinotype papers are many. A print when properly toned is absolutely perma- nent ; the various surfaces of stock make it applicable to any variety of negative, and its capability of be- ing modified in development allows the worker to put into the print those little individualities so much to be desired. With a thorough knowledge of the subject a great variety of prints may be made from the same negative. An almost endless variety of tones can be secured, ranging from black, through the browns and sepias to red. Green and blue tones in whole or in part may also be secured by manipu- lation. 41 42 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. Platinotype papers are usually made in “ Thin Smooth,” “Heavy Smooth” and “Heavy Rough.” Select the paper which is most appropriate to the nega ive in hand. These papers are very suscepti- ble to dampness and are therefore to be kept in a cool but dry place. The printing frames should be thoroughly dried in front of a fire or in the sun be- fore using, especially if they be stored in a dark room which is located in a damp place like a base- ment. A few soft blotters should be cut to the size of the negative and at least two blotters should be laid upon the back of the paper before putting the back of the frame into position. The blotters will have a tendency to absorb any excess of moisture, and where the heavy rough papers are used will also be useful in bringing the paper into close contact with the negative. The paper before exposure is of a lemon color and the fully-printed image is brownish-gray. The ac- companying illustration will give a good idea of the appearance of a print before and after development. Among beginners there is a tendency to over rather than under print. It will be well for the beginner to experiment a little by tearing a sheet into three or four strips and developing these strips as soon as printed. He will very soon learn the proper depth to which printing should be carried. Where the printed sheet before developing shows a smudge or Appearance of a platinotype print before development. Appearance of a platinotype print after development. MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 45 smear in the solids or shadows it is an indication of over-printing. Most papers come in tin tubes, and in the center will be found a piece of calcium chlo- ride wrapped in paper. As fast as the prints are made they should be returned to the tube, where they will be kept dry until ready to develop. It is advisable to develop as soon as you are through printing a batch, or if you are not certain of your exposures it is perhaps better to develop one or two at a time as fast as printed. While the printing can be done in the sun and it is quite convenient to do so in the winter when the light is inclined to be weak, yet printing carried on in the shade gives prints which are more contrasty and snappy than those printed directly in the sun- light. As a rule, weak, thin negatives will give bet- ter prints if a piece of blue glass be placed in front of the negative. This blue glass should not be inserted in the printing frame but held in front of the negative, say two inches, for if placed directly against the negative any imperfections in the glass, such as bubbles, will show clearly on the print. The blue glass can be supported by placing it in a slit made in a small piece of board. A piece of one inch pine board six inches wide and twelve inches long will prove handy. At one end of the board several slits should be made by means of a saw, the slits being at various angles, so the blue glass may 46 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. face the sun at almost any time of day at which you may be printing during the winter. If used in the shade it will not matter what angle the blue glass is placed, providing the printing frame back of it is at the same angle. Where a number of prints are to be made from one negative uniformity of results is desirable, and in such a case it would be better to print by the aid of an actinometer as in gum-bichromate printing. Where single prints are made from a negative it will be found much easier to dispense with the actinome- ter and rely on your judgment and the appearance of the printed paper in the frame. While the depth of printing has much to do with the appearance of the finished print, yet develop- ment is the important point of the process, and it is here that the individuality of the worker comes into play. The different manufacturers supply develop- ing salts to be used with their paper, but as a rule workers use a developer consisting of oxalate of potash and water. A saturated solution is made by dissolving one ounce of pure oxalate of potash in three ounces of distilled water. As the oxolate dis- solves very slowly it is better to make up a stock solution and keep it in a glass stoppered bottle rather than to make up fresh developer each time you print. This bottle should be labeled u Stock Solu- tion Oxalate.” MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES* 47 Ordinarily this solution is diluted more or less, according as the print to be developed is over or under printed or the proper exposure given. A much better method of working, however, is to have a developing bath which is fitted for an over-exposed print, develop the whole print in it and then bring up the weaker portions or the whole print, if neces- sary, in a stronger solution, which is kept in a cup, and applied by means of a camels hair brush. The method will save many prints which would other- wise develop so rapidly that the operator loses all control over them and they are over-developed be- fore they can be placed in the clearing solution. This treatment will not, however, save a grossly over-exposed print, one which has been allowed to print until muddy streaks appear in the shadows. These patches are known as “ bronzing,” not that they bronze, but because the prints are on a par, as regards depth of printing, with a printing-out paper which has been carried so far that the shad- ows bronze. To prepare for developing it is necessary to have a glass or rubber tray somewhat larger than the prints, a piece of plate glass of the size of the print or larger, a cup and two small brushes, camels hair or sable, one a half inch and the other a pencil brush. Mix the following solution for the tray : 48 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. Stock Solution Oxalate i oz. Water 2 oz. Glycerine, pure 1 oz. The glycerine should be pure, otherwise there is a liability to stain and produce granular prints. In the cup place Stock Solution Oxalate y 2 oz. Water 1 oz. Place the print in the tray or draw it through the solution once or twice, being careful to break any air bells that may form, and hold it on the hand and watch development. The print will develop slowly and evenly and you will have plenty of time to note whether there are any weak spots that do not come up as strongly as the other portions. If you find such, or if the entire print is somewhat weak, then place it upon the piece of plate glass and apply the stronger developer in the cup, either locally or over the entire surface, as the case would seem to demand. For local treatment use the small brush and for the whole print the larger brush. If the print appears to be under exposed and does not respond to this treatment, then it may be held before the fire, oil or gas stove, or even gas flame, and moved two and fro, so that the entire surface is heated. Under this action a decided change will take place and the print should be watched carefully, and when the develop- MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 49 ment has reached the proper stage should be im- mediately plunged in the clearing bath. Thecxalate formula given produces normal black tones, but where more decided or intense black tones are wanted the following stock solution may be pre- pared ; Oxalate of Potash i Part. Potassium Phosphate % Part. Water 9 Parts. Label the bottle “ Intense Black Stock Solution Oxalate.” To use take Intense Black Solution 1 oz. Water 1 oz. Glycerine 1 oz. The potassium phosphate is somewhat hard to secure in a pure state and sodium phosphate is used in its stead, but the potassium is to be preferred. After using these developers once they may be saved and placed in glass stoppered bottles marked “Old Platinum Developer,” but as their action is uncer- tain after being kept for any length of time, and as the ingredients are cheap, it will be much more eco- nomical to throw them away after use and start with new developer, especially where considerable length of time elapses between developments. Before taking up the other methods of development it is well to consider the fixing baths. 5 ° MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. The fixing and clearing of the print is performed in one operation, and the bath consists of Pure Muriatic Acid i oz. Water 60 ozs. The ordinary commercial acid is very liable to pro- duce yellow prints and the pure acid only should be used. Three or even four enameled iron pans should be used and as many baths made up. The fully developed print is placed in the first bath, and after remaining for ten minutes is passed to the second, where it remains for the same length of time, and and then to the third, etc. The baths should be rocked or the prints moved around in them so that the acidulated water has full access to each print. These baths should be examined from time to time, especially if a large number of prints are being de- veloped, and as soon as they begin to show a yellow tinge they should be thrown away and a new bath prepared. The first tray usually shows the color first, it being the iron which is washed out of the coating. The prints begin to lose their yellow color soon after placing them in the bath and the white paper appears. Should baths charged with iron be continued the prints will be liable to be charged, and the result will be a disagreeable color and lia- bility to fade. After passing through the clearing baths the prints should be washed for at least twenty minutes, and a longer washing will do no harm. MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 51 It often happens that a print is weak and intensi- fication is desirable. This may be accomplished in a number of ways, but the following are the most reliable. Make up two solutions as follows : NT ( Sodium Formate 50 grs. JNa Im l Water 1 oz. xj ( Platinum Perchloride. .. 10 grs. iN0 - 2> l Water 1 oz. To 2 ounces of pure water add 15 minums of No. i and 15 minums of No. 2. The print is to be soaked in the solution from fifteen to forty-five minutes, de- pending on the amount of intensification required. It is then washed for a half hour and dried. The print should be intensified as soon as washed, but dried prints may be intensified if not too old by pre- viously soaking in cold water for fifteen minutes. Dolland’s method of intensifying platinum prints is to prepare the following solutions : M \ Gold Chi ride. W0, T * l Water 15 grs. 7 % drs. No. 2. 5 Pure Glycerine q. s. ( Sodium Sulphite 1 oz. No. 3. j Water to 10 oz. ( Metol 50 grs. Mn a S Potassium Carbonate 1 oz. N 4< l Water to 10 oz. The print to be intensified is soaked in water for a few minutes, placed on a sheet of plate glass and then 52 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. coated with the glycerine by means of a brush. Solution No. i is neutralized with a little chalk or carbonate of soda, and then one drop of muriatic acid is added. This solution is then applied to the face of the print by means of a broad camel’s hair brush. The face of the print must be entirely cov- ered with the solution and the brush kept in motion so that the gold solution covers every part thoroughly. The print will gradually darken, and when the proper color has been reached it should be slightly washed and then brushed, both on the face and on the back, with equal parts of solutions Nos. 3 and 4 mixed. The operation is completed by washing the print in running water for thirty minutes. There is no reliable method of reducing black platinum prints, and for this reason the worker should be careful not to over-print. However, in spite of all precautions over-printing and over-devel- oping will occasionally occur, and such prints should not be thrown away, for although we cannot reduce them in the form of black prints, still we can change their color to sepia and then reduce them. This will be fully explained later on. There is another method of developing platino- types which will appeal very strongly to those who wish to individualize their work or who wish to make changes in the print. This is known as Local Development with Glycerine. We have learned MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 53 that glycerine has a retarding action upon develop- ment, and this fact is taken advantage of in this process to a considerable extent. The print to be manipulated is placed upon a sheet of plate glass which has previously been brushed with glycerine. The face of the print is now covered thoroughly with a coat of glycerine by pouring it upon the paper and spreading with the brush. Allow the glycerine to soak in for some minutes while you are preparing the developer. The printing should be a trifle deeper than for ordinary development. Four small cups or other vessels should be provided, and aside from the large brush used for spreading the glycerine at least two others will be required, one, say a quarter inch in diameter and the other a fine pointed brush such as is used for spotting out. In the cups place the following ingredients : First Cup Pure Glycerine. ( Glycerine i Part. Second Cup. ■] Stock Solution Oxalate. . i Part. ( Water 3 Parts. (Glycerine 1 Part. Third Cup. < Stock Solution Oxalate. .2 Parts. ( Water 2 Parts. ( Glycerine 1 Part. Fourth Cup. 1 Stock Solution Oxalate. .2 parts. (Water 1 Part. A number of small squares of blotter will be very necessary, for with them you can take up the sur- 54 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. plus developer and thus stop development at any point you wish. This will be more fully explained later on. Now suppose you have a portrait of a child, a head, and you wish to eliminate the background entirely and vignette away the body just below the shoulders, as shown in the illustration on the oppo- site page. It is desirable that you have a silver or other print made from the same negative at hand in order that you may determine just what portions you will cut out and just how you will manipulate the balance of the print. Examine the print which has been covered with glycerine and with a small piece of blotter dry the surface of those portions which you propose to work upon and cover with a good coat of glycerine the parts to be eliminated. Dip a brush in the second cup, and after squeezing out the surplus developer with the fingers apply it to those portions of the picture which it is desired to bring up first, say the delicate half-tones of the face. When the proper stage of development has been reached blot up the developer on that part and with the glycerine brush cover it with a light coat- ing of glycerine. The fact that the developer re- maining on the surface has been removed by the blotter and the glycerine of itself is a restrainer, retards all, or nearly all, development in this particular spot and you can now develop up the other portions of the From a Platinotype An Example of Local Development with Brush and the use of Mercury for securing Flesh Tints. From a By Platinoty^e W. 3. Dyer. An Example of Regular Toning in^Platinotype. By comparing this with the figure on the other side you will see how the print was manipulated to cut out background and dress. MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 57 picture. The developer in the third cup would naturally be used for the lesser shadows and that in the fourth cup for the more substantial ones. You will note that where you draw the brush the print developes up, and if the surplus developer has been removed from the brush you can confine the devel- opment very readily to the certain portions you are working on. This being the case, you can if you desire produce a print which strongly resembles a black and white water color or wash drawing. Another method is to blot off the glycerine from all portions which you wish to develop up, apply the weak developer in the second cup to all these portions and then bring up the lesser and greater shadows by applying the developer in cups three and four. This method, on the whole, is the better for the worker who has had no experience in the glycerine method of development, as there is less danger of leaving undeveloped or partly developed portions where one development ended and the other began. Such streaks are ruinous to a print, and it is very difficult, if not impossible, to bring up these portions separately to the required tone. The worker will get a very good idea of the possibilities of this method if he will take a small negative or use a por- tion of a large one and make, say, three prints from it and then proceed to develop them as above out- lined. He will probably find that he has three en- 58 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. tirely different pictures, so different that at a glance they would seem to have been made from three dif- ferent negatives. Very beautiful effects both in landscapes and por- traits may be secured by what is known as double toning, i. e ., toning portions of the print a flesh or sepia color and the balance toned black, as in the illus- tration on page 53. This double toning may be effected in various ways by the use of bichloride and chloride of mercury. The mercury solution is to consist of either chloride or bichloride of mer- cury, 1 part to 20 parts of water. A Stock Solution of Mercury Developer is made as follows : Mercury Solution (1 to 20) 1 oz. Stock Solution Oxalate (1 to 3) 8 oz. For this process the following will be required : Four small cups, three or four brushes of various sizes, depending on the nature of the work in hand, and some small pieces of soft blotting paper. The cups are used as follows : Cup No. 1 Glycerine. (Glycerine 1 part. Cup No. 2. ■] Mercury Developer 1 part. ( Water 3 parts. Cup No. 3. ■] Mercury Developer 2 parts. . ( Glycerine. 1 part. Cup No. 4 \ Mercury Developer 2 parts. ( Water .* 1 part. MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 59 The solution in cup No. 4 might be called a nor- mal developer, as it is the one which is used the most. The platinotype paper is printed a little deeper than for ordinary black tones. A silver print is made for comparison and the platinum print laid on glass and covered with glycerine as in the previous method. Take for example the head and shoulders of the a child, as shown on page 53. The glycerine is blotted away from those portions of the face which you wish to have appear with a flesh tone. A brush is dipped in cup No. 2 and the surplus developer removed from the brush by passing it through the fingers. It will be advisable to use rubber finger tips, for the mercury is poisonous, and while it will not affect some persons’ fingers in other cases it attacks the skin and causes considerable annoyance. The same is true of uranium baths, which will be described later on. The brush being freed from the surplus developer is passed lightly over the face back and forth, covering the surface thoroughly without allowing the developer to flow be- yond the portions which you wish tinted. The image will come up gradually, and when it has reached the desired tone should be blotted off with a piece of clean blotter and the parts covered with glycerine. You can now examine your print and determine what the balance of the treatment shall be. The operation should, of course, be carried on in a weak 6 o MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. light or by gaslight, the same as in developing the black image. The balance of the picture, if to be black, can be toned in two ways. The print can be placed directly in a tray containing the regular oxalate or intense black solution as preferred, or the black development may be brought up by means of the brush, as in Local Development, eliminating those details which are objectionable. The operator must be careful to throw away the blotters as fast as they have been used, otherwise, if used a second time the mercury developer may be transferred to the black surface and leave an ugly stain. The brushes used for mer- cury development should never be used for the black solutions, and should be marked so no mistake of this kind will happen. The cups, too, should be thoroughly washed in boiling water after use. If the print be transferred to the oxalate solution the black image will appear on every portion of the print except that which has been developed with the mercury, and the result will be a print in two tones or colors. The strong acid baths will affect the mercury toning more or less and it is advisable to use a clearing bath consisting of Muriatic Acid i oz. Water 200 oz. In these baths the prints can remain the ordi- MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 6 1 nary length of -time, say ten minutes each, and are thus thoroughly washed. Should your mercury tone be too light after clear- ing and washing, it can be readily changed or intensi- fied by placing the print in a bath of uranium made as follows : Uranium Nitrate, 10 percent solution i dr. Ferricyanide of Potassium, io per c nt solution .. . i dr. Water 6 oz. Acetic Acid 20 drops. Note, that in using mercury the tone is gov- erned by the amount of mercury in the solution and not by the length of time the print is acted upon. The tone can therefore be changed, within certain prescribed limits, by using more or less mercury. With the oxalate developer the tone depends on two factors, the strength of the developer and length of development. With the uranium developer the tone darkens according to the length of development. Should the uranium toning be too deep to suit you it can easily be reduced by applying a weak solution of carbonate of soda to the print by means of a tuft of cotton. After this reduction has reached the proper stage place the print in water at once to stop the reduction. Let us now consider some methods of producing sepia, brown and other colored effects on black platinotype papers. While a special paper can be 62 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. purchased which will produce sepia tones, yet this paper produces only these tones, and by the methods to be described the worker can produce almost any shade or tone at will, and if the shade is not satis- factory it can be intensified or reduced, within cer- tain limits, to the desired tone. The most common method of toning to sepia is the following : The paper is printed to the usual tone under rather than over printing being favored. This print is then developed in the regular oxalate developer and the result is a black print. After clearing and washing the print is then placed in a bath composed of Uranium Nitrate (10 per cent solution) % oz. Ferricyanide of Potassium (io percent solution) Yz oz. Water 20 oz. Acetic Acid 1 dram. This solution does not work quickly unless heated, and it is therefore advisable to place the pan con- taining the solution, which should be of agate ware, in another pan containing water and heated by gas or oil flame. If a water bath is not used there is danger of the prints, unless constantly stirred, settling to the bottom of the pan, when an ugly brown stain will be the result. With a cold solution ti may take from one to three hours to tone the prints, while with the hot solution they will tone in from twenty to forty-five minutes. Not only can freshly made prints be toned in this way, but prints that have MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 63 been made for several months will tone equally well. Clear in a bath of acetic acid 1 dram, water 3 ounces and wash for five minutes. Another method is to prepare a developing bath consisting of Stock Solution Oxalate (1 to 3) 1 oz. Glycerine . 1 oz. Mercury Solution (1 to 20) 3 drams. Water 2 oz. Draw the print through this developer and allow it to develop up in the usual manner. When the tone is satisfactory clear in an acid bath 1 to 200 and wash. Should this bath produce a tone lighter in shade than desired, then the bath may be heated to 90° or ioo° and the tone will rapidly darken, or it it may, after being washed, be placed in the uranium bath above mentioned, when it will gradually inten- sify and change to a darker tone. Another method, which produces Bartolozzi Red prints, is to immerse an under exposed print in a bath of Ammonium Sulphocyanate 2 grains. Uranium Nitrate 4 grains Ferricyanide of Potassium 4 grains. Water 4 oz. After toning to the desired color wash for fifteen minutes. The following is said to produce several red tones 64 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. depending on the length of time the print is kept in the bath : Ferricyanide of Potassium 6 grains Uranium Nitrate 6 grains. Sulphate of Sodium 6 grains. Acetic Acid 3 drams. Water 6 oz. The print, which has been normally exposed, is first developed in the oxalate solution, cleared and washed, and is then placed in the solution, when it gradually changes to a sepia, then a red and then a deeper red. The print is then washed for fifteen minutes. Greenish tones can be given to platinotypes by first toning black, then toning in the uranium bath described and without washing, take from the ura- nium bath and place in a glass tray containing the following bath : Perchloride of Iron 25 grains. Water 2 oz. The sepia tone will gradually change to a light greenish-blue and then darker. When it has reached the desired color transfer to a 1 to 200 acid bath and wash for fifteen minutes. With this bath very beau- tiful effects in double toning may be secured, and it is particularly appropriate for river and lake views. The tones can be applied locally with a piece of cot- MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. 65 ton or a brush to the water, leaving the balance of the picture left of a sepia tone. Should you wish to reduce the tone to a lighter shade you can readily do so by applying a weak solution of carbonate of soda and water to the parts. A blue tone can be obtained with the same bath by first washing the black print in the perchloride of iron bath for a few minutes and without washing transfer it to a tray containing the uranium tones. The perchloride will have no visible effect upon the black print, but as soon as it is placed in the ura- nium bath the blue tone will appear. A very effec- tive color for moonlight effects may be produced by developing a rather strongly printed sheet in the following : Stock Solution Oxalate (1 to 3) 1 oz. Glycerine 2 oz Ferricyanide of Potassium (10 per cent solution). ... 5 dram. Water 2 oz. This developer will produce a beautiful tone if applied to the surface of the paper with a piece of cotton, but is liable to be streaky if the print is simply rocked in it. Another bath for similar effects is made up as follows : Perchloride of Iron Potassium Ferricyanide Water 4 grams. 2 grains. .. . .3 oz. 66 MODERN PRINTING PROCESSES. Dissolve the ferricyanide in two ounces of the water and the perchloride in the other ounce and then mix. To this solution add four drops of muri- atic acid. This solution is to be applied to black prints and is very effective on those which have been over exposed. A Modern Magazine., for Modern Workers, 4 4 4 4 in Pictorial Photography ....is.... t Western Camera % 4 4 4 4 4 Notes 4 jdL f The only Photographic Monthly 4 4 sold at 5 cents per copy, giving 4 4 32 pages and Beautifully Illus= 4 4 traied , 4 4 4 £ $300.00 in Prizes J ¥ ¥ Contests Monthly 4 4 ¥ We want the best work of Amateurs every- 4 where, and pay well for It. Send two=cent 4 ¥ stamp for specimen copy. Sixty cents per 4 ¥ Annum 4 ¥ ¥ Western Camera Notes 4 4 425 1st Avenue N. ^ Minneapolis, Minnesota 4 4 u ^ •!* *|st *|* *|* *|* *|* «|* •§* •§* «§* ^0 BRADLEY PLATINUM ...PAPER The Paper on which Masterpieces of Photography are made For sale by all dealers . . . bears the Maker's Guarantee and the Price is Right Sole Maker JOHN BRADLEY Manufacturing Chemist 47 North 13th Street, PHILADELPHIA The Platinotype 3 L3 Our Papers have been before the public for twenty- five years; For twenty years the photographic chem- ists of the world have been trying to make something “just as good” but can’t. J* J* Send for our little pamphlet and twenty-five cents for a sample of the paper. £ £ ^ Willis & Clements, 1624 Chestnut Street, PHILADELPHIA, j* PA. The. Photogenic Company 373 Dearborn St., CHICAGO. Manufacturers of Gum-Bichromate Supplies Doz. Doz. Doz. Doz. 6x9*4 8x9)4 9 HxI 2 12x19. Julio, Micballet and Lalanne Papers 12c. 15c. 20c. 35c. Whatman’s and Allonge Pa- per 20c. 25c. 35c. 65c. Clipps, per dozen 25 cts. Palette Knives, each - 20 cts, Flat Camel’s Hair Brushes, 2-in., 50c,; 2 * 4 -in., 60c.; 3-in., 80 cts. Smoothing Brushes, Fitch, 2-in 40 cts. Round Blenders, each 75 cts. Flat Blenders, 3-inch, each 85 cts. The Perfecto Actinometer, for timing Bichromate, Carbon and Platinotype papers 50 cts. Glycerine, chemically pure, 2 oz. bottles 15 cts. Bichloride Mercury, per oz 15 cts, Potassium Ferricyanide (red), per oz 15 cts. Potassium Ferrocyanide (yellow), per oz. 15 cts. Potassium Oxalate, neutral, per lb 30 cts. Potassium Bichromate c.p., per oz. 5 c., per lb 50 cts. Gum Arabic, pure, in tears, per oz. 5c., per lb 70 cts. Uranium Nitrate, per oz 60 cts. Sulphate of Copper, per oz 15 cts. Acetate of lead, per oz 15 cts. Ammonium Bichromate, c.p., per oz 15 cts. Iron Perchloride, per oz 5 cts. Thumb Tacks, per dozen 15 cts. The — Photogenic Co. 373 Deaebokn St., Chicago Manufactuhebs of Gum-Bichromate Supplies Moist Water Colors in Collapsible Tubes Per Tube 10 Cents Chrome Yel., light. Chrome Yel., med. Chrome Yel , deep. Zinc Yellow. Naples Yellow. Yellow Lake. Yellow Ochre. Sepia. Ivory Black. Lamp Black Red Lead. Venetian Red. Red Chalk. Scarlet Lake. Crims’n L’ke, light. Crims’n L’ke,deep Burnt Ochre. Burnt Ital’n Ochre. Burnt Umber. Indian Red Postage 3 Cents Azure Blue. Celestial Blue. Paris Blue. Pr’sian Blue, light. Pr’sian Blue, deep. Antwerp Blue. Olive Green. Hookers Green. Green Lake. Prussian Green. ALSO MANUFACTURERS OF PASSE-PARTOUT BINDING IN BLACK, GREEN, CHOCOLATE AND GRAY Per Roll (17 Feet), 10 Cents Rings and Staples, 10c. Dozen Amateur Photogra- phers’ Albums In all Sizes and Styles Books for the Amateur cModern Photography in Theory and Practice: The King of Photographic Books for the Ama- teur. By Henry G. Abbott 250 pages, j8 full page half tones and 55 sma'ler illustrations. Bound in Sea Green Cloth; $r. 00; In Art Paper Covers, 75c. Progressive Lessons in Photography: By Henry G. Abbott. A Hand Book for the Novice, taking up the Rudimentary Branches of the Art. Cloth Binding, 35c.; Paper Covers, 25c. The A P C of Retouching: By Andrew Young. 25c. The Art of Retouching: By J Hubert. Cloth, 50c. Practical Enlarging: By John A. Hodges Cloth, 5cc. Bromide Enlarging and Contact Printing: By S. Herbert Fry. 25c. Negative Making: By Capt. W. de W. Abney. 50c. Instantaneous Photogravhy: By Capt. W. de W. Abney. 50c. ' Developers ; Their Use and Abuse: By Richard Penlake. 25c. Indoor Photography: By B. M. Lothrop. 25c. The Dark Room and Its Equipment: By H. J , Masse. 25c. The Acme Record and Exposure Book: Cloth, 25c. Perfedo Label and Formula TBook: 137 Labels Printed in Bold Type. Every Label for a Solution gives the amount of each of the in- gredients so the solution can be made up from the label without consulting a book or direction sheet. All labels are perforated. 25c. GEO. K. HAZLITT & CO. 373 Dearborn Street J* CHICAGO Examine the Photo American An Up=to=date Journal for Amateur and Professional Photographers 444444444444444443 * * 4 4 4 4 4 * 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 * * 4 4 4 4 44.M*444444*444> 4*444*^' in $600 IPrizes.. Each Year io cents per copy $i.oo per year.... The Photo-American Publishing Co. New York City THE CflnERfl AND D/IRK ROOn.. Isa Monthly Journal for ... . AMIAfEUR PHOTOCRA^XeRS Contains instructive articles from well known writers, for both the advanced amateur and the beginner. Well illus- trated by specimens of amateur work. HOLDS PRIZE COMPETITIONS, ETC, ETC. The immense sale of this journal dem- onstrates that it is the most popular magazine of its kind SUBSCRIPTION PRICE, $1.00 PER YEAR Ten cents per copy. For sale by all dealers in Photo Supplies Published by the camera and dark rooni co. Jas* H* Smith & Co* J 3 1 J and3J3 Wabash Ave. $ Chicago A Manufacturers, Importers and Wholesale Dealers in 0 Cameras > ..'ll