Quick help needed - online b&w printing how-to websites

[jlw]

Okay, traditionalist photographers, now's your chance to help someone new get into black-and-white printing!

I've just arranged to give my Omega B66XL enlarger and various other darkroom stuff to a young lady who's an avid photo hobbyist and has always wanted to try making her own prints.

She's an outright beginner, though, and said she would need some help getting started. I've got some books I'll give her with the enlarger, but they're pretty advanced... she needs some really basic direction about developer, stop bath and fixer, safelights, test strips, and all the other fundamentals.

I know there are websites that contain step-by-step how-to info for beginners, but I can't find them! If you search, say, "photography printing black-and-white" on Google, you get thousands of hits for info about digital printing, ads for workshops, etc.

What I want is just an URL I can give her and say, "Here, go read this and it will give you enough info to get you started."

The reason this is a somewhat urgent request is that she's coming to pick up the enlarger today, and I'd like for her to be able to start learning right away, rather than possibly getting intimidated by the whole thing.

So, any advice for what I should tell her? Thanks...

 

[FPjohn]

Ilford's B&W site

http://www.ilfordphoto.com/home.asp

 

[back alley]

http://www3bc.sympatico.ca/drkrm/index.html

 

[jlw]

Thanks for the suggestions thus far.

-- The Ilford site contains a lot of resources, but I couldn't find anything in the nature of a straight tutorial: "First you do this, next you do this," etc.

-- The sympatico.ca site does contain a tutorial section, and if I can't find anything friendlier I'll refer her to that. But the tone strikes me as a bit intimidating, and it doesn't include any pictures or illustrations.

Any other suggestions?

Maybe this suggests an opportunity for traditional-darkroom enthusiasts: If you want to get more people involved in the field, you should pool your knowledge and put together a really clear, friendly online how-to-do-it guide!

We all KNOW the basic mechanics of printing aren't difficult; maybe we need to be showing that to other people...

 

[FPjohn]

http://www.ilfordphoto.com/applications/download.asp?n=386

http://www.ilfordphoto.com/applications/download.asp?n=390

http://www.ilfordphoto.com/applications/page.asp?n=9

http://www.ilfordphoto.com/applications/page.asp?n=16

Directions at Ilford are explicit. Perhaps on YouTube?

 

[Chris101]

I don't know any websites, but here it is in a nutshell:

Start by making a contact print of some stuff (photogram) then shoot and develop film, make a contact of that, then put a negative in the enlarger. Use a red safelight to see, start exposure at f/8 for 20 seconds, but test strip (the long way across a 2" by 10 inch piece if paper) at 10, 20, 30, 40 and 50 seconds, develop that and then retest as necessary. Print on 'luster' RC 8x10 multi-grade paper with no contrast filter: 3 min in properly diluted developer (Dektol or ...), 30 sec. in 4% acetic acid stop bath, 5 min in fixer, or as recommended by the manufacturer. After a bunch of prints have been run through it, test the fixer with a drop of 'fixer tester', the developer will let you know it's exhausted by taking longer than 5 minutes to get dark blacks, and the stop bath is just vinegar, so just throw it out every session.

Prints can then be left in a holding water bath for 45 minutes before washing. Then experiment with contrast filters - put them above the condenser, or right under the lens, depending on the design of the enlarger.

Wash RC prints for 20 minutes and fiber prints for an hour (this can be done in the light). Squeegee them dry. Let RC prints dry in the air, lying flat on a screen, Put fiber prints into a blotter book and then finally air dry them. You might have to iron them to get them to lie flat. I'd suggest starting with RC paper, as handling is so much easier.

I think that's about all the basic information. Of course there is dodging/burning, split filtration, toning, and a bunch of other stuff, but that takes some experience with the basics first.

 

[jlw]

Those Ilford PDF files look good -- I'll direct her to those as a starting point.

Thanks, all!