Rite of passage, part II

[Ronald_H]

About two years back I proudly announced I had passed my first rite of passage, I could develop my own negatives! After 2 years of more or less succesful development I finally came to stage two today. You guessed it, printing!

I got a complete darkroom from a friend (he needed the room, with a baby on the way) and the equipment had been quietly gathering dust for a few months at my place. But tonight we set up a makeshift darkroom in my bathroom and printed a few old negatives, easy as pie!

Can it really be that easy? Nevertheless I think Roger's black and white handbook is due a new read!

 

[skibeerr]

Printing is a strange thing, easy at first then it gets harder and harder.

 

[smiling gecko]

way to go!!!

way to go!!!

way to go!!!

the magical feeling of seeing that first print come up in the developer has stayed with me for decades.

do some reading, find a really printer to try to learn from, and practice, practice, practice.

breathe, relax and enjoy.
sg

 

[nikon_sam]

Printing is a strange thing, easy at first then it gets harder and harder.

I got a good chuckle with this statement...BECAUSE IT'S TRUE...😱

Congrats on the darkroom gear...

 

[smiling gecko]

almost forgot...

almost forgot...

almost forgot...to suggest not to scrimp/cut corners/economize by using small test strips for determining exposure.

using a larger piece of paper helps me better evaluate what's going on in terms of contrast and exposure across the negative.

i am not a very technically oriented printer, but this works for me...and for client prints. there are different approaches to determining print exposure. hopefully some of the more adept printers here at rff can provide some insights for you...then there's a book by that roger guy😀

breathe, relax, and enjoy.
sg

 

[cliffpov]

Soon I hope to be joining you in this wet printing fun. Congrats.

 

[tomalophicon]

It's easy, but the quality of prints you desire will determine how hard you will work in the darkroom.

 

[benlees]

I just started printing this week as well. I chose a contrasty neg to start off with. Big mistake! Where the hell is the highlight detail! Needless to say I have taught myself about flashing and already created a collection of burn and dodge tools. After a 100 sheets of 5x7 in less than week, scanning doesn't seem so bad...😀

 

[tj01]

Printing is a strange thing, easy at first then it gets harder and harder.

+1. I started thinking I know a lot, now I know very little.

 

[semilog]

Printing is a strange thing, easy at first then it gets harder and harder.

So true. 🙄

 

[wintoid]

Printing is a strange thing, easy at first then it gets harder and harder.

That's worrying. I started last week, and so far I am finding the more effort I put in, the better the results.

Tried split grade last night, and for me it seems to be a quicker route to the ideal print. I need to spend more time with it to be sure of that though 😀

 

[Chris101]

Congrats Ronald! Printing is one of the most mystical activities I shall ever experience. The darkroom is so contemplative, and the creative energy brought in there is so powerful ... having a darkroom in your house will be a bottomless font of invigoration!

Be sure and ventilate it well, and a rubber mat to stand on helps too.

 

[ChrisN]

So much truth above - the more I print the more I have to learn.

Edit: and to add a recommendation, read up on f-stop printing and implement it straight away.

 

[Ronald_H]

Thanks for the kind words guys 🙂

I am used to mediocre drugstore b/w prints on color paper (from scans) so my standards are not that high (yet). But I have to say, that first print simply looks amazing to my eyes!

I have a lot of 'tough' negatives I want to print and I have an almost limitless amount of great Ilford paper. Rest assured I will go for that steep learning curve!