Re: wiping KM73 polymer plates
Hi Nancy, I'm glad you're here!!! I'm totally new to these photo polymer plates, but I do have a bfa in printmaking, I haven't done any prints in years though, and it's fun to get back to it! I actually pulled a little one today from a test image I made, and was quite happy with the result. I'm impressed at the detail I can get. This was an inkjet positive I printed on that 3M brand transparency that was so icky compared to the Pictorico. I didn't even have my "aquatint" screen yet, so I just added a lot of grain to the image in photoshop, and did it in one exposure. That's something I am going to have to play around with some more, because the result was pretty good. One of the best things though, is that my studio smells like INK! ;o) Thanks for sharing your inking techniques! I did use a magnet... that's really neat. I just used some graphic chemical vine black with a little plate oil. I can't wait to get my exposure routine figured out so I can spend more time on making art, and less time reading and taking notes and testing! susan www.dalyvoss.com On 2/7/07, Nancy Diessner <ndiessner@rcn.com> wrote: This discussion of the various steps in the photopolymer process is very helpful. To date, I've had contact with only a small number of people who work with these plates (other than the students I'm teaching it to!), and the suggestions here have already opened up interesting new options. Susan, you haven't written yet about wiping and printing the plates, but I did want to mention a few things: 1. You may know this already, but using a sheet magnet while you ink and wipe the plates makes wiping a breeze. The steel-backed plates stick to the magnet and stay put as you ink and wipe. 2. The ink I use for these plates has been a mixture of equal parts Graphic Chemical Bone Black, Stiff Black, and Transparent Base. I've now started adding a bit of Graphic Chemical Gel (nontoxic) that makes the ink more gooey and brings out more subtle tonal variations in the plate. For some images I've made it so gooey I've had to almost pour it on the plate (for plates I've heavily altered by hand). It's made a big difference for me. Others? Nancy SusanV wrote: Jon and Jan, Thanks for the info about papercutters. I've seen that mentioned, but I was thinking they were those heavy-duty $$$$ kinds used in printshops. I'll go dig out my old paper cutter. Actually, I've gotten better at using the draw knife, finding out that if I first start cutting from the polymer side of the plate with a "box cutter" blade, and get through all the gunk there to the metal, then flip it over and continue cutting from the back with the draw knife, it works much easier than going all from the back. That's got to be the longest sentence I've ever written. Like Rita said earlier... this group is such a treasure. Thanks for all the help! susan www.dalyvoss.com -- Susan Daly Voss www.dalyvoss.com
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