Re: Newbie Gum fun Continued

[trevor cunningham <tr_cunningham@yahoo.com>]

Thanks for the tome!  It is very helpful and
appreciated.

Trevor
--- "Christina Z. Anderson" <zphoto@montana.net>
wrote:

> Trevor,
> I brush size, with 4 pckts Knox gelatin to 1 liter
> water (or 1 pckt per 
> cup). I add to this anywhere from 6ml-28ml 2.5%
> glutaraldehyde, keeping all 
> in a thermos hot and contained.  I use this in good
> ventilation.  I also add 
> some alcohol to keep down on the bubbles--50ml
> Everclear or rubbing alcohol 
> per liter.  I use a foam brush.  I do preshrink the
> paper always, but some 
> find Fabriano Artistico not to require it.  I did
> that once and had to throw 
> all my prints away.  With larger gums it is a must,
> and some preshrink 
> twice.  If you are off 1/8 inch it is a pain in the
> popo and not any trouble 
> to preshrink paper in my opinion.
> 
> I tray sized once (hard for me to do because I do
> large gums so it requires 
> a LOT of gelatin and a way to keep that large size
> warm , too) and I did 
> like the fact that the paper lay flatter, but
> interestingly, I found that it 
> did not protect as well as brush sized paper. My
> guess is that my brush 
> sizing is hardening as it cools and lays on top of
> the paper better than 
> gets absorbed.
> 
> I occasionally do a print on unsized paper and have
> yet to feel that it 
> looks better than a sized paper print in a side by
> side, but you can fudge 
> it pretty well.  However, this is because I do use a
> pretty heavily 
> pigmented load in my gum layers.  You can get by
> without sizing, perhaps, 
> with a lightly pigmented layer, especially if you do
> a first coat VERY light 
> pigment and long exposure to sort of cover the paper
> with a layer of 
> hardened gum/image, but it'd have to have gum
> hardened in highlights, too, 
> where staining will occur. But the best is to shrink
> and size and forget 
> about it.
> 
> One thing I find beginning gummists mix up is
> "staining" with 
> "overexposure".  They look different, and soon you
> can tell what you have, 
> but if upon development you hardly get an image to
> show up, suspect 
> overexposure.
> 
> I have a class finishing up right now and they have
> got amazing gum prints 
> their first forays into it with this procedure so I
> know it works for others 
> than myself.  I also had a funny--a former student
> donated her alt supplies 
> to the department and in there was a stack of sized
> paper hardened with 
> glyoxal (former professor's method) and it was
> butterscotch yellow, I kid 
> you not, so if you use glyoxal as a size hardener,
> be sure to use the paper 
> right away to prevent this. Or do Judy's method of
> sizing and hardening and 
> then rinsing it.  The former professor did teach a
> separate hardener bath, 
> even, but this still produced crummy paper.  Go to
> this URL and scroll down 
> and see what yellowing looks like.
>
http://czaphotography.com/show.php?what=learning&which=1
> 
> About the 10th image down is a comparison of
> yellowing.  I know, this page 
> is not a "pretty sight" but Jacek can also see
> spotty Arches paper on here, 
> too, that I photographed through my kitchen screen
> door to show the 
> translucent spots, and the perils of using too hot
> water to shrink, etc. 
> etc. including a downloadable free gum process
> paper.
> 
> I can't wait til the semester ends--only 3 more
> weeks and I will be free to 
> gum print ad nauseum again...
> Chris
> CZAphotography.com
> 
> 
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "trevor cunningham" <tr_cunningham@yahoo.com>
> To: <alt-photo-process-l@usask.ca>
> Sent: Tuesday, April 24, 2007 2:39 AM
> Subject: Re: Newbie Gum fun Continued
> 
> 
> > Been following this.  I've done a gum or two and
> am not encouraged by the 
> > results.  I'm interested in the whole sizing
> element.  I know many papers 
> > come already sized, but either the sizing is
> inadequate for gums or it is 
> > lost in the shrinking process.  When sizing, it's
> dipped into the gelatin, 
> > then a seperate hardener bath?  or hardener is
> mixed with the gelatin 
> > solution?
> >
> > Judy Seigel <jseigel@panix.com> wrote:
> > PS to Jacek:
> >
> > Often the best way to get a "black" in gum
> printing is to mix two or more
> > colors... for a long time I mixed a Rowney gouache
> "jet black" with a
> > strong red. There are also complements that mixed
> together make "black,"
> > or maybe something like burnt umber with indigo
> (which, depending on the
> > make and pigment of course, can have a lot of
> covering power).
> >
> > Judy
> >
> >
> >
> > "The optimist believes this is the best of all
> possible worlds.  The 
> > pessimist fears it's true"  - J Robert Oppenheimer
> >
> > ---------------------------------
> > Ahhh...imagining that irresistible "new car"
> smell?
> > Check outnew cars at Yahoo! Autos.
> > 
> 
> 
> 


"The optimist believes this is the best of all possible worlds.  The pessimist fears it's true"  - J Robert Oppenheimer

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