U of S | Mailing List Archive | alt-photo-process-l | Re: Overexposeure was Re:Pinhole gums

Re: Overexposeure was Re:Pinhole gums



Hey Chris,

No, I didn't see any slimy water. As you know, it's normally warm and humid around here, so I never had a problem doing all this outside, and hanging up the paper outside. If anything, it took forever to dry. But we had an unusual cold wave come through here-- just about the time I needed some sized paper-- and it was very dry. That's so unusual for us, and it just didn't dawn on me that the gelatin might dry before sinking into the paper. I used the same exposure times as always, and I could see a faint image, yet when I put it in water, it just stayed the same as it was when I had first taken it out of the vacuum frame. After several hours, I did use a brush, and that helped some-- but not very satisfactory. That's a good idea about the gelatin bath inside, and then doing the separate glut bath outside. I hadn't thought of that. The glut is the only reason I do the whole thing outside anyway, so that would make sense to just do it in separate steps.

The only other thought I had was that my saturated dichromate needs to be replenished. I don't have that much left, so is it possible it's not a saturated solution anymore? I'm not home right now, so can't check that- but I wondered if that was part of the problem, too. I do remember, early on, using a dichromate solution that wasn't saturated, and I had this same problem.

Thanks again.

Diana


On Nov 30, 2008, at 11:08 AM, Christina Z. Anderson wrote:

Chris, just saw your post. I'm using glutaraldehyde which hasn't
given me a problem since I switched (from using glyoxal). To be
honest, this was the sort of reaction I used to get from using
glyoxal, though that was a while ago, so I may have been making all
sorts of separate mistakes then, too. Thanks for the help! Diana

Diana,
Your problems are odd. If you were using formalin, then I would have said that you didn't give the paper time to "cure". Is the paper, when it is developing in the water, slimy? If not, then this idea is thrown out. This lack of development you are experiencing is what I found happened when I did not harden the gelatin in a suggestion a list member gave, but the paper was slimy in the water so I could tell right away there were going to be problems.

In lesser humidity I find gum is slower, not faster, so the fact you are getting no development which signifies either non-image or image hardening (can't tell which) to me seems to be something other than humidity.

In colder weather I would recommend sizing your paper inside in a hot gelatin tray and then doing the separate glut bath outside. That is what I do in the winter. And of course, your idea of cold and mine are probably different :) I long for the warmth of the South sometimes...especially when I am sizing paper and I could hang it outside, tray size outside, let it drip outside, and it cooled slowly.

I had a DISASTER this last time sizing in the fall here (so don't think you're alone) 16x20 sheets outside in a tray of gelatin. The gelatin cooled and gooed before it would sink in. Never again. I can't believe I even thought it would work. I am still using that paper though, and it is the basis of a lot of my Family of Origin work so it still works and if anything, it is too slippery of a layer to hang on to, so your problem has me baffled.

Anything different with your acidity of your mixture, your dichromate strength?
Chris