[alt-photo] Re: color theory?

Tue Nov 22 21:58:37 GMT 2011

I always begin my multi layerted prints with a cyanotype layer. This serves
a couple of different purposes: first, it makes sizing unnecessary, it also
allows for visual registration for the lighter layers that I follow with.
The weak cyanotype layer that I lay down also establishes the base for the
darks that I will build upon. Burnt Sienna, Burnt Umber, Cad Orange and
 Raw Sienna all work well as transparent pigments over the cyanotype to
create beautiful grays. I will keep adding more layers, all the time
thinking about building deep rich darks and warm highlights. Usually, my
last layer is Charcoal Gray, which I mix very heavy. Prior to this coat I
will size with one coat of PVA full strength and then after it has dried I
will hinge my dig neg to the print with transparent tape, fold back and
coat with the Charcoal Gray. Using the PVA at this stage is to preserve the
whites that I have kept from being stained by the previous 2 or more
layers. Sometimes the Charcoal Gray or Lamp Black will will stain when
printing it as the last of many layers.
Jim L

On Tue, Nov 22, 2011 at 2:34 PM, Paul Viapiano <viapiano at pacbell.net> wrote:

> Registration by eye is usually just plain difficult and hit or
> miss...starting with a darker color works better for this.
>
> However, I almost always work light to dark and use pin registration. When
> I put down my shadow tones, I don't want anything else laying on top of
> them to kill the rich darks.
>
> With tricolor, the yellow pigment that I use is not totally transparent so
> it's imperative to lay that down first, then red, then blue...
>
>
> Paul
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Kurt Nagy" <kakarott76 at hotmail.com>
> To: "The alternative photographic processes mailing list" <
> alt-photo-process-list at lists.**altphotolist.org<alt-photo-process-list at lists.altphotolist.org>
> >
> Cc: "The alternative photographic processes mailing list" <
> alt-photo-process-list at lists.**altphotolist.org<alt-photo-process-list at lists.altphotolist.org>
> >
> Sent: Tuesday, November 22, 2011 12:58 PM
>
> Subject: [alt-photo] Re: color theory?
>
>
> I guess I just need to dive in and experiment with different colors and
>> layers.  I actually had luck with a few prints using tricolor from just one
>> BW negative.  They looked like complete failures until I added that last
>> layer.
>>
>> A side question, do you normally move from darker layers to lighter?  I
>> was just playing around with black/grey and registration by eye is
>> obviously very hard starting with a lighter color to a darker one
>>
>>
>>
>> On Nov 22, 2011, at 2:38 PM, Diana Bloomfield <dhbloomfield at bellsouth.net>
>> wrote:
>>
>> That's a good point, Paul.  I'll second that.  And that "beautiful
>>> uncertainty"  might make the process frustrating at times, but  that's such
>>> a great way to put it, and it does make it all so much more interesting.
>>>
>>> On Nov 22, 2011, at 3:33 PM, Paul Viapiano wrote:
>>>
>>> Kurt,
>>>>
>>>> A lot is decided as the print unfolds...many times a color won't print
>>>> as dark or as saturated as you planned, which will make your next move
>>>> different than you originally thought.
>>>>
>>>> There's a beautiful uncertainty to gum that allows one to go with the
>>>> flow. Many times I planned on doing 3 layers and ended up with 5 or 6,
>>>> because the print didn't say *finished* to me...
>>>>
>>>> Paul
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Kurt Nagy" <kakarott76 at hotmail.com>
>>>> To: "The alternative photographic processes mailing list" <
>>>> alt-photo-process-list at lists.**altphotolist.org<alt-photo-process-list at lists.altphotolist.org>
>>>> >
>>>> Cc: "The alternative photographic processes mailing list" <
>>>> alt-photo-process-list at lists.**altphotolist.org<alt-photo-process-list at lists.altphotolist.org>
>>>> >
>>>> Sent: Tuesday, November 22, 2011 12:27 PM
>>>> Subject: [alt-photo] Re: color theory?
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Thats what I was looking for,
>>>>>
>>>>> I mainly work with traditional b/w in my darkroom so I was looking for
>>>>> a game plan on how to attack multi-layer colors from a single negative. I'd
>>>>> seen several beautiful prints that had upwards of 8 layers but wasn't quite
>>>>> sure how the artist picked their colors.  Obviously it's subjective to the
>>>>> image and what you're wanting to convey but I like having a starting point
>>>>> to experiment from ;)
>>>>>
>>>>> Thanks for the reply
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> On Nov 22, 2011, at 2:02 PM, Diana Bloomfield <
>>>>> dhbloomfield at bellsouth.net> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>> Well, okay, since nobody else answered, I'll just say what I do.  I
>>>>>> mentioned to someone recently that I use only about 3, maybe 4, pigments,
>>>>>> and then they saw this big old tray of watercolor pigments, filled to the
>>>>>> brim, in my studio.  They asked what happened to my "3 or 4 pigments" that
>>>>>> I use.  I then had to explain how many shades there really are of blue or
>>>>>> yellow or magenta-- kind of like trying to find the perfect gray wall
>>>>>> color-- some have bluish or violet casts; others have green casts; still
>>>>>> others have a red cast . . .  (I just painted my living room wall a deep
>>>>>> taupe gray, so I am way too familiar with that perfect elusive gray--
>>>>>> though I think I found it in Ben Moore's "Ashley Gray," in case anybody
>>>>>> cares.)
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Everybody is different, but I tend to stick with either Daniel Smith
>>>>>> watercolors or M. Graham, and typically use a Prussian blue for my cyan
>>>>>> layer; a quinacridone gold for the yellow; and something to the left of a
>>>>>> real magenta for my magenta layer (typically a burnt scarlet).  For some
>>>>>> reason, whenever I use a real magenta, things come out a little too pink
>>>>>> for my taste. Those are for tri-colors.  For multi-layer prints, from one
>>>>>> b&w negative, I stick with a lot of warm browns and maybe a prussian blue
>>>>>> to darken shadows and maybe a gold for some highlights.  I don't do a lot
>>>>>> from one negative, but when I do, that's what I do..  That's kind of vague,
>>>>>> I guess, but there you have it.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Diana
>>>>>>
>>>>>> On Nov 22, 2011, at 11:10 AM, Kurt Nagy wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Since we're on the subject of our individual process.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> How does everyone decide what combination of colors to use for a
>>>>>>> given print.  Not a tricolor per say but a multilayer print.  I'm rather
>>>>>>> new at gum printing and have had success with single layer and even single
>>>>>>> negative tricolor but I haven't tried multilayers, mainly cause I'm not
>>>>>>> sure what works best.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I guess this is more of a color theory question.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>> ______________________________**_________________
>>>>>> Alt-photo-process-list | http://altphotolist.org/**listinfo<http://altphotolist.org/listinfo>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> ______________________________**_________________
>>>>> Alt-photo-process-list | http://altphotolist.org/**listinfo<http://altphotolist.org/listinfo>
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>> ______________________________**_________________
>>>> Alt-photo-process-list | http://altphotolist.org/**listinfo<http://altphotolist.org/listinfo>
>>>>
>>>
>>> ______________________________**_________________
>>> Alt-photo-process-list | http://altphotolist.org/**listinfo<http://altphotolist.org/listinfo>
>>>
>>> ______________________________**_________________
>> Alt-photo-process-list | http://altphotolist.org/**listinfo<http://altphotolist.org/listinfo>
>>
>
> ______________________________**_________________
> Alt-photo-process-list | http://altphotolist.org/**listinfo<http://altphotolist.org/listinfo>
>