[Alt-photo] drop count in pt/pd

Wed Nov 6 15:05:26 UTC 2013

Loris,
You are absolutely right; I had not decided to "go there" in this discussion. But when I was having all that bleeding a couple years back I was looking at my drop count and realized how much bigger the pd drops were in comparison to the ferric drops. Plus my pd solution (which I made from scratch with pd from Engelhard, now Basf I think) was really rich dark brown compared to other solutions I have looked at since that seem a bit less chocolate and more yellow. I realized that I was maybe wasting metal.

I filed this in the back of my brain until Mark Nelson and I were talking one day and he brought this up that he uses a 961 mix because of the smaller drop size. 

It goes against the old books that always talked about putting a couple extra drops of metal in the mix for good measure, so that is also why I didn't mention it, but it really is a waste of metal, I would think.

I'm not a chemist so I don't know what is happening at the chemical level with too little ferric but the same is true (or maybe it is COMPLETELY unrelated but a similar concept) when I was doing 2  20% FAC to 1 8% potassium ferricyanide in cyanotype and getting grainy results and white specks and bleeding. Since I have gone back to 1:1 those problems are solved. That was courtesy of Alberto Novo.

You even use about 8 drops more solution than I do for that same coating area, if, in fact, the area was 8.5x11 (not 8x10). I would use 47 but of course that is silly because if I do a 661 it'd be 52, a 961 48.

Haven't used the pipettes yet, though I have a couple, but I imagine they would be much more accurate than drop counts. I must love counting out those drops :)
Chris

Christina Z. Anderson
http://christinaZanderson.com/

On Nov 6, 2013, at 2:13 AM, Loris Medici wrote:

> Hi Catherine,
> 
> If possible, measure the amnt. of solution by milliliters using thin
> syringes with 0.1ml resolution (using separated / dedicated syringes for
> each solution)... The properties of each solutions differ, consequently
> their drop sizes also differ (sometimes considerably!), therefore the drop
> count may not be 100% reliable. (You need equal amounts of iron and noble
> metal solution for optimum results...)
> 
> As for coating volume; my standard is 0.025ml per sq. in., some papers need
> a little less than that, some a little more. For 8 1/2 x 11" coating area,
> my standard would translate to ~2.3 - 2.4ml total volume. (Which is around
> 55-60 drops (of water!) with my cheap plastic pipettes - very close to
> Christina's count, but only for water and solutions close to water; it's
> not the same for 25% AFC for instance...)
> 
> Regards,
> Loris.
> 
> 
> 2013/11/6 Catherine Costolo <mikes1mom at comcast.net>
> 
>> Bob, I have not been rehumidifying my paper after coating and drying
>> though the paper is in the room where the humidifier is on. I will try your
>> suggestion.
>> Thanks,
>> Catherine
>> 
>> 
>> Catherine Costolo
>> Independent Beauty Consultant with Mary Kay Cosmetics(404) 252 -2181
>> (404)291-2181 (cell)
>> Visit my website 24/7 www.marykay.com/ccostolo
>> Happiness is like jam.....you can't spread it around without getting a
>> little on yourself.
>> 
>> 
>> On Nov 5, 2013, at 8:08 AM, BOB KISS wrote:
>> 
>>> DEAR CATHERINE,
>>> 
>>>           Reading your e-mail below I didn't notice any mention of
>>> rehumidifying your paper after coating and drying it.  Whenever I have
>> had
>>> lower than normal Dmax it has invariable been because I did not
>> rehumidify
>>> my paper right before exposure.
>>> 
>>>                       CHEERS!
>>> 
>>>                                   BOB
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> _____
>>> 
>>> From: alt-photo-process-list-bounces at lists.altphotolist.org
>>> [mailto:alt-photo-process-list-bounces at lists.altphotolist.org] On
>> Behalf Of
>>> Catherine Costolo
>>> Sent: Monday, November 04, 2013 4:55 PM
>>> To: The alternative photographic processes mailing list
>>> Subject: [Alt-photo] Re: Papers for Palladium
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> Thanks to all of you for contributing to this thread!
>>> My results have been very inconsistent. I received a brand new UV printer
>>> last summer and it has a built-in vacuum  frame. I have kept the
>> humidity at
>>> around 60% and my drop count on a sheet of 81/2 X 11 has been 12, 12, 1 (
>>> palladium, ferric oxalate, and NA2) On a sheet of 11 X 14 I have used 24,
>>> 24, 2. I am coating with a Richeson brush and my time is about 6
>> minutes. I
>>> have never gotten a dmax greater then 1.30...maybe a few times it has
>> been a
>>> bit higher. My developer is Potassium Oxalate and then I was washing in
>>> Citric acid with EDTA added.
>>> In August I worked with Jon Cone's PDZN system.
>>> I have not done any work since August but want to get started again.
>>> I have posted on my Flicker page two items. One has 5 -21 step grayscale
>>> linearizations that correspond to 5 of Jon's curves and the other item is
>>> the same photo printed with 4 different curves from Jon Cone. Maybe you
>> can
>>> tell something from looking at them.
>>> I will appreciate any comments and suggestions.
>>> The link is:http://www.flickr.com/photos/lasignorina/
>>> 
>>> Thanks so much,
>>> Catherine
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> Catherine Costolo
>>> Independent Beauty Consultant with Mary Kay Cosmetics(404) 252 -2181
>>> (404)291-2181 (cell)
>>> Visit my website 24/7 www.marykay.com/ccostolo
>>> Happiness is like jam.....you can't spread it around without getting a
>>> little on yourself.
>>> 
>>> 
>>> On Nov 3, 2013, at 8:48 PM, Catherine Costolo wrote:
>>> 
>>>> Hi!
>>>> I have used both Cot 320 and Arches Platine but have not had much
>> success
>>> with them. Also I was told that Cot 320 does not give good dmax.
>>>> Any suggestions for a paper I might try? Has anyone tried the Revere
>> paper
>>> from Legion?
>>>> Thanks.
>>>> Catherine
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> Catherine Costolo
>>>> Independent Beauty Consultant with Mary Kay Cosmetics(404) 252 -2181
>>>> (404)291-2181 (cell)
>>>> Visit my website 24/7 www.marykay.com/ccostolo
>>>> Happiness is like jam.....you can't spread it around without getting a
>>> little on yourself.
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>> 
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