[Alt-photo] Re: Alt-pro chems through Airport Checked bags

[J. Jason Lazarus]

That might have more to do with it sitting on the tarmac and freezing;
especially if it's winter.  I live in Fairbanks, so I know what frigid
temps can do to things.  This is part of the reason I had it in my checked
bag - one, shipping is exorbitant (as Alaska isn't "part of the US") and
two, I know it won't be affected by the weather.  A package full of
several packs of polaroid film was ruined before I could get home (which
was fairly quick!) because temps dipped unexpectedly to -30F.

Once I get home tonight, I'll take a picture comparing the color of my FAC
from Bostick versus some old FAC I have still in a Photographer's
Formulary mix kit from a couple years back.  That comparison may answer
some questions - or at least provide more questions from me for the group
here.

Jason

>
> FWIW last year I transported some sourdough starter in my checked
> baggage when I flew from Alaska to Wisconsin.  To make the transport mix
> I mix a tablespoon of sourdough starter with a cup of flour.  When I get
> to my destination I mix in some water and in less than 24 hours have a
> robust start going again.  When I did this last year my starter was DOA
> - this had never happened before.  I'm speculating that HSA/TSA used
> some sort of radiation but it's nothing more than speculation on my
> part.  I assume that it would take a pretty healthy dose of energy to
> modify the composition of a chemical, but then again it would take a
> significant burst of energy to kill the yeast and bacteria mixed into a
> cup of flour too.
>
> Food for thought ;)
>
> --greg
>
>
> On 11/14/13 12:30 AM, J. Jason Lazarus wrote:
>> All -
>>
>> I'm having a heck of a time getting decent VDB solution to mix from the
>> chemicals that I recently brought back in checked bag from Bostick and
>> Sullivan in Santa Fe and, because I'm searching for any explanation...
>>
>> ... could the x-rays that a checked bag goes through alter or expose
>> either Silver Nitrate, Tartaric Acid or Ferric Ammonium Citrate?
>>
>> Perhaps a long shot, I don't know. I had asked staff at B&S prior to
>> leaving if they had any reservations with me taking it back in that
>> manner, and seeing none, I didn't give it a second thought... but after
>> several unsuccessful attempts, I'm trying to figure out what it may be.
>>
>>   I'm having a devil of a time mixing my own solution without having
>> significant precipitate form and settle to the bottom of the brown
>> bottle.  I've mixed three times, using the measurements out of
>> Christina Z. Anderson's book, and have become even more scrutinizing
>> each time.  This last time, I added all the mixtures exactly (with a
>> very pricey contraption for reloading bullets), mixed with very hot
>> water and even going so far to add the silver nitrate drop by drop via
>> an eyedropper to insure I didn't add it too fast.
>>
>> Within a day, I always end up with a eighth to a quarter inch of silvery
>> sludge at the bottom of the bottle.  Prints, if created with freshly
>> concocted solution, seem normal - but within a week, the exposure
>> dramatically alters and the print quality falls off a cliff and looks
>> poor and overwhelmingly grainy.  I've tried shaking the solution up,
>> letting it rest and taking only the top of the solution (which is
>> unnaturally clear compared to B&S's premix solution) and my prints are
>> of a very poor quality and grainy - very much unlike anything I've
>> experienced with B&S's premix.
>>
>> Any clues?  Anything I'm missing?
>>
>> Thanks.  Any help would be greatly appreciated.  I apologize in advance
>> if there's something utterly sophomoric I'm missing.
>>
>> J. Jason Lazarus
>> _______________________________________________
>> Alt-photo-process-list | altphotolist.org
>
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>


J. Jason Lazarus
Alaskan Photographer
Adjunct Instructor of Photography - UAF
http://lucidperceptions.com