>Richard, I think there are quite a few more if one is not making a fetish
>of utmost extreme perfect tone scale and sharpness, as is the norm these
>days for platinum.
>
>What come to mind are
>
>*getting the positive by using b&w film in a slide duper
>*some other direct positive film in the camera (Freestyle sells a slow one)
>*starting with a chrome (which is a positive) and projecting onto lith or
>n31p
>*using a paper positive, ie, contacting a print onto sheet film
>*using a paper negative (ie, a print on rc paper)
We'll add those to the list. Iwasn't trying to be all inclusive, just trying
to get the thread rolling
>But how big is "shoot big"? There are folks who think even 8x10 is a
>drag in the field....
I know, but Doug Busch actually had a 40 x 60 inch field camera made and
shot with it. It took three giant tripods to hold it up. To each his (her?)
own poison. I wasn't referring to practicality but quality, it hard to argue
that an orignal neg is not better than a dupe (but it can be done.)
>Halftone negs on this copy camera? Or? What, if any, are the size
>limitations? (Of course copy camera, about size of a cadillac, is not
>something everybody has at hand....)
The one at IAIA is about the size of a refrigerator cut off at the waist and
it will handle up to 20 x 24. It shoots down at the floor. Watch, as digital
comes to the commercial world these things will start showing up as surplus
just like drum dryers did in the late 6o's when RC came out.
I'll add one more to the list. I have in my archives a description from the
70's from England of a guy who makes dupe negs from RC paper. The idea
sounds nutty as hell but on second thought, maybe not. First he makes a
negative on RC paper, say maybe 20 x 24. Then with a razor blade he goes
along one edge and separates edgwise the paper and plactic backing from the
front of the print. He tapes the print face down with the separated back
edge up and uses a dowel to roll off the paper and plastic backing from
the front emulsion. At this stage there is still considerable paper attached
and this needs to be removed. He then spray mounts it face down to a piece
of glass and with care uses a stiff brush and scouring powder to remove the
remaining paper. He then rinses off the scouring powder and dries the neg.
At this stage take a piece of book backing material (?) described as a self
adhesive acetate and applies it to the back. The neg is then stripped from
the glass while still attached to the adhesive acetate. He says the neg will
have a tacky frot surface which is handy in printing as it helps hold the
neg down. Voila! Never tried it but sounds dern neat.
Then there's a trick I learned from Jack McDonald about 20 years ago. jack
taught at Mortensons school in Laguna Beach and I hear he died about 10
years ago. We used the old Kodak Portrait Proof paper. (not a POP but a
canvas surface warm toned Enlg paper.) Probably could use Kodak Photo Mural
paper just as well.
Here's how:
Soak a sheet of unexposed paper in developer. A non staining phenidone based
one like LPD works well.
Squeegee face up onto a piece of glass. (Yeah in the dark, OK!)
Place under enlarger and expose a negative while its still wet (the paper is
wet not the neg.) It gets weird now as at first you see a negative image
but as it develops out, the image goes gray then starts to a positive. A
real trip. This self masking effect is interesting and once you see the
effect, you will see it in much of Mortenson's work.
Fix, wash and dry.
Place upside down on light table and by using a Wolf's BB pencil dodge by
marking and smudging with cotton swab. You'll do this with the negative as
well. Mortenson got all his weird tricks, titles, etc this way. A fixitif
can be used at this point, the 3M stuff from art stores.
You have two choices now. Wet the positive in water and wet a fresh piece of
paper in the developer or the fresh paper just in plain water (I never had
much luck with the developer the second time.) Squeegee the two pieces
together emulsion to emulsion onto a piece of glass remembering which one is
the neg if there is no dodging marks on the back. The positive goes on top
as logic would have it.
Expose under enlarger light or a bulb on a timer.
Develop fix, wash and dry. Alas a paper neg.
Dodge with the Wolf's BB pencil. (See how neat this is as you dodge and burn
on both the neg and pos!)
Now you can pull your edition by wetting a fresh piece of paper and
squeegeeing face to face with the negative. Then expose, develop, fix, wash
and dry.
Dick Sullivan
Bostick & Sullivan
Santa Fe, New mexico