That is also why, when you walk down the street and you pay close attention
to the posters behind shopping window, or on telephone poles, you'll notice
that the yellow layer is the first one that disappears in 99.9% of the
cases. I don't know of a *very* transparent yellow that is *very*
permanent.
..
Carson Graves follows up:
>Luis, if you're reading this, I'm curious as to the printing order of
>the Fresson process. As I recall, the registration of the second and
>third layer is done by eye. I assume that either cyan or magenta is the
>first layer printed as I can't see how you could eyeball a yellow
This is detailed in at least three of my books...
>layer. Also, do you care to talk about the pigment used for the yellow
>layer? If it isn't proprietary, knowing what it is would probably be
I never got the details of the color pigments as the color version of the
process is little more than an exercise in frustration and finding
permanent pigments is no big deal.
People have been discussing the issue of pigment permanence as some people
discuss the existence of God. Long theories and discussions as to who to
trust, etc. There no need for this when discussing the permanence of
pigments.
Folks, here's what to do:
1-For hints on selecting pigments, check with my _Gum Dichromate_ book
available in many libraries. I'll save my poor carpal tunnels for info not
found in what's available in print.
2-Don't trust manufacturer's and especially distributor's chemists. This is
a spoken word from one who knows... I have boxes of useless pigments
here... I have "permanent" yellows that lost 50% of their density after two
days under a fluorescent office light...
3-Take half the time you take theorizing about who to believe and apply it
to the following test. Use the other half to go to the library...
(a)Using a step wedge (say, 21 step) print your yellow (or whatever)
color on the paper you intend to use, **with** the usual bleaching agent if
any (e.g., bisulfite) as these can also have an effect on certain colors.
(b)The test strip should have at least 4 or 5 visible steps. With carbon
or Fresson you can get a very long scale with only one coat. With gum you
would need more, but this is not necessary for this test as only a few
visible steps are required. When dry, cut it in half, length wise. Write
notes on the back with a pencil (they don't fade) as to the date, type of
emulsion, etc. and keep one half in a drawer and one half that will be
mounted on a board that will be hanged in a window facing the sun.
(c)This is a comparative test. You should test several yellows, magentas,
etc., side by side and it is important to remember that a one-month test
you do in Florida in August is not the same as the same length test you
will carry out in the same area in October, let alone a similar test done
in England, etc.
(d)Mount all your test strips on a board and between the strips leave
whatever notes you need to identify the pigments, etc. Keep a log of
everything.
(e)Find a window that gets a lot of sunlight and put the board with your
test strips behind it.
(f)At regular intervals check the board and if you have a densitometer
you can plot the changes, if any. In practice you don't need to do this. If
a color fades, that's all you need to know...
(g)You will find that some colors fade after a few days while others
don't after a year...
(h)Note that some colors may not fade. They get darker...
That's about it. You are not entirely out of the woods however if you are
buying powder colors from a distributor or from some ink manufacturer. The
"ExtraStable Yellow XYZ" that you got from Pigments-R-Us in Chicago may not
be the same as the same named pigment you'll be getting from the same place
next month. For many outfits, their idea of a permanent pigment is whatever
happens to be in stock at the moment of your inquiry... Sad to say but
true. You'll have to test each batch and insist that you don't want any
substitute and that you will be testing everything they send you.
Please note that most pigment manufacturers are not interested in selling
you a few hundred grams of pigment. If you can use a University letterhead
you should be able to get up to 500 grams for nothing, if you can convince
them that you will order a boxcar of the stuff after you are happy with the
results...
>helpful to gum printers, because Fresson is (to my poor uneducated mind
>at least) just a fancy gum print done with an enlarger :-)
It's a pretty fair description of the *color* version of the process. Some
pleasing effects, with certain images, can be obtained in color but this is
never easily repeated. In practice, a first or second print always needs
some correction and since the process is not repeatable for reasons
explained in my books, it is an exercice in frustration. I never used the
color version of this process. In monochrome, it is a different story as
you don't have to worry about when to stop the development of one color
because of its effect on the next color. You simply worry about the
dry-down effect as you do with say, platinum. I regularly get letters from
people who have had the opportunity to see some real monochrome master work
produced by this process and they were just in awe in front of those
prints. In fact I have even received threats because I refused to work for
some of those people (for lack or time, interests or whatever)
Luis Nadeau
(whose life has been influenced tremendously by thousands of books he's
never read)