Jack Fulton (jfulton@itsa.ucsf.edu)
Fri, 30 Jul 1999 06:14:00 -0700
David
Cyanotype paper (or the formula itself) is really too slow to be using in
a camera. Your kids would go nuts waiting for two or three days to obtain
an image … and, then, it'd be a negative.
You need first to start with RC photo paper. This is inexpensive, you can
cut it up, and it can be developed under a safelight so your kids can watch
the process.
Load it in the darkroom. Use the old #10 needle poking ahole through 5
pieces of thick aluminum foil using the middle piece (poke juuust hard
enough for the needle to pass through)
YOU make some test exposures prior to working with the kids. Most likely in
sun your exposure ought to vary between 30 seconds to 10 minutes depending
upon shadow detail, brightness of sun and how you created your pinhole and
just how far back from the pinhole you paper is. Develop in the standard
paper developr and fix. All normal.
THEN use you cyanotype paper and place the developed negative upon that,
under glass. It will be difficult to 'see' how it is being exposed as this
is something one observes. IF you negative does not cover the complete
piece of cyanotype paper you'll note it will turn a sort of grey-green
color rather than the blue. Wait a bit past that turning and then wash you
blueprint (cyanotype) in water and you'll have a print.
You can also purchase blueprint cloth (pre-prepared) and cut that up and
just plain lay objects on top of it and watch the process turn gray-green
and then wash. I think this is better for kids.
The material can be purchased through Barbara Hewit in Burlingame, CA @
Blueprints Printable. They have an 800 number to call but I do not have it
before me right now.
Cheers
Jack Fulton
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.0b3 on Thu Oct 28 1999 - 21:40:39