> I would especially like to hear from those of you who have pioneered your
> own formulae/working methods. Pradip, Richard Sullivan, Luis are you there?
>
> I also mailed out my survey to about 400 Pt/Pd printers (with the very
> kind help of Bostick & Sullivan). Thus far I have recived about 60 or so
> of those surveys back, so I am getting some good material for the book.
>
> I would think that responding by e-mail would be easier than filling out
> the form and mailing back a hard copy as 60 others have done. <Ed: this
> is the guilt trip part>.
> Dear Fellow Platinum/Palladium Printers,
>
> My name is David Fokos, and I am a platinum/palladium printer living near
> Boston, where I have been printing in platinum for the last 15 years. I
> am posting this message in the hope of persuading you to participate in a
> new project that will be of certain benefit to us all.
>
> I am compiling and cataloging the formulae, materials, and methods used by
> platinum/palladium printers around the world - sort of the platinum
> printer's version of the human genome project. It seems to me that we,
> and a lot of our fellow printers, have worked very hard to develop our own
> personal working methods and chemical formulations. Many of us have
> probably spent countless hours, and significant money re-inventing and re-
> discovering processes already worked out by others. My goal in this
> project is to produce a spiral-bound notebook which catalogs all of our
> methods so that we will all be able to work together to improve the state
> of our art.
>
> Over the 15 years that I have been printing platinum, it has been my
> experience that the members of the platinum printing community have,
> without fail, been generous in their willingness to share their time,
> advice, and results of their work. I believe that it is this openess and
> encouragement that has brought us all together in what is, in the truest
> sense of the word, a community. I hope that you will be willing to share
> your work with your fellow platinum/palladium printers. And, of course,
> in return you will receive a terrific wealth of knowledge from printers
> around the world!
>
> I have absolutely no profit motive in undertaking this project. Once the
> book is complete, it will be made available to those who participated - at
> the cost of printing and postage. I am donating my time and effort to
> this project. Everyone who participates will receive full credit for his
> or her contributions. To participate, just answer the questions which
> follow and e-mail them back to me at: beakman@netcom.com.
>
> Note: Some of you may have already received a copy of this survey in the
> mail via Bostick&Sullivan who were kind enough to help me with my mailing.
>
> Thanks in advance for participation in this project!
>
>
> Sincerely,
>
> David Fokos
>
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------
> cut here
>
>
>
> -=@ Platinum/Palladium Printers Survey @=-
>
>
> 1. Please give the following information, (only your name will be used in
> the final publication).
>
> Name:
> Address:
> Telephone:
>
> 2. Briefly describe the type of work you do (i.e. large-format contact
> prints vs. medium-format with enlarged internegatives, landscape vs.
> portraits vs. collage, etc.).
>
> 3. Which negative film/developer combination do you prefer, and why?
> Also, how do you expose and develop to get a good negative for printing
> Pt/Pd?
>
> 4. Why have you chosen to work in platinum and/or palladium?
>
> 5. Which paper do you currently use, and what is it about the paper that
> you like?
>
> 6. What is your recipe for:
>
> a) your platinum solution (if any) - if you get any of these
> solutions pre-mixed, say "pre-mixed" and give the source.
>
> b) your palladium solution (if any)
>
> c) your ferric oxalate solution(s) If you use more than one ferric
> oxalate solutions please give information on all of them.
>
> d) your developer(s)If you use more than one developer (e.g. if
> you have different developers for different contrast grades)
> please give information for each one.
>
> e) your clearing agent(s)
>
> f) any miscellaneous solutions that you use
>
> 7. Which method do you prefer for contrast control, and why?
>
> 8. Where do you get your materials?
>
> 9. Please outline your working process. Be sure to include:
>
> a) how you mix your chemistry
>
> b) how you coat and dry your paper, incl. # of drops/image area
>
> c) your printing technique, including type of light source and
> distance from it.
>
> d) your development technique
>
> e) your clearing process
>
> f) any finishing processes including treating the print,
> flattening, and spotting.
>
> g) any other special techniques, such as humidification,
> incantations, prayer, etc.
>
> 10. Finally, if I were to organize something like "The First Annual
> Platinum/Palladium Printers Grand Portfolio Exchange", would you be
> interested in participating?
>
> The portfolio exchange would work thusly: Let's say 20 printers each make
> 20 copies of one of their own images. These are then used to make up 20
> portfolios, each containing one copy of each printer's prints. Each of
> the 20 printers would then receive one complete portfolio of 20 different
> images.
>
> If you would be interested in participating in such a program, what would
> your limit be on the number of prints (of a single image) that you would
> be willing to make? Twenty? Fifty? One-hundred?
>
> 11. Please add any additional comments that you might like to make.
>
> Please e-mail your completed survey to: beakman@netcom.com
>
>
QGuyQ