Is the art of Print Making Dead... In Dallas?

[Scott Rosenberg]

good day...

i was hoping some of you folks here in dallas could point me to a lab up here that does custom dark room work. it seems the fine art of printmaking is lost, at least at the labs i've visited.

i'll not mention any specific names publicly, however, my experiences with two highly regarded pro labs here in the metroplex have been very, VERY disappointing. the last straw was when i noticed that one of the prints i had ordered was missing. the printer was called up and said she could take care of it. ten minutes later, before i was done inspecting the prints they did make, i was presented with the missing enlargement. how can they call that custom work, if clearly all that was done was stick the negative in the enlarger and quickly make a print using one average value... am i asking too much, but i thought the reason one pays for 'custom' work was so that a trained printer would closely examine the print and make decisions about what needed a little more time and what needed a little less. it's been a while since i worked in a darkroom, but i seldom made a print that was simply one value across the board. when i asked the lab what made this work custom, they said simply that i was cropping a bit off, even though i was keeping the same aspect ratio (4x5 neg to 8x10 print), so it was a custom job. sigh.

am i asking to much of a lab? does one have to have their own darkroom to get true, custom prints made?

please let me know if you know of any good, custom labs that actually does custom work here in dallas, less i be forced to convert the laundry room into a darkroom!

thanks, scott

[Nick Morris]

I an assuming you are talking about B&W. For years I put off processing and printing my negatives, waiting to build my own darkroom. Now I have my own darkroom, and I regret every day putting off the processing and printing that makes a photograph my own. In my opinion, there is no substitute for processing and printing your own work, even if it has to be done in a bathroom or closet. I've learned more about photography in the past two years with a darkroom than in the previous eight years having a lab process and print for me. And I've got a lot more to learn. The owner of the lab that did my work has become a good friend, and he is an excellent printer. But it is only luck that would allow him to make satisfactory prints, because there are just to many variables in producing a print, and everybody has a different interpertation as to how a specific print should look, particularly if it is a difficult negative. Granted, there are minimum standards that should be satisfied in terms of exposure and contrast, but that is about all one should really expect from a lab, unless you are allowed to stand by the printer and specifically instruct him as to the desired result.

[Ralph Barker]

Around here, a "custom" print at standard prices simply means the print is done "manually" rather than in an automated manner. While that seems like a stretch of the definition of "custom", it's also fairly obvious if one thinks about the standard custom print price in relation to time and the salary of a skilled print maker. I'd be more impressed with the lab's honesty if they gave a break-down of the price along the lines of test print, $x; exposure overlay, $y; consultation, $z; finished print, $A. One mght be able to get that level of service customization upon request, but, realistically, the total cost would have to reflect the time and effort, as well. It's probably not realistic to expect that level of work for a $15-$20 print (typical price for a "custom" B&W 8x10).

My suggestion, Scott, would be to discuss your desires with the lab, see if they are willing to provide what you want, and then determine if their price is within what you're willing to pay. The other alternative, of course, is to do the work yourself, limiting the apparent cost to materials expenses.

[mark blackman]

Scott, was the 10-minute print any good? Were the others? With your experience of darkroom work, you will know that some negatives take a lot of work to produce anything useful, others need very little. What was the 'custom' work you requested - did you state the grade and type of paper, indicate where you wanted them to dodge or burn, split grade print etc?

[Paul Kierstead]

Well, when I worked in a custom lab, we certainly would do dodging, burning, even masking in some cases or photo merging (now the domain of Photoshop). However, even for a custom print we certainly did not do it without specific instructions. We would take the best crack at contrast/exposure, but even that was a crap shoot since we could only guess at the customers desire. We always told out customers that if they wanted something specific, they had to give us specific instructions, normally a sample print well marked up with instructions, including crop lines, areas to dodge, etc. We would happily consult with the customer to develop the specification (working on a sample print with them), but didn't have our printers apply their own artistic vision to customers work.

[John Kasaian]

Scott,

Indeed, why not DIY? Darkroom equipment has never been cheaper. A sacraficial bathroom (my 5 year old daughter's anyway) can be transformed into a "lab" and back again in minutes, plus the control rests in your own mitts & you can groove to the MoodyBlues, the Beach Boys, Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys, Gregorian Chants, Kip Attaway, Duke Ellington, The Chieftans, Francis Albert Sinatra, or Satchmo----whatever floats your boat.

[Shane Knight]

Hello everyone,

It sure would be nice to print my own, but I just don't have the time. I have used many custom labs, and I have worked in couple. I have possibly found the best custom lab ever here in Flagstaff, Arizona. I know it's far from Dallas, but no matter where I live, these guys are getting my business.

Hidden Light LLC (www.hiddenlightllc.com) There are two guys that own and work the lab. One guy does color (Ilfochrome Classic) and one guy does black and white. Hand crafted prints only - please don't insult them with digital files.

These guys bend over backwards to get it right.

They are not cheap but YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR!!! and they are amazing!!

Anyway...I thought it was worth mentioning.

Cheers... Shane Knight

www.shaneknight.com

[lee\c]

there is a guy Eric is his name over near Exhibition Ave think Fair Park area that has a good b/w custom lab. Does silver and platitum. I will post his info when I think of it.

leec

[Scott Rosenberg]

as always, i am impressed by and grateful for all the great information i've recieved. i don't think i'm ready to do the darkroom at home thing yet, as i now have a couple of options locally. if those don't work out i'll definately be calling hidden light!

thanks again, scott

[Bob Moore]

In reference to the Eric mentioned above:

Eric Nielsen Photography in Dallas.

http://e.neilsen.home.att.net/index.htm#Eric%20Neilsen

Regards,

Bob Moore