I used VC papers for about 12 years, Ilford MG FB III and IV, then Kodak Polymax Fine Art. If I had this problem I certainly didn't notice it nor did anyone else who saw my prints including people like John Sexton, Bruce Barnbaum, Ruth Bernhard, Don Kirby, et al. Not that they said all my prints were great, far from it, but whatever problems the prints might have had weren't focusing problems.
Brian Ellis
Before you criticize someone, walk a mile in their shoes. That way when you do criticize them you'll be
a mile away and you'll have their shoes.
there are very few ctein-reported phenomena that i've seen replicated in real life.
the significance of this issue would depend on the particular spectral sensitivity of your paper and on the color correction of your lens. if you really want to test it, you could try comparing a vc print to a graded print, made the same way from the same neg. you could also put some UV filtering material between the light source and the negative.
if your paper is sensitive well into the uv spectrum, and if your lens has poor correction there, then this issue will be present with graded paper as much as with vc.
You need to read everything Ctein said about this. It probably isn't possible to color correct a lens out in the UV without messing up some other aspect of the design. The problem only occurs if the enlarger generates and transmits a UV band that a particular paper is sensitive to. In my tests, with my equipment, I couldn't detect any significant problem, but that doesn't mean one should dismiss it as never being a problem. IMO, most enlargers don't produce much UV, and/or paper makers have reduced their UV sensitivity, so the problem doesn't crop up much.
Given the number of various types of errors, both objective and subjective, that can creep into focusing, and given the general lack of a 'scientific' approach to most things photographic (always amazing to me given the tendency of some people to get stuck on photographic minutiae), I seriously doubt that Ctein's conclusions are reproducible. If they are, I imagine the error bars (always ignored in photographic 'studies' it seems) are rather large.
I've always used multigrade papers - Ilford, Agfa and Forte. Recently I got hold of a batch of Oriental, Kentmere and of all things some 24x20 Ektalure. After using this all graded paper I thought I might be just taking a bit more care focusing the camera and enlarger, but I'm now sure its the paper. The Ektalure and Oriental seem particularly sharp.
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