Batch printing and consistency

[Scott Walton]

For head shots with extensive B/D, do the perfect print and then make a copy neg with say, Techpan or Ektapan. With the right processing TP will render an extremely long scale neg (I use Divided D76 and rate it at 80). This way you will do production runs and by using Ethol LPD (a very long lasting print developer), you can pull this off easily with hardly any degradation!!

[Bruce Barlow]

I use 3 second bursts of light, mostly. So, for instance, my "basic exposure" might be six 3-second bursts, then I might burn in each edge for an additional burst or two, depending on what an initial pilot print showed me I needed. If I need to dodge, I would dodge, for instance, for two bursts in the initial exposure.

If I need to practice where to burn or dodge, a card goes over the easel to protect the paper, and I can practice with three second bursts until I'm confident, then remove the card and expose the paper as I have practiced.

Everything goes onto a piece of paper as a "recipe" that I can follow for each print. My LPL enlarger and Zone VI timer are solid enough that I can print time after time and see no difference. I have routinely made batches of 35 to 40, and they all look the same. The 3 second bursts add an additional level of precision for me.

Ansel was inconsistent because he wrote his recipe on the back of the unexposed paper, and then forgot what he wrote and did something else! My separate sheet gets filed with the proof sheet with that negative so that next time I have to print it I have a reference point to start from (no, it probably won't be the exact same, but I have a starting point, at least).

Good luck!

Bruce

[KenM]

As the previous post mentioned, I used to write my notes on the back of a print I had just made. I'd process the print, and then be unable to remember the steps I just performed, especially if the series of maniuplations was complex.

So, I started writing notes on a separate piece of paper, using a dark black marker or pen that would show up under a red safelight. I'd make a rough sketch of the print, and then mark it up as I progressed through the prints. Once I hit the right sequence, I'd then proceed to make a few prints. As the end of the printing session, I'd take the notes, and rewrite them so they were legible :-)

I found that this technique works *very* well for me. It may work well for you as well.