RA=4 Reversal Processing

[pound]

Sharing the RA4 reversal printing video here. What is RA-4 Reversal. Usually one use a color negative to print on RA4 paper to produce a color print.

In the reversal process, we use the RA4 paper to shoot directly in the camera and then reverse process it.

As this is first time we were trying this process, there was a lot of trial and errors. Certainly more testing is required is get better results.
Paper ; Fujifilm Crystal Archive cut down to size
Chemicals : Dektol and Fujihunt RA-4 Chemicals
Camera : Chamonix 45N2

Do watch to the end of the video to see our final results especially the portraits taken on a 8x10 camera!


https://youtu.be/q666Xdle4B0

Click to see bigger photo :

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[koraks]

Yep, that looks pretty similar to the results I got when I tried it. I messed around a bit with all sorts of filters but never got something to my liking, so left it at a single quick & dirty experiment. Still a nice trick though.

[Bill Rolph]

If I recall correctly, there is no yellow filter layer in RA-4 paper, which would prevent it from ever accurately rendering color using an in camera exposure. I could be wrong on that though.

[Molli]

You might want to take a look at Joe Van Cleave's videos on this:

https://youtu.be/ry6ycSgT8g8

This is a two part video with the other on fellow participant Ethan Moses' (of Cameradactyl) channel:

https://youtu.be/BkcIk8M4KVc

[pound]

Yep, that looks pretty similar to the results I got when I tried it. I messed around a bit with all sorts of filters but never got something to my liking, so left it at a single quick & dirty experiment. Still a nice trick though.I see. Going to try some Arista magenta n yellow filters. Not sure will I do this long term but it was fun to do.

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[pound]

If I recall correctly, there is no yellow filter layer in RA-4 paper, which would prevent it from ever accurately rendering color using an in camera exposure. I could be wrong on that though.Yeah maybe something close enough will do. The cyan cast remains so maybe we need to add a yellow filter of some kind.

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[pound]

You might want to take a look at Joe Van Cleave's videos on this:

https://youtu.be/ry6ycSgT8g8

This is a two part video with the other on fellow participant Ethan Moses' (of Cameradactyl) channel:

https://youtu.be/BkcIk8M4KVcYeah.. went though these 2 and other RA4 reversal video youtube. Certainly helpful else I will not even know where to start.

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[koraks]

I see. Going to try some Arista magenta n yellow filters. Not sure will I do this long term but it was fun to do.

You might want to try using a black piece of processed C41 film as a base filter and then add yellow + magenta filters to get closer to where you want to be. The RA4 paper curves are obviously optimized for tungsten light shining through a C41 film mask, so if you set up your shot to come as close to that situation, you're automatically closer to the ballpark where RA4 will work. Contrast is another issue; RA4 paper is quite contrasty, so you might either use low-contrast light or try messing about with adding sulfite to the developer to reduce contrast. I never went as far as trying the sulfite though.

[dsphotog]

I'm wondering how well this would work making darkroom prints from slides...
Has anyone tried that?
Sure miss Cibachrome!

[koraks]

Yes, Ron Mowrey used to do that when he was still among us, there's one or two threads about it on photrio.

[Christopher Osborne]

Jeff Neale seems to have resolved the colour issues with RA-4 reversal printing. See Link to a detailed article at SilvergrainClassics (https://silvergrainclassics.com/en/2023/02/ra-4-reversal-printing-jeff-neale/):)

[Drew Wiley]

I'm somewhat skeptical. Depends what you mean by "solved". An improvement perhaps. One would have to start with a master color target and make comparisons via different methods. I can get far more accurate color than Cibachrome via color internegs from chrome originals, then onto Fuji RA4 paper. I formerly specialized in Ciba and knew all kinds of tricks with it. But my current interneg route is a bit involved and won't catch on with many; but the result is way better than what previous commercial color internegs delivered, somewhat due to me relying on masking rather than flashing for contrast control. Since I mainly do that for 8x10 chromes, it's just getting too expensive. 8X10 Portra (my preferred interneg flilm), along with processing and sheets of 8X10 masking film, adds up to around $70 per image, before I even start printing. It's cheaper just to print newer color neg originals themselves. But wow, the result itself the interneg route ... most accurate hue rendition I've ever gotten, and vivid clean colors, especially when printed on Fujiflex, the new Cibachrome look.

Making in-camera RA4 color positives is a whole different ballgame. A lot of filter stacking and tedious experimentation, I'd imagine.

[Christopher Osborne]

Drew. Would you mind sharing some images of your results? How large are you making the final prints? Christopher

[koraks]

Well, I'm probably skeptical as well if I were to apply a very strict criterion concerning color accuracy. The imagery in the examples suggests that there is still some crossover, but it's hard to tell exactly how much on each channel in these kinds of foliage scenes. However, how strict of a criterion should we apply? If this is about making decent-looking prints with not too much fuss, it looks like a success to me. Will it work for all types of scenes? I have my doubts, especially when it comes to more challenging ones such as scenes involving neutral greys at different densities, and of course skin tones.

All considered this looks like an admirable feat and the examples are quite nice indeed. It's a massive leap forward compared to anything I've seen so far in terms of RA4 reversal, that's for sure.

[Christopher Osborne]

Yes. It looks much better than many other attempts. I think the difference here is that the contrast is controlled during the 1st development stage.