Recreating Tricolor Carbon or Carbro

[SpeedGraphicMan]

Hello,

Does anyone have any experience with Tricolor Carbon or Carbro printing?
Is anyone still printing with either method? Is it possible to do this style of printing in the Darkroom today?

Any information would be appreciated as they are techniques I would like to explore.

Thanks!

[vinny]

Yes. Not easily. Youtube.

[sanking]

I printed with tri-color carbon and carbro in the 1980s/early 90s using analog separation negatives. I don't do color carbon any more but if I did it would sure be with digital separations.

Several years ago I published a three-part piece on carbon printing in Silvershotz. The third part, which I am attaching as a .txt file, was about the history and current practice of color carbon. See the reference section for books about the traditional methods.



Sandy

[bob carnie]

I have seen these prints Sandy speak of and they are wonderful.


I printed with tri-color carbon and carbro in the 1980s/early 90s using analog separation negatives. I don't do color carbon any more but if I did it would sure be with digital separations.

Several years ago I published a three-part piece on carbon printing in Silvershotz. The third part, which I am attaching as a .txt file, was about the history and current practice of color carbon. See the reference section for books about the traditional methods.



Sandy

[sanking]

I have seen these prints Sandy speak of and they are wonderful.

Bob,

No matter how much you flatter me I am not going to start making color carbon prints again!!

Sandy

[bob carnie]

Well if anyone could it would be you... A couple of cold beers and one of Laura's king crab meals would probably work on you.


Maybe your latest student would be able to do it... I am about to try , you would not believe the month I have had with that dam foot problem, it has
slowed me down to almost a crawl, I am wearing slippers at work these days.

I am hoping to get at least a pleasing artistic rendering out of my prints.

Bob,

No matter how much you flatter me I am not going to start making color carbon prints again!!

Sandy

[D. Bryant]

Well if anyone could it would be you... A couple of cold beers and one of Laura's king crab meals would probably work on you.


Maybe your latest student would be able to do it... I am about to try , you would not believe the month I have had with that dam foot problem, it has
slowed me down to almost a crawl, I am wearing slippers at work these days.

I am hoping to get at least a pleasing artistic rendering out of my prints.

Dang Bob are you still hobbling around? My sympathies.

Don

[bob carnie]

Other foot this time
I am seeing doctors but its taking time.
Really takes the creative energy out of ones soul, just want to put the foot up and forget about everything.


Dang Bob are you still hobbling around? My sympathies.

Don

[SpeedGraphicMan]

I printed with tri-color carbon and carbro in the 1980s/early 90s using analog separation negatives. I don't do color carbon any more but if I did it would sure be with digital separations.

Several years ago I published a three-part piece on carbon printing in Silvershotz. The third part, which I am attaching as a .txt file, was about the history and current practice of color carbon. See the reference section for books about the traditional methods.



Sandy

Thanks!

[vinny]

acupuncture bob, acupuncture.

[Drew Wiley]

I'm aware of five people who routinely did color carbons in this area for many years. Some
were well-known practitioners of these kinds of processes, incl carbro and attempts at
commercially modernizing pigment processes (with technical if not full commercial success),
while others quiety went about it using watercolor pigments and papers. Wish I was younger and had more time on my hands. It's the King of color techniques as far as I'm
concerned. In the meantime, I'm still slowly plodding along learning the ropes of the Queen of color processes, namely, dye transfer. And yes, all the necessary separations etc can
still be done in the darkroom totally analog, if that is what you enjoy, like I do. But a hybrid approach like Sandy teaches is a lot more practical in most cases.

[bob carnie]

To any Worker here and on APUG who is considering Tricolour Carbon or Carbro .

I am going down this path of making multiple colour images overtop pd or silver,using pigments that are permanent.
I am using my lambda, a big laser exposing unit to make silver film that has been separated in PS, as well considering purchasing an imagesetter
to produce screened film.. I have an idea how to produce screened film with what equipment and materials at hand but a bit of testing is required to
see if it will work.
We have successfully made enlarged silver film that can be used for all processes including silver for contact printing . As well have made various
separation films for multiple hit printing. We know this works, I also know that if required I will purchase an image setter to produce a hard dot stocastic screen for CMYK printing on full colour carbons or gum.

Carbro's which are produced from three separated bromide prints is another area that I do not have time to follow through with at this point.

BUT I am willing to team up with any serious worker who wants to go down that wormhole by producing separated Bromide prints for them to start with.
At my fingertips I have two types of paper... Ilford Galerie G 4 which is made for the Lambda, and Ilford Multigrade RC which also is made for the Lambda. Both
are very current papers made by Harman UK and a good supply for the years to come.

Basically if one could work from these sources then I can supply this paper separations quite easily. Warning, since I have never made a Carbro I am assuming that
these silver gelatin prints will work but of course cannot state that they will work as I hope. There may be issues of super coating on the emulsion that I am not aware of
and that is something for someone to test to see the potential.

If anyone is willing to try this I will supply the separated prints for Beta Testing, all I ask is a back and forth open discussion and an understanding any results I will put out to
the photographic community and not keep it under wraps so to speak. I am not going to go down this route right now as I have more on my plate than I can handle , as well as running a photo lab that needs to keep profitable to finance this madness.
I would be looking for someone who has the time, and skill set and commitment to seriously consider Carbro.. I would supply the paper separations , thats it, I would not
supply any of the materials or equipment or in that fact space to do this project, this would be the person crazy enough to do this. I do not care where one lives as Fed X can ship anywhere in the world and I would get the separations to the willing person.
Tissue making is also a key requirement for any worker wanting to try this and there is a very long thread on APUG about this and many workers successfully making the colour tissue.

I am looking into a way to register the paper as well which would be a valuable asset to the above endeavours. I believe the Lambda can be adapted to accept a registration punch
capability, not cheap by any means but if I find that I am getting success with the above two ways of making tri colour prints then I will invest in the adaptor.
There seems to be enough engineers here on this site and APUG to help me when I get stuck with a adapting a mechanical device to this laser unit. The lambda technicians are world class but at $500 per hour I will leave that till I am certain that we are on to something with potential. This would mean I would have to supply the registration device to the Lambda technicians ready to be installed to minimize costs.


FYI this is a serious offer not given lightly, I am committed to this process and project and to date have spent thousands of dollars on materials, and countless trips to various experts,
Sandy King being a very significant mentor who I can now call a friend of our Elevator family and my personal family has graciously accepted my memory losses,stubborness, and plain ignorance on the carbon process, and has patiently walked me through many stages.

I have always felt that the ACHILLES HEEL of colour photography has been the lacking of any archival materials materials that are readily available to the serious worker.
I have been on this quest for quite a long time, I took a ultrastable course in the mid 90's with David Schrader at the Maine Photo workshops for a week. It became obvious to me ( a very serious control freek with my photographic work) that I did not have the key elements to produce the prints... Scanner, ability to separate the film, equipment to produce the prints, a client base willing to pay for the prints... Today I have this equipment and most importantly a client base to support this sideways step I am going to take... and I want to leave behind a record of images, in BW and Colour that has the potential of being viewed many years in the future.
The person I am looking for is someone who believes in these words as I deeply do.

Any takers to test Carbro??

Bob

[Jim Fitzgerald]

If I were a younger man this may be of interest. I have seen color work and it is the best I have ever seen. I love my monochrome carbon work and have way to much to explore and not enough time. Good luck.