Lines on prints

[ronald lamarsh]

After much labor and careful darkroom work I had a set of prints I thought was worthy of mounting and framing. They were all of the same negative with some slight developing and toning variations. Here's the bummer: upon close examination, during spotting, I discovered some (maybe 3 out of 6) exhibited a very fine line(white like a scratch on the base side of the neg) running vertically throught the sky. On comparing the prints I found it in different places on each print!!! I double checked the neg and found no base scratches that would match the lines on the prints.....plus I never moved the negative during that session, yet the line moved 3" to the right between 2 separate prints! Could this be a paper defect? I am using Forte polywarmtone and was extremely carful during processing. Any thoughts out there???

[Andrew O'Neill]

Sounds like a paper defect to me. Go in the darkroom and expose a sheet to about a middle gray tone. Develop and inspect. Of course this will only work if all sheet are defected.

[ronald lamarsh]

Thank you Andrew I only have one sheet left and will try it. This is a total bummer though.

[Mark Sawyer]

You and Andrew could be right; maybe a paer defect...

If you were contact printing, I'd guess a scratch on the glass, but it sounds like you were enlarging, (" I never moved the negative during that session...")

Could there have been a long straight hair that got on top of the paper for some of the prints? Unlikely, but maybe... Or a very fine hair on top of the negative moving around in the convective air currents inside the enlarger?

Could it be a scratch on the surface of the paper from a piece of grit on the squeegee or paper towel used to dry them? You can spot those by reflected light on the surface of the print.

If it moved, it ain't in the negative. So many possibilities...

I feel your pain, brother...

[Barry Wilkinson]

I also use Forte polywarmtone regularly and have experienced the same defect. It is fairly rare but annoying all the same. The paper is so nice I just put up with it.

Barry

[Gem Singer]

Hi Ron,

Those lines could be caused by the way the paper was handled while it was wet. Forte Polywarmtone seems to be a delicate paper while wet. When it is bent, even very slightly, the emulsion will sometimes crack and show those types of lines. A hardener in the fixer may help. I was having a similar problem and solved it by switching to heavier weight Ilford Warmtone paper.

[Louis Jensen]

If you develop the prints face down in a tray such lines/scratchs can be formed by sharp points on the surface of the tray. The locations of the scratches on the prints can also change due to the changing position of the print in the tray. After discovering such scratches on a batch of 16x20 prints I now routinely check the surface of my trays for defects.

[Jim Galli]

dirt on the squeegee?

[ronald moravec]

Last time something similar happened, I turned the easel 45 degress to see if the defect moved.