Digital BW, The Print

I'm hoping to make some gum prints from inkjet negs made using a 
rather crappy Lexmark z33 and inkjet transparency sheets from k-mart 
(i.e. low budget).

Would welcome any suggestions, advice...

Pepe

too poor for this group....:-/....:(....:((


--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "pepejaffa" <pepejaffa@y...> wrote:
>
> I'm hoping to make some gum prints from inkjet negs made using a 
> rather crappy Lexmark z33 and inkjet transparency sheets from k-mart 
> (i.e. low budget).
> 
> Would welcome any suggestions, advice...
> 
> Pepe
>




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

My 13yo son and I have done single color
gum-bichromate contact printing from simple digital
negs made on an inexpensive Canon printer onto cheap
8.5 x 11 inch 3M brand transparency film we got at
Office Max.  Not elegant - but it worked.  We just 
did a simple color to grey-scale conversion and
inversion using PS Elements starting with a digital
jpeg original.  Again, not the most subtle gradation
of  tones - but it did WORK and is a good way to get
started.  We like to watercolor onto the prints after
they're dry - as, of course, these are just
"photographic watercolors" anyway.  BTW, we liked
Arches hot press for the paper substrate.

--- pepejaffa <pepejaffa@...> wrote:

> 
> too poor for this group....:-/....:(....:((
> 
> 
> --- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com,
> "pepejaffa" <pepejaffa@y...> wrote:
> >
> > I'm hoping to make some gum prints from inkjet
> negs made using a 
> > rather crappy Lexmark z33 and inkjet transparency
> sheets from k-mart 
> > (i.e. low budget).
> > 
> > Would welcome any suggestions, advice...
> > 
> > Pepe
> >
> 
> 
> 
> 
> [Non-text portions of this message have been
> removed]
> 
> 


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p.s. I have owned one of those Lexmarks (bought it to make prints in 
a motel room once) and IMO they are not worth the cost of ink for 
them - but you can make a simple negative which will make a gum 
photo at least as  good as what was done at the dawn of photography -
 and of coure art is found where ever you make it... good 
luck...michael vendrell


--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "pepejaffa" 
<pepejaffa@y...> wrote:
>
> 
> too poor for this group....:-/....:(....:((
> 
> 
> --- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "pepejaffa" 
<pepejaffa@y...> wrote:
> >
> > I'm hoping to make some gum prints from inkjet negs made using a 
> > rather crappy Lexmark z33 and inkjet transparency sheets from k-
mart 

> > (i.e. low budget).
> > 
> > Would welcome any suggestions, advice...
> > 
> > Pepe
> >
> 
> 
> 
> 
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>

--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "pepejaffa" <pepejaffa@y...> wrote:
>
> I'm hoping to make some gum prints from inkjet negs made using a 
> rather crappy Lexmark z33 and inkjet transparency sheets from k-mart 
> (i.e. low budget).
> 
> Would welcome any suggestions, advice...

Print the negative twice (on two separate sheets). Carefully align them and sandwich them together, taping the edges. Make sure you don't trap dirt between them.

This will help compensate for the texture of the cheap transparency sheets, and their inability to hold enough ink to reach a decent DMAX on the negative.

Aside from that, making a nice curve in PhotoShop to get a good tone range in the print is something way betond a discussion in this group, you'd really need something like Dan Burkholder's book for that.

Good luck, have fun.

--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "pepejaffa"
<pepejaffa@y...> wrote:
>
> I'm hoping to make some gum prints from inkjet negs made using a 
> rather crappy Lexmark z33 and inkjet transparency sheets from k-mart 
> (i.e. low budget).
> 
> Would welcome any suggestions, advice...
> 
> Pepe
>
This sounds interesting. What are you trying to create here? I'm not
familiar with gum prints.

Gum prints are made using gum arabic (with watercolor pigment of your 
choice) which is made light sensitve with potassium bi-chromate and 
then hand coated onto gelatin sized watercolor paper (e.g Arches).
  
It is very slow and thus must be exposed to a UV source such as 
sunlight (or a sun-lamp) for about 10 minutes via contact printing.  
Since it is too slow for projection printing, one needs a way to make 
an enlarged neg unless one is  using a large-format camera. They are 
thus "photographic watercolors". 

Digital printing onto transparency  stock is a relatively easy way to 
make the enlarged negs and since the  negative can be damaged when it 
comes into contact with the fresh damp hand coated emulsion - not a 
bad thing to be able to make copies.

In  addition if color seperation negatives are made and the 
appropriate  colors of watercolor pigment are used (e.g red, blue, 
yellow) and the negs are registered - one can make true color photos -
indeed this was  one of the earliest ways of doing so.  

Probably more than you wanted to  know.

The prints can be black and white if black pigment is used and the 
paper is white - just  so you know this isn't OT - but usually a 
monochrome print is made with  a color such as burnt umber - for 
example....Anyway it can be a lot of fun ....Michael vendrell

--- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "Byron Sanford" 
<bmgs@h...> wrote:
>
> --- In DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com, "pepejaffa"
> <pepejaffa@y...> wrote:
> >
> > I'm hoping to make some gum prints from inkjet negs made using a 
> > rather crappy Lexmark z33 and inkjet transparency sheets from k-
mart 

> > (i.e. low budget).
> > 
> > Would welcome any suggestions, advice...
> > 
> > Pepe
> >
> This sounds interesting. What are you trying to create here? I'm not
> familiar with gum prints.
>