A Christmas Cookie from Santa

[Photo Engineer]

Ok, I have gone for full page text with 5" wide photos in color or B&W to show detail. Two column restricts detail too much and photos wider takes up too much vertical space.

Dont count on Christmas this year. I am sending 4 copies to friends for editing first. So, think May - Sept 2011.

The printer promised this PM, but never called. I expected to pick up the 4 copies this afternoon or early evening and no-go. So, I also have to depend on others.

By my figure, the Silver Nitrate alone cost me about $900 and printing costs were well over $300 so far.

Sorry.

PE

 

[Kirk Keyes]

Sorry I'm a bit late in posting, but whatever the price is, I'm in. Haveing spent a long evening a year and a half ago reading whichever version of the draft it was and also spending more than an hour watching the DVD, I'm willing and happy to pay $100 for even a B&W only version of this book. I know it will be well worth whatever price you decide to set.

Afterall, where else can someone get all that info in one place?

Ron - Congratulations on this labor of love. I know you've spent a lot of time and money on this book.

Kirk

PS - if you need more reviewers...

PPS - I'm willing to send in $50 as a down-payment to help get the first run printed.

 

[c.d.ewen]

PPS - I'm willing to send in $50 as a down-payment to help get the first run printed.

If a little cash in hand from subscribers will speed the process, I'm in too.

Charley

 

[Alex Bishop-Thorpe]

Considering it is a textbook of some respectable volume (and labour), I'd pay more than $100USD for a copy. I dont mind saving for books, knowledge is the only thing worth investing in these days anyway.
I'm also heavily in favour of colour printing. It may not be art, but it is science - accuracy in the reproduction should be high on the agenda, and I dont think black and white would really cut it.

 

[Photo Engineer]

Alright, looks like the $90 - $120 range is doable for the B&W version. I'm looking at the color version. I have 4 copies of the B&W version here for the editors and am about to dupe the DVDs. There may be a CD as well with some extras (cookies again). I'll keep you posted. The DVDs will probably be in the $100 range.

PE

 

[wildbillbugman]

Hi Ron
I am also in, if you ask for a cash deposit to help with your out of pocket expenses.
Just out of curiosity, what printing technology dose your printer use? I have seen some medical periodicals where the color printing looks fantastic, Art in and of itself. I am not suggesting that you go that far. I am sure that either the cost of subscription to these periodicals is astronomical. or the cost of advertising in them is cosmic,or both. Its just that Graphic Arts is a side-interest of mine. I admit, that I do not read these medical journals. I just "look at the pictures".
Bill

 

[Photo Engineer]

Guys;

I am looking from low end to high end on this. I made the editing copies in B&W with a color cover using low end technology. I quoted the price earlier. Well, the B&W was pretty bad, but the color was superb. The high end is probably a killer for this project in terms of price, but the high end was used for Bob's book. So, I'm still working on this.

I will be using one of our daughters for advice. She is an engineer for Xerox and an expert on these methods including the POD systems. So, I have an in-house expert so to speak (well in-family, as she has her own home ).

I will be giving these 4 copies out to friends soon, and as they do their readover, I will be doing the bibliography and the index, neither of which are finished. As I may have said earlier, I am fighting with Word over the index. I hope I win.

PE

 

[Jerevan]

Oh, Word. Not the most... uhm... friendly or advanced program. It's like a rocket you have to build yourself, with half the parts missing.

 

[Photo Engineer]

Book Cover

Well, here is the book cover - so far.

This is what is on the 4 copies going out to friends in about 2 weeks.

Comments?

PE

 

[Tim Gray]

Ron, have you thought about maybe getting someone in to help with the typesetting?

 

[Kirk Keyes]

I like the photos! They tell a story in their own.

I think I would split up the layout of the titles and the author's name. I would do it like this:

PHOTOGRAPHIC EMULSIONS (all in caps, on a line by themself. Use a larger font for this line, and justify it across the top of the book.)

Making, Coating, Testing (all on the second line. Perhaps in caps too for consistency, but I think I would put them in italics, and at a smaller font than the first line of the title.)

(Then the 3 photos just as you have them.)

R. G. Mowrey (Mix of caps and lower case. Right Justified. Note the omission of "by".)

Note I changed the title of your book slightly - from "PHOTOGRAPHIC EMULSION" to "PHOTOGRAPHIC EMULSIONS". I think it reads better, especially when the title is split up as I propose.

Kirk

 

[Athiril]

Spruce up the cover. I'm sure there are quite a few peeps on here good with design, I'm not bad myself either. Look at other books for inspiration?

Perhaps draw some styling from 18th/19th century books even..

 

[hrst]

Looks VERY nice! Nice to have a real introduction to the subject in cover picture. This is rarely seen, but works like a charm in this case. Goes 1:1 with the title.

 

[wildbillbugman]

Hi Ron,
How come the top picture is bathed in green light? A magenta sensitive emulsion, with no blue or green sensitivity?
Kirk,
I tawt tcha was dead!
Bill

Bill

 

[Photo Engineer]

Bill;

The top photo, as all stills and video taken "for real and in the dark" was done with IR light which is rendered in green by the sensor in my videocam.

PE

 

[wildbillbugman]

Ron,
For the purpose of the book, could you change the green cast to red? I really don't mean to nit pick. But the green cast looks very out of place.
Bill

 

[Photo Engineer]

Bill;

The green cast is throughout the book and the DVDs due to the nature of the videography. Sorry.

I guess that shows me that you cannot please everyone. Maybe I'll end up pleasing no one.

PE

 

[wildbillbugman]

Ron,
No big deal. I only hope that your readers don't equip their darkrooms with green safe lights, then try to make an ortho emulsion.
Bill

 

[Kirk Keyes]

Kirk,
I tawt tcha was dead!
Bill

Bill

Not dead - just not as much free time as before...

Kirk

PS - I'd send you my obituary if I was going to die so you would know!

 

[Athiril]

Ron,
No big deal. I only hope that your readers don't equip their darkrooms with green safe lights, then try to make an ortho emulsion.
Bill

I think Ron's book would be far beyond such people, and that a remedial high school science book would first be more helpful.

 

[Formulary/Bud Wilson]

Ron;
congratulations on your progress, from what I have seen and heard you have and are doing good things.
FYI, the Formulary is avialable to you for processing of Credit Card deposits/charges shipping, invoicing, etc., so you don't have or need to create some extra overhead if you don't want or need to.
As you know I don't have an opinion on what format the end result should be in but please let me say committing to 1000 copies @$50.00 = $50,000.00.
I would think that you might want that to be in the bank in the form of deposits prior to that commitment.
Formulary is willing to help however we can to help you accomplish getting this done.
Thanxs
Bud

 

[Photo Engineer]

Bud;

Thank you very much.

I have gotten that type of price information from several firms and this $20,000 - $50,000 cost is quite daunting. I am looking at several lower cost lower quality options just to be able to afford getting it out there.

PE

 

[Athiril]

That'd make my head spin! I'd run straight to on-demand printing.

Either way, looking forward to the finished work!

 

[Photo Engineer]

Draft #6 is now in the hands of 5 people who are good friends and no strangers to emulsion making. I hope to have it back in my hands in 1 - 2 months, then fix the errors and move on to production.

In the mean time, I am having a prototype Kodak style supermixer being made that may solve some problems mentioned in this book. If it is complete in time, it may be included in an appendix.

PE

 

[Formulary/Bud Wilson]

prototype Kodak style Supermixer?