Best Available VC Paper for 8x10 Contact Prints

Zarraboy · Dec 1, 2010

I wish Lodima had a distributor here in Brazil...
So, besides Fomalux, what are the best commercially available Variable Contrast papers for contact printing 8x10 negatives? I understand this question has been asked many times but papers have come and departed many times since then.

c6h6o3 · Dec 1, 2010

I've seen gorgeous contacts made on Ilford Multigrade Warmtone developed in amidol and toned in selenium. You'll need to use an enlarger or a very low wattage bulb to use as a light source, but the results are very rewarding

eclarke · Dec 1, 2010

That'd be my choice..actually it IS my choice..EC

payral · Dec 1, 2010

Zarraboy said:
I wish Lodima had a distributor here in Brazil...

Only one distributor for Lodima, same for everybody.
If you really want order it from:
http://store.michaelandpaula.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=1&zenid=cuo10ethjttc045d8b8700kba3

It's very easy.

hpulley · Dec 1, 2010

c6h6o3 said:
I've seen gorgeous contacts made on Ilford Multigrade Warmtone developed in amidol and toned in selenium. You'll need to use an enlarger or a very low wattage bulb to use as a light source, but the results are very rewarding

I realize you're being sarcastic but really, MGWT is a great paper! If you want to see how it looks on warmtone there is really only one way to tell, and that's on warmtone. Plus the exposure time for WT is much different for other MG so it is difficult to do test prints using neutral paper and apply them to warm tone in my experience. I try using the fact sheet stated ISO ratings for the various filter grades to figure out the right exposure based upon test sheets with regular paper but I usually end up getting it wrong so I figure I need to do tests with warmtone to work in warmtone.

Jerevan · Dec 1, 2010

I've done contact prints on Ilford MGIV matt and Fomabrom Variant III, both glossy and matt - both papers are very good. As per other contributors on APUG (fschifano) it is possible to get slightly warmer tones on Fomabrom with warmtone developers. I've never done this, so I can't say how it looks. Normally this paper is neutral to cold in tones.

c6h6o3 · Dec 1, 2010

hpulley said:
I realize you're being sarcastic but really

I'm not being sarcastic at all. Joe Freeman recently sent me two prints from his Senior thesis show at the Rhode Island School of Design printed on Ilford MGWT, developed in amidol and toned in selenium. They were two of the finest prints I've ever held in my hands. I know that some of his other friends, accomplished Azo printers, have also started using it. I recently bought a box, although I haven't yet had the chance to try it as I don't have the right light source at home.

A word of warning: you need a much less dense negative for MGWT than you would for Azo or Lodima. If your negatives are exposed and developed for a contact speed paper, go out and make some new ones that are thinner lest you waste a lot of MGWT (which is damned expensive!).

hpulley · Dec 1, 2010

I'm glad I was wrong about your being sarcastic. I love the paper alone and toned with selenium too (Berg seems to be most available here for some reason).

Interesting about amidol though. I thought it was a cold tone developer.

c6h6o3 · Dec 1, 2010

hpulley said:
I'm glad I was wrong about your being sarcastic. I love the paper alone and toned with selenium too (Berg seems to be most available here for some reason).

Interesting about amidol though. I thought it was a cold tone developer.

With silver chloride papers, at least, amidol yields relatively warm tones. Azo in Dektol is downright blue.

jgjbowen · Dec 2, 2010

One of the beauties of Amidol is the ability to vary the print color depending on the amount of KBR in the formula. Perhaps the coldest print I've ever seen was an Azo print developed in Amidol with Zero KBR. Of course, since the KBR acts as a restrainer, the image exhibited a touch of fog.

Hmmm, that gives me an idea for my notebook of Azo/Lodima using various developers. I need to mix up some amidol using BZ as the restrainer. I would expect some very cold prints, but let's see what actually develops.

coriana6jp · Dec 3, 2010

I am wanting to experiment with Amidol and Ilford MGWT, which is my mainstay paper including contact prints. Does anyone have any good formulas which might be good to try?

Thane!

Gary

c6h6o3 · Dec 4, 2010

Scroll down to Amidol for Use with Enlarging Paper

coriana6jp · Dec 4, 2010

Jim,

Thanks! That was the link I had seen once, but couldnt find again.

Gary

Mahler_one · Dec 22, 2010

c6h6o3 said:
Scroll down to Amidol for Use with Enlarging Paper

Would the developing time in Amidol be the same one minute that one uses for Azo and Lodima papers? Can one use the "water bath" technique that one uses with Lodima paper?

Thanks.

Mahler_one · Dec 22, 2010

Mahler_one said:
Would the developing time in Amidol be the same one minute that one uses for Azo and Lodima papers? Can one use the "water bath" technique that one uses with Lodima paper?

Thanks.

Sorry....I accessed the link and I note the 2-3 minute developing time when one uses Azo with enlarging papers.

Best Available VC Paper for 8x10 Contact Prints

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