Contact printing paper.

[P580C]

Hi all.

I’m new here, been lurking for a while. I’m keen to get into a more traditional analogue photography, although starting with a digital file. I don’t have the room for a full darkroom so thought about contact printing paper like Adox Lupex.

I’m struggling to find much information about it or similar papers. Where to buy it or what light source and chemicals etc.

I’ll be printing 10x8 negatives on my inkjet, maybe 12x8. I’m keen to try printing on film vs tracing paper vs copier paper.

If anyone can point me to a UK or EU supplier, and information on how to print, that would be amazing. Thank you.

 

[removed account4]

hi p580c

have you seen this forum here yet ?
https://www.photrio.com/forum/forums/partner-adox.20/
it has contact information for Mirko and adox ... he is responsive if you write him.

I've never used lupex before. but I have used it's 2nd cousin, azo ... it is also a silver chloride paper.
http://michaelandpaula.com/mp/html/Azo_Main.html
the forum there at Michael and Paula's website ( Michael kept azo alive for decades when Kodak wanted to get rid of it ). there is information about development &c. ( usually it is a 300w reflective light bulb but you can use many different things, its super slow paper ! ). at that website they suggest the best ways to develop the paper is in an amidol based developer, I've never used amidol ( have always stayed away from it ). but I have. used dektol and Ansco 130, it works OK. slight green tinge though. I'm not sure if there are many people who use digital negatives for this paper. ... I have, but there aren't many people I have run across who also have been using waxed ink jet paper, inexpensive OHP film too, works pretty well .
if you can't find a store that will send you lupex in these strange times, go to ebay if you can, and search for expired azo, it holds up very well ( I've been printing on some from the 1930s ... and 40s and have no issues )...
good luck !
John

ps. if you are in a REAL pinch and want to have some fun, you can make your own silver chloride paper too, I've also been doing that ( on my 3 or 4th batch now ) its just silver nitrate ( wear eye protection !!! ) , salt water and gelatin, and the only time spent, really, is weighing the ingredients, and then, dribbling the silver nitrate into the salted gelatin and waiting for it to set. thelightfarm.com has all sorts of info on the subject... careful though it is addictive...

 

[P580C]

Wow thank you. I shall go read

 

[removed account4]

have fun !
looking forward to seeing your results
John

 

[Alan9940]

I use quite a bit of Lupex...it's a very nice paper! I buy it from fotoimpex in Germany. For contact printing in the darkroom, you'll need a fairly strong lightsource; I use a 150 watt flood at about 5 feet above my enlarger table. I'm sure it can be developed in all the common paper developers, but my favorites are Amidol or Ansco 130. Stop, fix, wash, and toning are just like any other printing paper. Can't help you with generating a digital neg for analog printing because, though I do produce digital negs for pt/pd printing, I've never been successful at producing one for contact printing in the darkroom. I hear Jon Cone's digital neg process does generate a good negative for printing in a traditional darkroom, but I've never tried it for myself.

 

[P580C]

I’d just assumed the negs would work The benefits of ignorance.

 

[Alan9940]

I’d just assumed the negs would work The benefits of ignorance.

Oh, they will work, but I found the appearance of the "drop pattern" and lack of really smooth tonal transitions to be unacceptable to me. You should give it a go, though, and form your own opinions.

 

[P580C]

Ahh ok. I may start testing with more generic papers and low wattage bulbs. Would a standard silver fibre based paper work as well?

 

[MattKing]

Ahh ok. I may start testing with more generic papers and low wattage bulbs. Would a standard silver fibre based paper work as well?

Yes, although you may need a very low wattage bulb or some way to dim output.
If you try with variable contrast paper, be careful with changes in contrast due to changes in colour temperature.
If I do this sort of thing with a film negative, I use an enlarger as a light source.

 

[P580C]

I’m tempted to just use my ceiling lights as my light source. 4 nicely spaced LED lights 5’ above the paper.

Or even the window.

 

[removed account4]

back in the day ( i mean a long time ago ). they had these things called solar enlargers. not the solar enlarger burke and james made but ... it used the sun.
if you have a big box, or a footlocker / trunk and can put a lens on it ( even a lens from a camera ) you can make one, well a crude one. the problem with using room lights and or a window is you won't have any control over the light source, it'll work though. if the light comes through a lens of some sort at least you can burn and dodge if you need to... manipulate it.
here's a link .. you probably don't need the condensors. ... but just a lens ... https://books.google.com/books?id=PJ8DHBay4_EC&pg=PA490&dq=solar+photographic+enlarger&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiFwIWsyOXoAhWWlnIEHa-SAasQ6AEwAXoECAUQAg#v=onepage&q=solar photographic enlarger&f=false
with regular photo paper you can also do as mr weston did with a bare light bulb a little closer than 5' .
i think david goldfarb ( one of the moderators here ) sometimes uses a desk lamp or a similar set up ? maybe i am remembering wrong ..
or you could start with a small negative / paper and just use your camera .. paper inside your camera, negative outside in sun and u just make an exposure ...
like they do with afghan cameras

if you have a lot of photo paper lying around you can do as I do which is a long exposed contact print in the sun, takes a long time
and you won't get pure whites but a bluish wierd magenta image but you can stablize it in a little baking soda and water so you can develop and fix it out. kind of what photography's inventor niepce used to do but he coated his paper himself ( salted paper ) and didn't know how to fix them ...

stay well !
john

 

[lantau]

Fomatone papers are a few stops slower than other papers.

I use them for enlarging, but the data sheet says they are recommended for contact printing due to the low speed.

I did notice, though, that the fibre base paper color is quite warm/yellow for my taste. The rc version was less pronounced and really beautiful , but is not made any longer.