Contact printing question?

[Dave Parker]

I know a lot of people like the AZO papers for contact printing, but was wondering what other papers people like for contact printing of 8x10 format, I have just loaded up 5 8x10 holders with JandC Pro 100. I know this may sound like a lame question, but I have been mainly a color transparancy shooter since High School days and have not done any contact printing over the years, so figured here might be a good place to start asking.

Thanks.

R.

 

[rbarker]

Virtually any smooth-surfaced* conventional enlarging paper can be used for contact printing, too, Roxi. I use Ilford MGIV fiber base, both the cool and warm tone versions, for example, using my VC enlarger as the light source.

* The ideal is to get the best physical contact between the emulsion side of the neg and the paper surface you can, so smooth surfaced papers tend to be better.

 

[RalphLambrecht]

I agree with Ralph Barker. I use the same paper for 11x14 contacts.

 

[reellis67]

I've done 4x5 contact prints with MGIV FB and gotten really nice results. So nice, in fact, that I've decided to go up in size to 8x10 in order to accomodate larger contact prints.

Like Ralph stated above, you can easily use an enlarger to do the exposures. Just get a nice contact frame, or build one if you are so inclined, so that you get good contact. Used frames may have scratched glass, so use caution, but you can certainly get new frames from a number of APUG vendors that will do quite nicely. When I first started, I used my PrintFile proof printer, but now I have a nice wooden frame (two actualy!) that handle the job.

- Randy

 

[mjs]

I always liked Cachet and Forte papers for contact printing 5x7's; there's a 'look' about them which is subtle but which I like quite a bit. I suspect that any paper which you like the "look" of will produce the same satisfaction from a contact print, though.

mjs

 

[c6h6o3]

I've heard good things about J&C Nuance for contact printing of negatives exposed and developed for Azo. Use Michael Smith's amidol formula for enlarging paper. I'm told by photographers whose work I greatly admire that the results are very close to those achievable with Azo.

 

[dphphoto]

I like the Adox papers available from JandC Photography. Very long scale. I've gotten prints comparable to the Azo prints I made years ago. Dean