Cooling Art 300’s warmer tone

Jay Schrotenboer · Apr 22, 2022

I am really starting to fall in love with Art 300 paper, and usually find it’s warm tone quite nice. That said, I framed a couple of pictures the other day in black frames with white mat and that warmth is a bit distracting. Especially because the prints are of lighthouses in the snow and ice. I am looking for suggestions on a toner to bring a colder tone to the prints. I appreciate any help offered.

esearing · Apr 23, 2022

I haven't tried this on Art 300 but FORMULARY GP-1 TONER may shift it toward blue-black.

Fresh Ansco 130 developer 1:1 (or straight) gives a more neutral tone to Art 300 and use TF5 fixer. Follow with a Selenium bath 1:20 but not full toning, you want to pull it before any shift in tones. The warmth will also depend on how many mid tones and highlights you have in the print. I feel like the texture doesn't give the blacks the depth that a glossy smooth surface has, but the texture and warmth is why you use that particular paper.

You could also create or enhance your developer with increased Hydroquinone which tends to cool tone but also will boost contrast.

Mike Crawford · Apr 23, 2022

Hi Jay

Tetenal Gold toner will certainly cool the the tone towards a very blue black though quite pricey. Though choice of developer can give a far colder tone in the first place. I used to use Harman Cold Tone developer on Ilford Warmtone and also tested it on Art 300, which can give similar cool, blue black tones to gold toning. Sadly that's discontinued but have used it with Moersch Blue developer to get a cool tone. https://www.moersch-photochemie.de/content/shop/positiv
If the tone is too blue, can mix it with a standard dev like PQ to fine tune it.

gone · Apr 23, 2022

Did you frame them w/ glass? Glass will sometimes change the tone of a print. Room lighting will do it too in some cases. When you read the reviews, a lot of folks say it's a slightly warm paper, so it sounds like a developer change is in order. I don't use anything like toners, and have no trouble getting warm papers w/ certain developers. Getting them cooler is something I haven't tried to do.

Pieter12 · Apr 23, 2022

Unfortunately, I think the warm tone you are perceiving is the paper color. No amount of toning or other cold-tone developers will change that.

Jay Schrotenboer · Apr 23, 2022

Thank you everyone for your input. That has given me some things to consider that I had not thought about.

Mike Crawford · Apr 29, 2022

Jay Schrotenboer said:
Thank you everyone for your input. That has given me some things to consider that I had not thought about.

Hi Jay. On an earlier post I mentioned about Moersch Blue Dev. Found the test prints I did for an article on the paper, and think the cooler print was processed in Tetenal Dokumal which gave a nice neutral / slightly cool black. Moersch will make it even cooler.

GregY · Apr 29, 2022

Jay, It dawned on me to mention that there are a multitude of "white" matt colours. I've got lots of papers....Fortezo, Foma,Oriental Seagull....in addition to (obviously) Ilford Warmtone. I've found a netural colour that works with all the papers.....but some
blinding white matts won't work.
As Pieter12 said, the Art 300 base itself is warm. I've been in that situation before, where matching the matt colour to be in the ballpark of the paper base is called for....

Jay Schrotenboer · Apr 29, 2022

Mike Crawford said:
Hi Jay. On an earlier post I mentioned about Moersch Blue Dev. Found the test prints I did for an article on the paper, and think the cooler print was processed in Tetenal Dokumal which gave a nice neutral / slightly cool black. Moersch will make it even cooler.

Thank you very much for that information, I will definitely be checking these options out in the future.

Jay Schrotenboer · Apr 29, 2022

GregY said:
Jay, It dawned on me to mention that there are a multitude of "white" matt colours. I've got lots of papers....Fortezo, Foma,Oriental Seagull....in addition to (obviously) Ilford Warmtone. I've found a netural colour that works with all the papers.....but some
blinding white matts won't work.
As Pieter12 said, the Art 300 base itself is warm. I've been in that situation before, where matching the matt colour to be in the ballpark of the paper base is called for....

I might try finding a different white matt, but I am not sure that will work well with the walls that were painted as neutral of a gray as my wife and I could find.

MattKing · Apr 29, 2022

Jay Schrotenboer said:
I might try finding a different white matt, but I am not sure that will work well with the walls that were painted as neutral of a gray as my wife and I could find.

Try black mats instead
PS - it is mats, not matts!
Just as it is matte, not matt.
And yes, I'm picky about that

Jay Schrotenboer · Apr 29, 2022

MattKing said:
Try black mats instead
PS - it is mats, not matts!
Just as it is matte, not matt.
And yes, I'm picky about that

Hmm I wonder why that could possibly be!?!

GregY · Apr 29, 2022

Jay, I find almost any variation of white matt works on my (Zone V) grey wall.... Where i notice the difference is on my 'white' walls.....where a blinding white matt clashes with Benjamin Moore "White Dove".....

Jay Schrotenboer · Apr 29, 2022

GregY said:
Jay, I find almost any variation of white matt works on my (Zone V) grey wall.... Where i notice the difference is on my 'white' walls.....where a blinding white matt clashes with Benjamin Moore "White Dove".....

Thank you very much for that. I will definitely explore other mat options when I can. Everyone has been very helpful so far and I am very grateful too you all.

Cooling Art 300’s warmer tone

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