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Diffusion Transfer Printing ("Polaroid" peel-apart) recipes

It's so cool to see someone doing this type of photography at an event. Well done.
 
thinkbrown said:
It's so cool to see someone doing this type of photography at an event. Well done.
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Thank you! I would say I took about 60% of the people that got their photo taken into the Ilford darkroom tent to show them how it was processed as well. It was a lot of fun.
 
alecrmyers said:
Have you tried slowing the roller by hand to see if it improves your print density? What was the result?

It seems premature to go to a lot of trouble reengineering the drive when it's so trivially easy to verify if roller speed makes any difference.
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I tried this a while back, but sadly, the machine jitters (stops and go), there doesnt' seem to be enough torque at the slowest setting.

Analog, when you shoot ilford paper, what lighting are you using?
And congrats on the demonstration. Your work is excellent!
What chemical mixtures did you end up settling on?

Thanks to both of you!
 
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Qebs said:
Analog, when you shoot ilford paper, what lighting are you using?
And congrats on the demonstration. Your work is excellent!
What chemical mixtures did you end up settling on?
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Thank you. The lighting from that shoot was a 4 light setup, with speedotron packs, a vflat reflector, and a catch light reflector for the eyes.

The paper used various heavy metal sulfides in silica hydrosol (Lead, Nickel, Copper, Zinc, Palladium), I didn't keep track which is which for the photos. The developer was extremely similar to the one you're using now, I believe.

Experiment with the levels of the various components, you'll eventually find a combo that works well for you.
 
Here's a flatbed scan (Epson v850) from a friend of one of the images I took over the weekend:



No fading or color change apparent after 5 days, the print was never wiped or washed.
 

Really great image from paper I coated tonight!
 
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Recipe for above:

10mL Ludox HS-30
500µL 1% Pb(OAc)₂
250µL 1% Ni(OAc)₂
3 drops 1% Na₂S
2 drops 10% polysorbate 20
Coat @ 10µm
 
Today, I'm trying out the process with a modified laminator machine.

The machine now has a new motor and gear box that gives enough torque at slower speeds. The chain is binding once in a while, but my Mechanical Engineer friend and I will sort this out later.

Moving to Fuji Xray HRU film (8x10" for now).

I do plan to return to multitone paper negatives in the 20x24" size and then 24x32" with orthochromatic paper negatives later.

If all goes well this week, I'll be shooting an art project for a portfolio review here in Toronto. The project will be on my health problems.

I'll upload some photos of the machine later.
It was a simple solution and anyone going the route of ultra large format and bought the same laminating machine or will might like the photos.

@analogwisdom Quick question, for the 1P5MT.
Did you ever find a consistent way of adding it to the receiver formula.
I have no idea how to add it. Could you share some advice?
Thanks so much!
 
@analogwisdom -- not to really try to rain on the parade at all, but I notice you don't credit anyone else when you discuss this work on Instagram. I'm just wondering where you would be on the whole "peel-apart" resurrection without @alecrmyers ? (Note that this has nothing to do with me.)

(Edited to remove screenshots. I was mistaken and apologize.)
 
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from instagram:



from an already written instruction document I'm providing to people that I give materials to:




from a Q&A with my followers I did on Instagram the other day, that's also currently pinned to my profile as a highlight (where it says Photrio is a link to this thread):



I'm also working on documentation that will make the info in this long and winding thread more accessible to people in the instant film community that are outside of Photrio. I am passionate about instant film and this process and I want to help make it easier for people who may be less technical than I am. Credit to Alec is already throughout the draft of those documents as well.

I resent the implication. Alec and I chat privately fairly regularly - although it has been a few weeks, but that's mostly because it's been a few weeks since I've been in the cellar to experiment. I haven't done nearly a fraction as much as Alec (who has, seriously?!) but I feel like I've been a positive contributor to this process in my own right, even if it has been small.
 
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Anyway, here's a pdf I made that people who live in the US might find useful.

It's got links for most of the chemicals discussed in this thread, and also all the chemistry equipment and tools you'd need if you don't have any at all. For the chemicals not easily available, I've provided CAS numbers or links that you can contact Artcraft to purchase for you, he will be happy to help.
 

Attachments

  • DIY DTR supplies.pdf
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Qebs said:
@analogwisdom Quick question, for the 1P5MT.
Did you ever find a consistent way of adding it to the receiver formula.
I have no idea how to add it. Could you share some advice?
Thanks so much
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I have not, I've been on a short hiatus from experimenting and testing during March. I'm going to get back to it soon and I will let you know, though.

How on earth are you coating such giant receiver sheets? I'd imagine a mayer rod and granite slab big enough to coat 32 inches are massively expensive.
 
I would absolutely love to get a few pods and receivers sized to fit my 3x4 Polaroids back, I think it would be super fun to try and shoot some Aviphot with this stuff and get peel-apart IR film
 
MCB18 said:
I would absolutely love to get a few pods and receivers sized to fit my 3x4 Polaroids back, I think it would be super fun to try and shoot some Aviphot with this stuff and get peel-apart IR film
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Hey there! The problem with this is that the recipes contained in the thread aren't just "plug and play" for every type of film. In my experience, the developer and receiver both have to be tuned, so to speak, for every different emulsion.

I don't know the true reason, but I suspect it's a combination of many things: total silver content, type of silver salt, anti-scratch/halation layers, etc.

If you're motivated enough, I know you'd be able to figure it out! Check out the PDF I posted above for easy links to a bunch of chemicals.
 
Unfortunately I just can’t justify the upfront cost
 
Don_ih said:
Excellent. I'm glad I was corrected.
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Thank you for apologizing and editing your post. I understand where you were coming from and the optics of the Instagram posts, IG is very much a surface level and "hype" kind of place. Rest assured I have never and will never claim I did this on my own.
 
Thanks to all for resolving the misunderstanding between yourselves - us moderators really appreciate that!
That being said, it is never a problem if you think it appropriate to ask for our help by clicking on the Report link.
 
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