Dryplate progress

[Simon Howers]

Herewith some progress on dryplate production. This simply shot out of my front door with a 1914 WP camera and a vintage lens - hence the flare - on a bright day.
Plate is plain 2mm glass from my local picture framer - it's scrap so it's free!
Pour-coated with Rollei BM emulsion from an antique invalid cup and air dried for two days. Exposed at ISO 5.
The plates are cleaned with rottenstone and alcohol but not subbed. I'm not having any problems with separation or frilling.
Developed in Dassonville D2 (Amidol) for 2mins. Citric acid stop. Kodak hardening fixer.

Any advice?
The emulsion is simply that available commercially and presumably designed for paper.
Is there a better emulsion available for plates or do I have to make it from scratch?

 

[removed account4]

hi simon

your mid tones look perfect
( stone wall on left )
and the highlights look blown
( like normal for me )
my only advice is to shoot on overcast days
and expose it as you would a paper negative
paying attention to the contrast prone negatives.
is your emulsion variable contrast ?
i ask because you could always put a yellow
filter on it to make it less-contrast prone too.
im in the same boat as you ( currently )
use it overcast/open shade and when i run out
i'll just be mixing up my own
from denise's site and book.
it ends up being cheaper and better than the stuff you can buy ...

 

[Wayne]

That looks nice! I hear that subbing isn't necessary but have never tried dry plates without it.

 

[JPJackson]

Look to be off to a good start!

 

[DannL.]

Simon, I think it looks great. The subject really makes the image. In print, a slight brown toning should add to an aged appearance. Still looks good.

 

[Simon Howers]

Thanks for the point about filtration. The emulsion is labelled Grade 3.
When you say "expose as a paper negative" could you explain?
I'm awaiting a copy of Denise Ross' book and no doubt will end up making my own emulsion.
Cheers

Simon

 

[Simon Howers]

Subbing

That looks nice! I hear that subbing isn't necessary but have never tried dry plates without it.

Hi Wayne,
yes I was surprised at how well the emulsion stuck to cleaned glass.
The rottenstone seems to be the trick. I mix it up with a weak solution of dishwashing detergent.
Kodak hardening fixer certainly gives a very hard and permanent plate.

Simon

 

[removed account4]

Thanks for the point about filtration. The emulsion is labelled Grade 3.
When you say "expose as a paper negative" could you explain?
I'm awaiting a copy of Denise Ross' book and no doubt will end up making my own emulsion.
Cheers

Simon

hi simon

when i suggested expose like a paper negative ...
its mainly because photopaper to some ( who used to it )
is extremely contrasty. paper ( or plate ) type emulsion
isn't as easy as exposing panchromatic film which seems ( to me at least )
to have a larger sweet spot, so you can be off a stop or 2 or even 3 and still somehow get
a usable negative, or you can expose with a large amount of contrasts in a scene
( bright sun to shadow with details in each ) and maybe be well versed enough in processing
( compression expansion development sort of thing ) to get a decent negative .. when with paper
the trick ( for me at least ) is to remember it doesn't like bright sun and deep shadows in the same view
but it loves mid tones, because the sweet spot is not 2 or 3 stops, its more like exposing chromes i guess ...
i like the view you posted, it has a really beautiful softness in the mid tones.
your emulsion seems to be a fixed grade which is nice .. but i don't think filtration will help much
so you will just have to be careful with your lighting ... you might also be able to try flashing your plate a little
like you would for paper negatives, it might help tame your contrast a little. i'm more used to exposing OLD
and probably fogged materials so the contrast issues you are having aren't in the forefront of my exposures...

while i've been shooting plates and paper for a while now, i am still a novice, and when i see the work of atget
and others from that era, i am floored at what mastery they had over such a finicky medium. for me ... paper and plates
are harder than any other type of photography ... and lots of fun

i've never used rottenstone, just washing soda and a scrub brush untill the water sheens off / doesn't "hang"
and after the plates are coated i put them on a very cold surface so the gelatin gets hard.. fast. i never have a sub layer anymore..

have fun ! and i look forward to seeing some more of your plates !

john

 

[Simon Howers]

I've got some plates which I coated three months ago. I intend to expose them in the next few days and see what happens.

 

[Jerevan]

I have no advice, but it does look very good for a start! Keep on going.