Equal White Borders

photo_libra1015 · Oct 16, 2007

These past few weeks I've been printing photos for the first time. I'm having trouble with creating equal white borders around the photo. There is always one side that is wider than the other side. I've been using 8x10 paper and setting my easel 7 1/2 x 9 1/2. Does anyone have any tips on centering the paper on the easel so there is equal size borders?

David A. Goldfarb · Oct 16, 2007

Normally, the easel has stops or a groove or edges for positioning the paper. What sort of easel do you have? Maybe someone who has the same type of easel can make some suggestions.

photo_libra1015 · Oct 16, 2007

I don't really know. It's not really my easel, but my school's. The easel looks almost like this...

dslater · Oct 16, 2007

I have a saunders easel as well. The problem is that the slot is a little wider than your paper. If you push your paper right up against the edge of the slot, you will get uneven borders. You need to try and center the paper in the slot.

KenS · Oct 17, 2007

print centering

dslater said:
I have a saunders easel as well. The problem is that the slot is a little wider than your paper. If you push your paper right up against the edge of the slot, you will get uneven borders. You need to try and center the paper in the slot.

I have been using my Saunders for more years than I care to remember. When it was new, I believe it came with a small spacer that was inserted into the left-hand side of the slot... and you placed the paper against that "filler" for centered prints. My "filler" has been missing since about a month after I got it so I now have a piece of reddish poster card on which I have drawn the outlines of my 'regular' print sizes. The card is placed to the left of the slot and the enlarger head moved to the closest approximation of the print area while final focussing is done on a scrap piece of double weight paper. The 'red' cardstock's second use is for any required edge or sky burning/dodging as required after the pilot print.

Ken

GeorgesGiralt · Oct 17, 2007

Hi !
Sacrifice a sheet of paper, draw the exact dimension of the image on it,
place that sheet on the easel and mark the position with a piece of duct tape to serve as a stop. Choose a duct tape color contrasting with the easel base, it will help under safelight lighting.
This way you have a perfect mark stop for the exact sheet size you will use (each paper has a specific dimension making Ilford papers not exactly identical to Foma or Kentmere papers) then place the sheet on the easel in contact with the stop and enjoy printing.
The duct tape is not thick enough to interfere with the easel's blades.

mwdake · Oct 17, 2007

I have an almost identical Saunders easel and the instructions for mine say to insert the paper in the slot and slide it fully to the left end of the slot.

I do this on my easel and my borders are always even.

hope this helps.

George Collier · Oct 17, 2007

I have a Saunders also. I just slide it all the way to the left, then finesse the positions of the blades to make perfect. If you keep a piece of paper with perfect borders drawn on it, as someone suggested above, the final adjustments are simple and quick. And because you are sliding all the way to the left, it's consistent, unlike finding the "middle".

photo_libra1015 · Oct 17, 2007

Thank you everyone! I will try some of the ways you all suggested.

Ray Heath · Oct 17, 2007

g'day photo

keep it simple

use thin black card, cut a hole for the image size, lay this over the enlarging paper with a small weight on each corner

you don't even need a bladed easel, just a flat board with a corner

woolwinder · Oct 18, 2007

Why not acquire a used sheet of paper of the size needed, secure it into the correctly set top and left hand side, draw a line along these faces, turn the paper around 180 degs and then set the 2 moveable blades to the lines. This is valid for the standard Paterson or Lucky easels. It works for me.

fschifano · Oct 20, 2007

I have a Saunders 4 bladed easel. Slide the paper into the channel and to the left. Everything lines up perfectly every time. No guesswork. End of story.

dslater · Oct 20, 2007

fschifano said:
I have a Saunders 4 bladed easel. Slide the paper into the channel and to the left. Everything lines up perfectly every time. No guesswork. End of story.

That's your version of the easel. I also have a Saunders 4 bladed easel and if I slide the paper all the way to the left in the channel, my left and right borders are slightly uneven.

Monophoto · Oct 21, 2007

KenS said:
When it was new, I believe it came with a small spacer that was inserted into the left-hand side of the slot... and you placed the paper against that "filler" for centered prints.

Ken

Actually, Saunders design has three slots - one for 5x7 paper, one for 8x10 paper, and one for 11x14 paper. The filler was used to center paper for making 4x5" prints using the 5x7" paper slot.

A way of calibrating your process involves using a defective print (don't tell me that all of your prints are perfect!). After it has dried, flip it over to work on the back. Load it into your easel. with the paper moved as far to the left as it will go in the slot. Then, adjust the masks using the scales on the sides, and then use them to draw a line on the back of the print where the border will be. Take the print out of the easel and inspect the border. If it is even, you are golden. But if it is off, you can measure how much you need to shift the borders, and in which direction. Then, you can use shift to bias your border adjustments. You probably need to repeat the process for each of the slots in your easel.

But you also should recognize that the dimensions of paper is not always exact, and if you purchase a new pack of paper, you may find that it is slightly larger or smaller in one dimension, thereby confounding your calibration.

I have a related problem - I routinely cut 11x14 paper into two 7x10" sheets plus a couple of test strips. Then, when I use the 8x10" slot in the easel, I have a centering problem.

I've concluded that the answer is to do the best that I can, and then be prepared to trim the print after it has been processed and dried. The various steps involved in processing frequently cause the edges of the paper to be abused, and trimming has the advantage of also restoring a clean edge.

PHOTOTONE · Oct 24, 2007

Another thing to consider..Fixed, washed and dried fibre paper may be slightly different in size than fresh, unexposed paper. If you are setting your easel blades, you should use (sacrifice) a fresh unprocessed sheet. You can put the paper in the easel, then use a pen and draw a square with the easel blades as the straight edge, take the paper out and look at the square..if the outside is not even, then adjust the easel blades and draw another line.

Steve Smith · Oct 24, 2007

woolwinder said:
Why not acquire a used sheet of paper of the size needed, secure it into the correctly set top and left hand side, draw a line along these faces, turn the paper around 180 degs and then set the 2 moveable blades to the lines.

This is exactly what I do. I also find that I have to tape together the two ends of the blades to ensure that they stay parallel to the edges of the paper.

Steve.

pentaxuser · Oct 24, 2007

Steve Smith said:
This is exactly what I do. I also find that I have to tape together the two ends of the blades to ensure that they stay parallel to the edges of the paper.

Steve.

Steve I think you are talking about a 2 baded easel here but I'd like to be sure. It's just that the OP started talking about a 4 blade easel and posted a picture. I always thought that one of the reasons for the 4 bladed variety and their cost was that the design prevented any deviation from parallel as well as ensuring enginering type accuracy on borders.

I have often thought of getting a 4 bladed one but even secondhand they are expensive. I certainly won't bother if parallel and accurate borders can't be guaranteed.

Thanks

pentaxuser

Steve Smith · Oct 24, 2007

pentaxuser said:
Steve I think you are talking about a 2 baded easel here but I'd like to be sure. It's just that the OP started talking about a 4 blade easel and posted a picture.

You are absolutely correct. I didn't notice it was a four blade. Could the same method of marking a sheet and rotating it 180 degrees still be used to line it up though?

Steve.

jeroldharter · Nov 6, 2007

mwdake said:
I have an almost identical Saunders easel and the instructions for mine say to insert the paper in the slot and slide it fully to the left end of the slot.

I do this on my easel and my borders are always even.

hope this helps.

Me too.

Equal White Borders

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