freezing coated cyanotypes

[jp498]

As is often the case, my goals for producing prints often exceed the time available. I have on several occasions prepared more sheets of paper with cyanotype chemicals and had them go to waste unprinted. When not used, they seem to go from yellow to green overnight and don't produce consistent results when that happens.

Last night, I coated 2 8x10's and 2 4x5 papers and didn't get a chance to use the 4x5's. So I put them in a black plastic bag in the freezer overnight (with the film I hoard). I took them out of the freezer this evening, gave them a few minutes to warm up to room temp, and put them to use in the contact printing frame. They looked bright yellow just like when they went in to the freezer. They printed just fine and are in the wash now. Nice and dark and consistent like I'd expect out of a freshly coated cyanotype.

I have no idea how long it would be good in the freezer before it deteriorates. Even in a worse case of a day or two, it would still save lots of time and let me use shorter blocks of time over the coarse of a weekend to produce some nice prints.

 

[jon.oman]

Good idea, I'll have to try that!

 

[John Austin]

Thanks

 

[Vaughn]

I have done it with coated platinum/palladium paper -- another iron process and it worked fine.

 

[JOSarff]

Vaughn:

How long does the Pt/Pd paper keep frozen?

Joe

 

[Vaughn]

I used them two weeks later. That was the longest -- I do not see any reason that many months would be a problem.

They had been coated, air-dried for two hours, put in a box for about 8 hours, then froze.

If one wanted to coat a bunch for later use they could be frozen right after the initial drying -- instead of what happens if one runs out of time at the end of a printing session and risks some dark reactions to take place.

Vaughn

 

[Mainecoonmaniac]

Freestyle photo sells precoated. Cyanotype paper. I don't think it's frozen.
http://freestylephoto.biz/6633-Blue...d-11x14-inch-Watercolor-Paper-Pack?cat_id=104

I precoated some and it lasts least a few weeks in a cool, dark, dry place.

 

[CraigK]

I've frozen pre-coated salted paper and VanDyke brown, but only for a few days. No problems using either of them, they seemed fine.