Getting started with Lith Printing

I have been producing B@W prints for a little while and have recently become interested in Lith Printing. While searching the net It seems that the only book on the subject is Tim Rudman's "The World Of Lith Printing" which is hard to find and even harder to justify paying $170+ for. There are several youtube videos but they are not all- inclusive.

Is there any other source of detailed Lith printing information?

Well, check out Moersch, his easy-lith kit is self-describing... and there are lots of examples on his website...

http://www.moersch-photochemie.de/content/shop/lith/13/lang:en

as well as his flickr:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/wolfgang_moersch/tags/lith/

But, if you're serious, long-term, you'll probably want the Rudman book, keep looking...

Interlibrary loan got it for me

Both Tim Rudman and Wolfgang Moersch have information up on their websites, plus there are various articles floating around various film and alt processs websites. If you are just getting started, it’s more than enough information. Tim’s book is fantastic, it goes into a lot of detail about lith printing but features papers that are no longer available (still great for inspiration though!). Not that that's an issue, but you'll probably find more relevant information concerning today's papers in the Facebook lith group (and other places).

Assuming you understand the basics of the process, here are my own recommendations:

• Start with a paper that is known to lith (Foma or Slavich) easily without the need for second-guessing snatch points. Similarly, use a well-known lith developer like LD20 or Moersch. Using materials that are known to work will make things easier to start with.
• Generally speaking, you should start with an overexposure of 2-3 stops. So if the paper needs ten seconds normally, two stops needs 40s, three stops 80s. You don’t need to use a filter since contrast is determined by exposure.
• The less exposure you have, the more contrasty the image will be (usually 1-2 stops over). The more exposure you have (3 or more stops), the less contrasty the image will be. According to Mr. Moersch, this has a connection to dilution as well. If you want more contrast, have less time under the enlarger and a stronger (1+9) dilution. If you want more details/less contrast, go for more time under the enlarger and a weaker dilution. I often expose at least three stops over and develop at 1+29 or weaker.
• The golden rules of lith printing are: expose for the highlights, develop for the blacks. Repeat that until you understand it fully. Having a print stay longer in the developer will not make the highlights appear if you did not give them enough exposure at the printing stage. Remember that blacks are developing exponentially faster than the rest of your image; if you want to give your highlights a fighting chance then you need to give them more exposure to play catch up with the blacks. Usually after the first print I can tell if I need more exposure based on what kind of highlight details I have. Also, when you are developing, you have to decide what part of the print is the most important. For example, if I want the details in a statue’s face to be clear and defined, that’s what will determine my snatch point. The rest of the image I leave as is. Afterwards, I will determine what needs to be dodged or burned (again, in stops) to get more details out of the rest of the image. I don’t rely on dodging/burning notes from the regular black and white print, as those needs will likely be very different in lith.
• Lith also emphasizes “fix-up” and dry-down effects. This happens with all black and print processing, but is much more noticeable with lith. Basically, in the fix your print will lighten up, and it will look a bit more contrasty and you may worry that you’ve lost your highlights. But don’t worry, in the dry down you’ll likely get those highlights back. Also, the colour of the print will change between its wet and dry stages. If you’re not sure what the final effect will be, grab a hair dryer and dry your print so you can determine if you need some changes in exposure or developing times. I did this at Tim’s lith printing workshop a few years ago, and it was really helpful.
• Every time you put a print in the developer, it will change the chemical composition of the developer. So, with every print, you may have to wait longer to get to the snatch point (for me, once I hit ten minutes I usually make a new batch), plus, of course, there will be colour changes. Usually the first few prints are the least colourful. Also, stronger dilutions don’t produce colourful prints. If you are looking for colour (best with Foma) then using weaker dilutions, hotter temperatures (30-40C), and adding Old Brown (used lith developer) will help. Similarly, adding more “B” and less “A” will result in less colourful prints. In the beginning I was fascinated by the colour of lith, but now I prefer more subtle effects. The point of this is, if you are at a colour point that you like, try developing two prints at a time (back to back) to maximize these developing windows. If you do that, be sure to flip them around regularly so they get the same amount of “surge” - the movement of the developer at the bottom of the tray is different than at the top. Oh, and using a larger tray than your paper size is good too - it makes it easier to grab your print with your gloves hands, and it prevents overdeveloping at the edges too.
• Last point - don’t be afraid to go beyond what you think is the right moment to snatch. Many people snatch too early, leaving blacks weak. You’ll never know what you like until you try the entire spectrum from too early to too dark. Keep the rejects, they may be useful for experimenting with toning and second pass lith. I have noticed that the snatch point for me is double the time from when the parts of the image start to appear. So if the image emerges at two minutes, the snatch will probably be at four minutes.
• Sorry, one more goodie from Dr. Rudman: your darkroom sins will be fully exposed through lith. Don’t touch the emulsion with fingers or tongs, those marks will show up on the print. (I use nitrile gloves for the entire process). If using gloves, change them for every print. I had countless prints wasted because of minuscule drops of (?) going on to pre-developed prints even though I had fully dried my gloves. It wasn’t until I went to new gloves for each print that I eliminated the problem. Don’t dry prints face up, water stains will come back to haunt you, especially if you tone the prints later (I learned this the hard way).

Ok, I’m going to stop here for now. Honestly, this sounds like a lot, but really, just start with a warmer dilution (cold dilutions like 20C can be slow) and a 2or3 stop overexposure, and go from there. It’s really easy and more exciting than regular B&W printing and pretty hard to screw up. Good luck and feel free to ask more questions!

Just a few examples:

High contrast/little to no colour: Dead Link Removed
Lower contrast/lots of detail/more colour: Skip Smith, CeCe Wheeler, Dead Link Removed
Portraits of the famous: Anton Corbjin
Masters of the process: Tim Rudman, Wolfgang Moersch

Honestly, it is not something very special from regular printing. As long as you have dedicated and trusted lith developer it is easy. Follow developer manufacturer instructions and use FB paper.
If you dump too much of developer, it will develop as normal print. If not enough of developer, it will never happen.
Exposure is easy. Doesn't have to be precise at all. I start with one minute. Most difficult part is in long developing. Forty minutes or longer. With agitation. So, it is better to have tray covered while the process is going not rapidly yet.
Ones it is really started, you have minute or so. Well, it is going fast, I never checked for how long it is goes at the final stage. And it is fun.

Arista AB Lith Luquid Premium developer.

@Ko.Fe. 40 minutes? I don't think I could handle that! I have gone up to 60 minutes trying a new paper, but it dropped down to 5 minutes developing when I increased the developer temperature in subsequent sessions.

mooseontheloose said:

@Ko.Fe. 40 minutes? I don't think I could handle that! I have gone up to 60 minutes trying a new paper, but it dropped down to 5 minutes developing when I increased the developer temperature in subsequent sessions.

Click to expand...

Five minutes is sweet!