Ilford Warmtone FB in Gold Toner or MGIV?

[brian steinberger]

I've fallen in love with Ilford warmtone FB paper in glossy. Besides its printing capabilities, I really like the surface and how flat it dries. I'm getting to the point now where I'd like to use this paper exclusively. While I like the untoned look of the paper, many of my images that I wish to remain neutral (cold) don't work.

Before I spend the money to try out gold toner on this paper for the cold blue look, does anyone have experience gold toning Ilford WT and how does it compare to selenium toned MGIV?

 

[ann]

gold= blue, very blue if not careful,

selenium =eggplant

we ran lots of test on a wide variety of papers and toners and it really ends up being a toss up to personal taste.

i know gold toner is not cheap, but like many other things with photography it is important to test with your equipment and materials.

 

[Philippe Grunchec]

Ann, it depends on which gold toner you are using. For example, NGT acts a little bit like selenium and gives a rich brown tone on warm papers!

 

[ann]

good point

 

[psvensson]

WT looks awesome in gold toner. The cream base contrasts with the cold tones, giving an effect reminiscent of split toning. I've had problems with staining in this combination though - stains that show up long after the print dries.

 

[Martin Aislabie]

My preference is for Gold Toned MGFB - a neutral/very slightly cool look

I tried Gold Toning MGWT FB but found it colour shifted too much for my personal choice - can go quiet blue and then onto salmon pinks - if you leave it long enough

Gold Toning starts in the high lights and works its way down to the darkest tones

Selenium is the other way round - starts in the shadows and works its way up to the high tones

Toning is such a complex process, it even seems to be affected by water quality; you will need to do your own tests.

The general rule is - the warmer the print - the more colour change you can expect when it is Toned.

So if you like MGWT and want to adjust its Toned colour slightly - try changing Print Developer for warmer or cooler varieties.

Staining when Toning is generally caused by either insufficient fixing/insufficiently fresh fixer (needs to be very fresh)/inadequate washing (before or after Toning)

Don't use a Hardening Fixer, do use Hypo Clearing Agent and do re-fix your prints after Gold Toning.

Tim Rudman has done an excellent and comprehensive book on Print Toning

Good luck and have fun

Martin