Is this a possible spotting/retouching task? Using Spot Tone?

cowanw · Mar 9, 2025

Popular in the 1930's was a technique using repeat generations of paper exposure and pencil work. Draw on the positive for white areas that you wish dark and then use the positive as a negative and contact print a 2nd generation negative on paper. Draw with a pencil on negative light areas that you want lightened in the final product and contact print the final image. Max Thorek was a popular photographer of the 1930's that promoted this technique.
This is an blatant example of the technique - look at the neck tie collar and neck area.

Chuck_P · Mar 9, 2025

What About Bob said:
@Chuck_P: At first it had taken me a while to see what you were meaning by arm gaps. The bleaching method proposed by logan2z and koraks is a sound approach and would be the one I would try before touching the negative. Bleach and then slowly build back up dye to bring the tone back in the print, of the arms.

Well done negative retouching has the benefit of having to retouch/spot less, or not at all if you did an exceptional job, on future prints from that frame. Negative retouching is not as easy, as AnselMortensen has pointed out. if you can easily see the application of the dye filling in the area that you are working on, even if the dye is dilute on the brush, that means you have went too far with it. It is easy to do. You have to be very patient and meticulous. Practice on a sample negative that is not important to you until you get the hang of it. Making a copy of the negative before retouching would also be a good idea. I have retouched negatives using dyes and lead pencils, a long time ago when I was at Hallmark.

I also had a set of SpotPens. Anyone remember those? When I was at Hallmark those pens turned a few heads of the students. The instructors preferred us using the regular method of spotting. I was told, in an indirect way, to put those pens away!

I've never done any bleaching but have seen it done, mostly on YT, but it is something I need to learn about but I think I've made my mind up to just bring those white lines in the arm shadows down and call it good.

I appreciate all the potential possible actions that could be taken from all the responses on dealing with such an issue, a lot of which is definitely beyond my own experience outside of using dyes.

Chuck_P · Mar 9, 2025

Don_ih said:
I personally like that the cracks in the shoulders make those lines in the shadow where the light comes through.

I have to admit I did not anticipate this prevailing sentiment with this image.

I understand the thought behind it and appreciate it being noted. Thanks.

Don_ih · Mar 9, 2025

Chuck_P said:
I have to admit I did not anticipate this prevailing sentiment with this image.

It's a flaw in the object, which is otherwise fairly smooth and perhaps plastic-looking. It's not something someone would miss if it had never been there, though, so a successful removal would not really change the photo in any detracting way. At a glance, the lines in the shadow look like a possible flaw in the photo.

DREW WILEY · Mar 9, 2025

Another favorite classic trick to lighten certain areas of the neg in a manner far more specific and repeatable than dodging involves the use of cresoin red dye, which Kodak sold in powder form, and you could dilute as much as you wanted, and slowly build up or edge blend the dye to the exact degree you needed. If you didn't want to treat the back of the original negative itself, you could just register a sheet of clear frosted mylar and apply it that instead. Now it appears that Photographers Formula has resurrected their own version of that. And it's not messy like smudge pencil. Drys fast.

Bill Burk · Mar 31, 2025

When I have to lighten dark defects, I use opaque and completely whiten the affected region. Then on the print, use Spotone to camouflage the white specks.

Any gray negative retouching never worked for me, there were always haloes.

But opaque and spot back works fine. I just don’t like doing it because it creates ‘mandatory retouching’.

For the shadows, you could scratch the negative.

BobUK · Apr 1, 2025

Take a look at my two posts for DYENE, from the makers of SPOTONE.
Dyene was used for retouching negatives. I still see it occasionally on ebay.

My posts are a picture of the Dyene set of bottles, and the instruction sheet.
Even if you cannot get your hands on the set, the retouching instruction may be helpful.

My posts were on 21 and 22 March 2025. Under the heading.

" Spotone 4, 5, 6, ? Any info? "

BobUK · Apr 1, 2025

I had limited success at retouching negatives with pencil, but if you experiment with pencil retouching the following formula may be of some use.

Dope For Negative Retouching.

Using HHH pencils etc.

Vegetable turpentine 30ml
1gram Dammar gum
15 drops of Lavender essential oil.

This was applied to the glossy side of the negative to allow the pencil to adhere to the negative.

I think these techniques were only meant for large format were limited magnifications would lessen the effect of the retouching showing up in the print.

Klaus Mähring · Apr 1, 2025

You could mask the area on the negativ with tip-ex, and then spot in the resulting whites on the print....
It sounds a bit rough, but might be the easiest way....

Is this a possible spotting/retouching task? Using Spot Tone?

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