Lith printing - ADOX Fine Print® Nuance Warmton FB

[Andrey.Gorshkov]

Hello!
Does anyone try Lith print on ADOX Fine Print® Nuance Warmton FB?
If yes - what time dose it take for developing? Is a grain big or not? How rich the toning efect?
Because ADOX Fine Print Vario Classic FB not so good for Lith printing.

 

[laparn]

Hello!
Does anyone try Lith print on ADOX Fine Print® Nuance Warmton FB?

Yes. Many times.

Hello!
Because ADOX Fine Print Vario Classic FB not so good for Lith printing.

Correct.



Nuance is a great paper in lith but bare in mind, it is the option for the color shy. Even after toning.
GRAIN
The lith grains are great really. The grain is accentuated and very even but can be grown at demand, i.e bigger. At a closer look of an "average" contrast lith print, grains look gritty and rough but at a distance the overall appearance is still neat and smooth.
However, this of course depends on the technique in use. Later snatch will of course render a more gritty look than at earlier snatch. Hence, it is possible to interpret a negative in different ways and this is a great benfit in this paper. The variety. Fine small grains at one end but also possibility of bigger, gritty and coarse ones.
COLOR
The color is pretty restrained compared to other papers though. Even at high dilutions you will still only get warm sublinimal pinkish tones and there is neither any color explosion in selenium for instance. Gold, iron/blue, copper toner, I don´t know. I have achieved very smooth high key prints with Nuance and I expect these to be very responsive in gold toner but I need to come back on that one. Haven´t tried yet.

Note, I´ve used both Moersch Easylith and Fotospeed LD20 with similar result and I deem choice of developer make minor difference with this paper.

DEVELOPING TIMES
I´d say the developing times are average. Exposure times are close to Fomatone MG Classics Fb for instance (eventhoug ISO differs).
Developing times can be expected as double Fomatone. Fomatone is absolutely dead quick and truly in another league. If using warm Easylith developer (>35C/>95F) at 1:20 dilution and without restrainer, you can expect development times around 3-5 minutes. At room temperature the same neg need 8-12 minutes so keeping a high temperature when lith printing Nuance is a recommended option. Well, it is always since it opens up for a great flexibility and benfits; higher dilutions, adding restrainer for better lith effect etc etc.

Nuance perform well at higher dilutions as well but the lith effect characteristics does not change that much with Nuance. Fomatone and others change a lot, but you will of course get an easier snatch decision.

You will get fine lith result already at first print in Easylith, but it takes approx three prints to get into full bloom. Please find pictures attached of examples in Easylith 1:15, room temperature.


Go grab a package boy!
Good luck!

 

[Andrey.Gorshkov]

Thank you very much for useful answer! The third photo is super!
I already had 3 lith printing nights - I use MOESCH SE5 LITH and Forte polywarmtone - very rich colors and fine grain. But package of paper almost empty and I can't find "Forte" anymore.
Also I try ADOX Fine Print Vario Classic FB but result was with big grain, developing time was nearly 15-20 minute - it was terrible! Later I read that warmtone paper very "Lithable". So I looking for warmtone paper.
I read that ADOX want to make photopaper with emulsion similar to Forte warmtone. Is Nuance this one?

 

[laparn]

Thank you very much for useful answer!

No problemo. Y´r welcome!
FYI, picture no 3 is exposed for 90s at f5.6 (a half stop less exposure than #1). Developed for 9:30 minutes in 1:15 Easylith @18C (65F).

Attached you´ll find the whole series of this pear stilleben neg I used in a lith printig class. For educational purpose, different parameters were changed successively (exposure, snatch, temperature, dilution) to show different appearence.
No 7, for instance, is the equivalent to #1 but 1:30 dilution @34C (94F), instead of 1:15 @19C. It is somewhat "gloria" burned in but developed for the same time, i.e 8:35 minutes in this case. As can be viewed, the appearence is different and the lith grains are really accentuated, due to developer maturity, but still rather smooth. Let me know if you´d like a bigger picture to review the grains.


SE5 Lith is somewhat more aggressive, than Easylith for instance, and might benefit a splash of restrainer for optimal use. I doubt that is relevant with Nuance though since it is not that dead quick in developer anyway.

Warmtone papers do lith the best. In general. Nuance is claimed to be a warmtone paper but I insist it is in the cooler end of the warm side. Even appearance of a conventionally developed (Dektol 1+2) Fomabrom Fb paper add more warmth to the image than Nuance. Still, Nuance lith very well. Please note, Fomabrom Fb lith very different to Nuance with extreme grains. Graphic, gritty but dead cool.

Nuance is NOT the equivalent to Polywarmtone (PWT) and the characteristics is not very related. Polywarmtone is better in any respect and the glorification of PWT is truly correct. Adox is working on a PWT successor and you can join the fans and read more about at www.polywarmton.com .

If you are looking for a warmtone paper that liths well you should buy a package of Foma Fomatone MG Classic Fb. You will LOVE it! I do. Fomatone is by far the best lithable paper today.

If you are looking for PWT look-a-like I don´t now where to search. If you get a package of the also discontinued Forte Fortezo you might end up pretty close. Else, I don´t know. Fotospeed Lith maybe, but then you have to hurry. Stock is running out of qty and will be replaced by a Harman developed new lith paper under Ilford flag. Somebody, correct me if I am wrong. Fotospeed lith => Ilford Lith-something. Right?

 

[Andrey.Gorshkov]

Oh, thank you!
I was lucky today - I had bought a couple of package of PWT. Fomatone is more than twice expensive than PWT. I hope in German shops it's not so expensive than in Ukranian shops. So I'll try Fomatone later.

About photogrpehs attached by you - 7th very nice as for me. Could you show it on bigger size?