- Joined
- Dec 30, 2008
- Messages
- 42
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Hi all, me again ...
The thing is, even with two pass pre-shrinking of the paper in hot water, I only get perfect negative registration only for the first two, maybe three layers of gum. Then, the paper slightly shrinks anyway, enough to be noticeable at least on one of the corners ...
I've read a great description of the gum printing workflow Keith Taylor uses here :
http://unblinkingeye.com/Articles/3CG2/3cg2.html
Here's how Keith uses the solid backing :
"Traditional methods used for producing three color gum prints begin with pre-shrinking a sheet of watercolor paper so that multiple washings will not change the papers size and throw the subsequent layers out of registration. The paper is dried and re-sized to keep the emulsion on top of the substrate, rather than sinking into the weave. Taylor, being a maverick, diverged from this accepted method and pursued instead a technique advocated by printing maven, Dick Sullivan. It required mounting the paper on a solid backing for the entire printing process thus avoiding shrinkage and re-sizing. Sullivan had successfully practiced this concept with his own gum prints over four decades ago. He based it on a technique that he believes may have been first practiced by Pictorialist, Heinrich Kuhn. Following Sullivans lead, Keith had thin sheets of Aluminum cut and pierced to hold his paper and seat registration pins. The pins gave him a classic way of keeping all his negatives in perfect registration. He mounts his watercolor paper on its backing using a hot press and a single layer of Fusion 4000 tissue as its binder."
I am wondering if there would be any other less expensive and easier method to mount the paper on some solid backing for the whole operation. The average beginner printer may not have a hot press and the money to glue every piece of paper using the special tissue, especially as many of the prints go to the trash bin at the beginning ...
The thing is, even with two pass pre-shrinking of the paper in hot water, I only get perfect negative registration only for the first two, maybe three layers of gum. Then, the paper slightly shrinks anyway, enough to be noticeable at least on one of the corners ...
I've read a great description of the gum printing workflow Keith Taylor uses here :
http://unblinkingeye.com/Articles/3CG2/3cg2.html
Here's how Keith uses the solid backing :
"Traditional methods used for producing three color gum prints begin with pre-shrinking a sheet of watercolor paper so that multiple washings will not change the papers size and throw the subsequent layers out of registration. The paper is dried and re-sized to keep the emulsion on top of the substrate, rather than sinking into the weave. Taylor, being a maverick, diverged from this accepted method and pursued instead a technique advocated by printing maven, Dick Sullivan. It required mounting the paper on a solid backing for the entire printing process thus avoiding shrinkage and re-sizing. Sullivan had successfully practiced this concept with his own gum prints over four decades ago. He based it on a technique that he believes may have been first practiced by Pictorialist, Heinrich Kuhn. Following Sullivans lead, Keith had thin sheets of Aluminum cut and pierced to hold his paper and seat registration pins. The pins gave him a classic way of keeping all his negatives in perfect registration. He mounts his watercolor paper on its backing using a hot press and a single layer of Fusion 4000 tissue as its binder."
I am wondering if there would be any other less expensive and easier method to mount the paper on some solid backing for the whole operation. The average beginner printer may not have a hot press and the money to glue every piece of paper using the special tissue, especially as many of the prints go to the trash bin at the beginning ...