My 1st successful prnting session!!!

stradibarrius

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Attached are two photos that I printed last night. This is the first time my prints have actually looked like what I saw in my head!!!!

I have posted these here before as scans but this time I can say that the prints look really good.

Small victories are exciting!
 

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  • 4-Nally-headstones_print-scan_web.jpg
    170.2 KB · Views: 247
  • men-playing-chess_print-scan_web.jpg
    119.3 KB · Views: 237

MattKing

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Well done!

Matt
 

Shaggysk8

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Nice one, I really like the chess one with Michael Moore on the right...hehe

Its so nice to end up with something that you saw, I hope to be getting there
 

arigram

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You deserve honest congratulations.
The prints indeed look very well processed.
You seem to have a good eye on tones and composition.
Printing is like sex: it gets even more pleasurable, the better you get. Sure, it might get frustrating and some days you might seem you keep at it for hours with no success, but you really never lose that first time excitement.
Unless you become a darkroom whore that is.
 

Andrew Horodysky

Congratulations; it's a great feeling, isn't it? It only gets better.
 

Mainecoonmaniac

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Glad you're keeping the craft alive.
 

Ektagraphic

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Congrats! 'Real' darkroom prints are amazing. Thanks for the help in keeping the craft alive!
 

Anscojohn

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Well done, Strad. Be sure you mat, frame, and keep those forever.
 

Craig Swensson

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Great feeling of accomplishment is`nt it, i like the prints also, and the mike moore comment - hehe.
arigram often mentions sex when discussing darkroom stuff???
can i ask what equipment you used to upload these prints here? i need to buy a sc....er.
regards,CW
 

eskyone

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Looks good

As someone who has wanted to take the leap, can you offer some suggestions on equipment? What is your set up like? Tips? Thanks - Sean
 
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stradibarrius

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Inatially the whole things seemed overwhelming but I jus jumped in and found out that it is not that difficult to get results. Developing the skills to get professional results is another thing...LOL!
I bought a used enlarger, a 500mm enlarger lens for 35mm and a 90mm enlarger lens for my MF negatives. A few trays, a used safe light, easel and a used timer and I was in business. The whole investment was only about $200-250.
I paid about $100 for my Fujinon 90mm lens and 50-60 for my Nikon el-50mm lens.

I have zero knowledge about enlargers other than my enlarger which seems to be very well made but no one has ever heard of it. It is a Burleigh Brooks. I woould look on Ebay and when I found something that sounded good, I would post the name and model here and ask for opinions. I only paid $50.00 for mine so I said what is the worst that could happen????
Get a few books on the "how to basics" and have at it. This forum has been more help than you can imagine. I will confess that it is addictive! I hate sitting in front of the computer and using photoshop but I love sitting in a room lit only by the safe light and seeing the image appear in the tray!!!!!!!!!!
 

arigram

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Should I assume your enlarger is a "straight" Black & White unit?
Should I also assume that your prints are one grade, "straight" exposures with no multigrading?
Do you know about multiple grades and how to print them?
Getting the hang of multigrading is the next step.
Then, the more advanced practices of it such as local contrast and split grades.
Then its f-stop printing...
(not to mention toning or lith)

Oh, there is so much more discover, before you even begin mastering the skills for each process!
 

RalphLambrecht

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Congratulations, the prints look a lot better than my first attempts. You printed them well with good overall contrast. The highlights are well controlled too. Small point; I would watch the shadows a bit. It might be my monitor, but the shadows are borderline dark for me, but then again, that's a matter of individual taste too. No biggy!

You can be proud of your achievement!
 

arigram

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RalphLambrecht said:
You need to get out of that darkroom once in a while. Those chemicals can mess with your head!
Click to expand...
You are the last person I expected to read that from!

The most important thing to have in mind Stradibarrius is that even though there is a generalized concept of a "proper" print, printing is not an automated, mechanical process, but can be highly creative and explorative.
So, don't be afraid to experiment and challenge your aesthetic perceptions. You generally want to have a balanced transfer of what your eyes saw, from the negative to the print, but one photograph may need to be drowned in blackness, others want their delicate highlights to be handled with much tenderness and then there are the plain weird ones...
 

lightwisps

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Wow, bloody nice!! Be careful, the darkroom can quickly become addicting
 
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stradibarrius

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These print are on Ilford MGIV RC paper with a 3.5 CF. My enlarger is a B&W. I think the shot of the Chess Players would have been better with lower contrast and I would like to dodge about a half step on the face of the player facing the camera.
These are not my first attempts at printing just the first where I feel like they were good...I have gone through a couple of packs of paper and these are the first prints where I feel that they have good sharpness, contrast and tonal range that I was trying to achieve. This is also the first time I have tried to print Delta 400...These printed easy???
 

benjiboy

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And you never forget you're first time :rolleyes:
 

RalphLambrecht

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arigram said:
You are the last person I expected to read that from!
...
Click to expand...

Well, you're right, I spend a lot of time in the darkroom, but I draw the line at comparing printing with sex or calling film sexy. I guess, at that point, it's time to get out of the fumes.
 
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