No image?

[rowghani]

I recently bought a beseler 23c and was testing it out today and something weird is happening: after I expose the paper to the image (and I've tried for long times) nothing happens when I put it in the developer, however when I turn the lights on and expose a piece of paper to the light it goes pitch black when developed (as we would expect) so it's not the paper. The light the beseler gives off is red if that has anything to do to it. Thanks in advance for any assistance.

 

[Bob Carnie]

get rid of the red filter ... magic is coming your way.

 

[removed account4]

hi rowghani

if you haven't done it already, flip up the name plate on tne enlarger head
and see if the former owner left the red filter in there. that might be the reason
your paper is playing hard to get ...

good luck ( and have fun with your new enlarger ! )
john


added 2 seconds later:
bob beat me to it

 

[palewin]

Of course Bob is correct, assuming you understood his response. B&W photo paper does not respond to red light, which is why darkroom safelights are usually red lights. Somewhere in your light path you have a red filter which effectively means no light is reaching your paper. The filter can either be above your negative if the enlarger has a filter drawer (my memory is that the Beseler does), or it can be a swing-out filter below the enlarging lens. Whichever it is, find it and get it out of the way. Then your enlarger will work as expected, and the magic Bob mentions will appear as the image emerges in your developer tray.

 

[rowghani]

Yup thought so. Thanks guys and to be honest I almost cried when I got the enlarger. Such a beautiful piece of machinery and cost me less than $100? Something is really wrong with photography.

 

[Dennis S]

Just above the lens on my 45MXR there is sliding filter holder for placing the paper properly under the light and then move it out of the way for setting your exposure times. Seen it on 23 C enlargers also.

 

[bdial]

At least now you know your red filter is "safe"

 

[rowghani]

What is the red filter for?

 

[winger]

What is the red filter for?

If you want to focus and set things up while the paper is under the lens. In nearly 30 years, I've never done that.

 

[MattKing]

What is the red filter for?

I've used it to position a burn tool, and to help re-position an easel that was inadvertently moved.

 

[removed account4]

i have used it if i developed a print, then washed it,
put it under the enlarger again and aligned it with the red filter ...
then burned in and re-developed with burned+solarized parts of an image .
without the red filter the image wouldn't have been aligned ... and burning wouldn't have worked