Printing high contrast negative

[eggshell]

Hello again,

Is there any way to print negatives that are about 1-2 stops (DR around 200) more than traditional Pt/pd can handle? I have several negatives in this range and find them too contrasty. Thanks again.

 

[Ole]

POP can handle "anything", and needs more contrasty negatives than just about anything else. VDB is another way - and then you could Pt-tone afterwards to make a print indistinguishable from a "real" Platinotype.

 

[David A. Goldfarb]

POP or albumen or any kind of printing-out process (there are POP versions of pt/pd, aren't there?) would be a possibility, since they are self-masking. You could also make a contrast mask with ortho film. I haven't experimented with proportional reducers, but that would be another possibility.

 

[Donald Miller]

Hello again,

Is there any way to print negatives that are about 1-2 stops (DR around 200) more than traditional Pt/pd can handle? I have several negatives in this range and find them too contrasty. Thanks again.

Make a contrast reduction mask. Try to have the peak density of the mask be .25 if you print Pt-pd or Azo. If you want to print silver have the mask peak density around .65 to .75.

The contrast reduction mask will compress the shadow values upward.

The mask and negative are printed in register.

 

[matt miller]

(there are POP versions of pt/pd, aren't there?)

This is what ziatype is.

 

[eggshell]

Okay I admit I know nothing about masking. I will have to read up more about it. Thanks again.