Retouching a chemical print to remove an unwanted element.

[makanakijones]

I want to erase just a little item from a print, but simply i don´t know how to do it. I have tried to mask it, to blur it, to bleaching it, but with these methods i am only having very artifical results.
Any advice?

 

[keithwms]

Why not post it and tell us what you want done.

Analogue masking, blurring and bleaching are more "artificial" than photoshop?! I think you mean obvious, not artificial.

Worst case at least with b&w negs, you can have an LVT made or try a digital neg. It's not 100% analogue but it is as close as you can get short of a purely analogue solution, IMHO. These matters are best discussed on hybridphoto.

 

[Ian Grant]

You need to show us what it is, it's to vague without an image.

In the past I've retouched a person out of an image, many options are open

Ian

 

[keithwms]

St. Ansel retouched a sign on a mountain out of a landscape image....

 

[Keith Tapscott.]

I want to erase just a little item from a print, but simply i don´t know how to do it. I have tried to mask it, to blur it, to bleaching it, but with these methods i am only having very artifical results.
Any advice?

Try the hybrid forum.

 

[removed account4]

make 2 prints, cut the piece out of the print you want to remove
and cut out the exact same size piece of the other print ..
make a contact print / paper negative and blend the white line with lead dust
or with fluid then make another contact print.

don't forget to have fun

john

 

[wclark5179]

A lady that works with me used to have a good business doing retouching of negatives. I suggested she take a peek at APUG and maybe join. She has the link to this thread.

At any rate, re-touching negatives was a thriving business back in the 1980's and earlier.

 

[erikg]

Much along the lines of John's suggestion, the old school lab way was to airbrush the print and then make a 4x5 copy neg from that. Why does photoshop have brush tools? This is why.

 

[David A. Goldfarb]

Depending on what it is and what the background is and how large the neg is, you may be able to remove it from the neg with a knife or sand it off. Sounds dangerous, but it was once a fairly standard technique.

 

[makanakijones]

I know about hybridphoto of course I know how to erase something in photoshop, but I want to do it the old way.
Thanks for the answers.

 

[Keith Tapscott.]

I know about hybridphoto of course I know how to erase something in photoshop, but I want to do it the old way.
Thanks for the answers.

The title of the thread threw me off and there are quite a few questions that get slipped in here and there about D.I. matters.
There was a set of videos and DVD`s available at one time, which were filmed at Ilford`s darkroom in Mobberley.
These featured tuition by Ilford darkroom technicians Michael Walden and Terry Offord and one of them (the second film if I recall) showed how to do spotting and retouching. There was one print where Michael Walden removed an object in the picture on an enlargement and carefully retouched the print so that it was as if it wasn`t there in the first place.
I think the series of films was called Darkroom Magic. Someone here might be able to help you find these if you`re interested.

 

[makanakijones]

Sorry for use the term photoshopping, I know it is not correct. Thank you Keith I will search for those films.

 

[David A. Goldfarb]

I've updated the thread title.

 

[makanakijones]

Thank you David, much better.

 

[George Collier]

Second the suggestion to post a scan of the print in an area showing the offending object - much easier to suggest something.