Test strip holder

Since recently getting my Stop Clock and Zone Master I'm finding I like the way it works. I printed several pictures with it just using the built in Ilford MGRC IV profile. actually gave fair results. After getting more familiar with it, I decided to calibrate my setup and actual paper I use, Ilford MGRC Deluxe ( NEW, I think aka V ). I was just using two pieces of black sheet to make a slot over the paper as I ran through the filters I have. It worked but was cumbersome. I want to fine tune things more so I 3D printed a strip holder for 5x7 paper. Parts fit was a little tight, so I will open it up more then place it on thingiverse in case anyone could use it.

The results are noticeably better even with just my first pass at exposure calibration.

Here it is if you want it.

Very nice and nice of you to release it to the general public!

Great idea. Thanks! 5x7 is good, 4x5 would be gooder, but it's a highly commendable piece of work in any case.

Sometimes a regular single test strip will work, but not always. And trying to position several separate strips around on one trial piece of paper is not fun.

thx a lot.

That's neat; it would work quite nicely for color/RA4 printing as well.

Hi,

I can do a 4x5 one fast enough, question is how many strips? I only did 7 on mine because that is how many full grade filters to do to calibrate the Zone Master.

Do you remove one of the strips and make an exposure that is the same over the length of the strip using the same VC filter;
=Or=
Do you make a test strip at each location, sliding the plastic strip with a series of exposures, and each strip is exposed with a different filter?

For those without a 3D (or even 2D) plastic printer Durst made a very neat test strip printer that sometimes shows up on ebay. It does a good job of making grey scales of a paper's response.

What I have recently been doing is exposing each strip one at a time using a different filter for each. But there are many ways this could be useful.

The top surfaces of the masks could be painted white if the test strip needs to be in the same place each time with the whole assembly slide sideways.

With skills in 3D printing anyone might find it worthwhile to make the test strip printer that Ralph Lambrecht gives dimensions for in his book Way Beyond Monochrome As I recall it he has made the link available on Photrio as well. It has the facility to allow the same part of the negative to be exposed each time in 1 inch strips as well as 7 different parts of the overall negative on a 5x7 sheet

pentaxuser

I made this one, with a top layer in white PLA (don't remember, as far as I remember the 5 final layers are white), and it's perfect, although a big bigger would not be an issue.

Localised test strip maker for darkroom photography