Using an Easel

focus_on_infinity · Mar 4, 2021

A two-blade easel looks like it should be a pretty easy thing to master. It has a corner where you can kind of push the corner of your paper, and these blade things that fold down, and then there's the space in the middle where your picture will be. So, why am I so inconsistent in getting my paper to align with my images? I'm frequenty printing at odd angles.

I thought my easel might have been sliding, so I put down some rubber bumpers so it would register parpllel at the top edge. And then, I wasn't sure that I was putting the paper in correctly, but even when I try to register it in the corner it's frequenly off. So what am I missing? It seems like it should be easy.

voceumana · Mar 4, 2021

On a 2-blade adjustable easel the corner L for alignment is usually quite short, so it is very easy for the paper to shift when flipping the blades down.

I gave up on 2-bladed easels early on in my photo endeavors. When I couldn't afford a 4-bladed easel, I invested in several of the Saunders single size easels; their 5x7 has an adjustable bar with fixed spacings for 3-1/2 x 5, 4x5, 5x5, and 5x7 (removed), and with a card shield you can do 2-1/2 x 3-12 (wallet) size.

But 4-blade easels are the best, as the alignment edge is the full width of the paper edge.

Jim Hobson · Mar 4, 2021

focus_on_infinity said:
A two-blade easel looks like it should be a pretty easy thing to master. It has a corner where you can kind of push the corner of your paper, and these blade things that fold down, and then there's the space in the middle where your picture will be. So, why am I so inconsistent in getting my paper to align with my images? I'm frequenty printing at odd angles.

I thought my easel might have been sliding, so I put down some rubber bumpers so it would register parpllel at the top edge. And then, I wasn't sure that I was putting the paper in correctly, but even when I try to register it in the corner it's frequenly off. So what am I missing? It seems like it should be easy.

Open your easel, put the paper on the easel and with one finger slide the paper up and into the fixed corner and hold it there. On my Bogen 2-blade as I lower the frame there's like a clamp in the fixed corner that holds the paper in place. If yours dosen't have that just hold the paper into the corner as you lower the blades. After processing check the border. If the fixed corner border is straight the paper didn't move. If the other two corners are uneven it's the movable blades. On inexpensive easels those movable blades are not always held tight and have some movement in them. I use both, two blade and four blade easels. I like both types.

MattKing · Mar 4, 2021

In my case:
1) arrange with positioning corner of easel at top left, and meeting of two blades at bottom right. Raise blades;
2) use left hand to position paper carefully;
3) use right index finger to hold in place bottom right corner of paper;
4) use left hand to slowly lower easel on to base;
5) carefully remove right index finger.
Your hands need to be clean and dry - consider gloves.

Doremus Scudder · Mar 4, 2021

If Jim's advice doesn't work all the time for you, just add some tape at appropriate places to help align the paper. A few thicknesses of good-quality masking tape strategically placed along the bottom and sides opposite the fixed "L" will allow you to get your paper in the right place every time.

And, if your easel won't clamp your paper well with the little metal "teeth," add some self-adhesive furniture bumpers or felts to the underside of the fixed "L." Just make sure you position them well so they hold the paper down, but don't hold the frame up. I've done both theses things with many two-bladed easels with success.

Oh yes, and don't try for a really thin border; give yourself a good half-an-inch. Most two-bladed easels have an adjustment for this.

Best,

Doremus

Andrew O'Neill · Mar 4, 2021

My first easel was a two-bladed affair back in Japan. Did nothing but struggle with it. Four bladed is the way to go! Do yourself a favour, and look for a used Saunders. Get one larger than you normally print. Someone gave me that bit of advice and I'm glad I listened.

Jim Hobson · Mar 4, 2021

Doremus Scudder said:
If Jim's advice doesn't work all the time for you, just add some tape at appropriate places to help align the paper. A few thicknesses of good-quality masking tape strategically placed along the bottom and sides opposite the fixed "L" will allow you to get your paper in the right place every time.

And, if your easel won't clamp your paper well with the little metal "teeth," add some self-adhesive furniture bumpers or felts to the underside of the fixed "L." Just make sure you position them well so they hold the paper down, but don't hold the frame up. I've done both theses things with many two-bladed easels with success.

Oh yes, and don't try for a really thin border; give yourself a good half-an-inch. Most two-bladed easels have an adjustment for this.

Best,

Doremus

I didn't think of the masking tape. I use it to mark my paper trimmer when I'm cutting 8x10 paper to 4x5 for contact prints in the darkroom. The tape gives just enough height to catch the paper's edge. Try it for extra assurance.

MattKing · Mar 4, 2021

Some two bladed easels have a larger referencing stop at the corner. How large is the stop in yours?

focus_on_infinity · Mar 4, 2021

MattKing said:
Some two bladed easels have a larger referencing stop at the corner. How large is the stop in yours?

It's pretty small. That's kind of the main issue. Why it doesn't go all the way across is beyond me. I'll try extending it with some tape or something.

MattKing · Mar 4, 2021

focus_on_infinity said:
It's pretty small. That's kind of the main issue. Why it doesn't go all the way across is beyond me.

Most likely cost.
It is challenging to have a long one, have it adjustable, and ensure that it remains correctly aligned with the rest of the easel.

voceumana · Mar 4, 2021

Spend the money for a good used Saunders 4-blade easel. You'll never regret it from a performance viewpoint, you'll stop cursing at your easel, and you can always sell it for what you paid or more if you don't like it. I bought an 11x14 slim-track easel, and now there's one on ebay new-in-box (old stock) for over twice what I paid.

Lachlan Young · Apr 5, 2021

There are two-blade easels and two blade easels... the cheap stamped metal ones can be very challenging to get paper to stay square in - and have limited margin options; the good ones (RR Beard/ Photon Beard and Leitz are the two that immediately come to mind) are much more durable and routinely accurate than anything but the very best 4-blade easels.

ParkerSmithPhoto · Apr 5, 2021

Those easels are great if you are planning on trimming and mounting your prints. For making square, sexy borders, not so much.

M Carter · Apr 5, 2021

I concur with the "OK for trimming" comments and the "they're a pain" comments, and the "get a 4-blade" comments. And they limit how wide a border you can print.

These days I kinda feel like a nice darkroom print is an "image" but also an "artifact" in and of itself, especially printing with my stash of classic lithable papers; so often I leave a fairly large border, I like the look. I'll even float the print in a frame vs. matting it to present it as an "object" as well as an image.

cjbecker · Apr 5, 2021

I really like a 2 blade easel to hold my speed easels from moving!

Jim Jones · Apr 6, 2021

Decades ago I struggled with adjustable easels, and switched to Ganz SPEED-EZ-ELs. These come in several sizes, and each size fits only one common photo paper size. Paper is slid into the end of the easel. The border is fixed and narrow, about 1/8 inch. These easels take up less room on the enlarger baseboard than any other easel. Some photographers need adjustable easels to best fit the size and proportions of each image to the subject. However, after many thousands of 35mm Kodachrome slides, I became accustomed to arranging the subject to fit the 1:1.5 proportion of the Kodak slide mounts.

Nicholas Lindan · Apr 6, 2021

voceumana said:
I gave up on 2-bladed easels early on in my photo endeavors. When I couldn't afford a 4-bladed easel, I invested in several of the Saunders single size easels...

What he said.

The Saunders single-size 5x7 I had predated the multiformat type but a few bits of cardboard soon got that sorted. A 5x3.75" bit of cardboard allows for 3.5x5" prints - two to a sheet of 5x7 that can be separated after processing. A 5x3.25" bit of cardboard allows use with 4x5 paper.

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