Working around crazy dodge/burn gymnastics (flashing, water bath etc...)

[Removed Account]

I am trying to print 2 negatives that are proving very difficult. One is a shot of a bride and bridesmaid I ran in to when shooting at the ocean. There is nice light around them, a tree arches overhead, all very elegant... but behind them is a wide view of open sunlight which blows out a roughly 2 x 6 inch area of the print. The bride's dress is also slightly blown out, but that part is easy to burn in. There is some detail in the highlight area on the negative, but my hands and board-with-hole are not precise enough to navigate around the trees and heads to burn it in reasonably. It also doesn't help that for 5 trys I forgot I had a #0 filter in the enlarger :rolleyes:

The second image is an ocean scene, with a rock formation in the foreground, the water, and a nice sky. The negative shows some good detail in the clouds, but burning it in just seems to make it muddy. I am thinking about trying split-grading it. Also, when printing the part with the rock formations and water, the rocks darken VERY quickly, and the water needs much burning, but again I am not nimble enough and either leave a dark border on the rocks or a halo on the water surrounding them.

I am going to try flashing the paper, but I have no idea how to control this. I have no timer for the enlarger so it would be just stopping down and counting Mississippis. Also, I have read that when developing the paper I can leave it in the developer, then pull the print and immerse it in water. This supposedly slows development of the shadows but allows the highlights to continue. Does anyone have any advice on these procedures, or other suggestions? As always, my thanks,

Justin

 

[jovo]

I am going to try flashing the paper, but I have no idea how to control this.

Stop your lens down as far as it will go, and defocus your lens, or use a piece of diffuser plastic or glass (I have an old translucent filter from a set of variable contrast filters). Place a strip of paper in your easel and cover it with a cardboard. Turn on the enlarger light and uncover the strip one second at a time. Leave the last bit unexposed, and turn off the enlarger light. Develop and inspect the strip. The section that just precedes the first change of tone is your maximum flash time. (My experience has been that the flash is rarely longer than 6 or 7 seconds...but that is entirely a matter of my materials and the wattage of my enlarger.) You can, of course, use less if need be.

 

[Shawn Dougherty]

"I have no timer for the enlarger so it would be just stopping down and counting Mississippis"

I don't use a time either. I use a metronome set to 60 beats a minute. You should be able to pic one up cheap at a music shop. Just tell them how you're going to use it. Mine is broken but still works at 60BPM so it great for me but was worthless to musicians. It's really easy to count mulitiple times and even half or quarter seconds with this.

I've found a water bath to be an excellent tool in printing but it depends on what developer you are using. Best. Shawn

 

[Removed Account]

Thanks guys, I'll give it a shot and post the results... Plus, I just happen to have a metronome hidden in the abyss that is my home. I think it ran off with my other sock...

 

[Roger Hicks]

Dear Justin,

There's a short free module, 'Pre-Flashing', in the Photo School at www.rogerandfrances.com, that should answer all your questions.

Cheers,

Roger

 

[dancqu]

There's a short free module, 'Pre-Flashing', in the
Photo School at www.rogerandfrances.com, that
should answer all your questions. Cheers, Roger

Interesting site. Good coverage of Pre-Flashing and I'm
sure other matters. I'll give them some more time.

For the OP: check into SLIMT. That problem
negative is likely a good candidate. Dan