Prints on Saatchi Art

I decided to put on sale some of my photographs made on Direct Positive Paper. 
I am talking here about original 4x5 inch wet prints made in camera and processed in darkroom. These are always one of a kind single copies.

one of the wet prints available for sale

Direct Positive Paper itself is not available for sale anymore which makes such photographs even more unique.
All images are signed (at the back of the print and front of mounting board) and will be framed (wooden frame) by a professional framer.

Example of framed wet print

All of it is available on Saatchi Art website. /LINK/
Soon I will also put on sale limited edition of its copies (pigment prints) on archival (museum quality) paper. Limited edition prints will be available on my ETSY shop. /LINK/

Thank you!

Direct Positive Paper (part 2)

I am coming back to direct positive paper tests. As you remember almost two months ago a took first few photographs on that medium using studio lighting.
Everything came out really well. You can have a look at the blog post following this link - ‘Direct Positive Paper’.

Last Thursday I decided to give it a go with natural light. I set camera in UCD campus in the middle of fantastic modernist structures photographed by me many times before (‘Forms’ series for example).
With mentioned in previous post slow speed of this paper (about ISO 3) and aperture f=45 it took about 30s to get proper exposure.
Paper was developed in Ilford Multigrade Developer.

Below are first results.

ISO 3, f/45, 30s expo - 20s dev

This is a second photograph out of two I developed. Dev process about 20 seconds (quite fast) gave the best result. Very reach tonal range  and great details.
Here is the same image developed for much longer time 40seconds. Still pretty fast as for paper dev process. As you can see however it is way too dark and also there is loss of details due to high contrast. That's why I gave it ago once more with mentioned 20 sec then.

ISO 3, f/45, 30s expo - 40s dev

I also took the same photograph on negative film for comparison purposes. It was as usually Fomapan 100 developed in Caffenol-c-m.
...the same place, settings, lens and the same camera :)

ISO 100, f/45, 4s expo - 10min dev in Caffenol-c-m

Of course negative is more versatile and with a little bit of time and experience in darkroom printing will give better result. That's for sure. 

We are focusing here however on new great 'instant' medium :)

4x5 prints

After all it is difficult (if possible at all) to judge such photographs seeing scanned images. Only viewing the print can give real feeling of what is happening with such paper. It is truly fantastic! 

Paper Negatives and...(tests)

Looks like some drugs (one particularly) started to fill not only my veins but also entire space around me ;) ... Let me explain however everything from the beginning. About a week ago i took a couple of photographs on paper instead of film. That’s my first attempt to paper negatives. It’s a modern version of “Calotype”, an old process invented by Fox Talbot in September 1840 in which photographic paper is exposed directly using large-format camera. Such a paper is processed in darkroom where it gives negative (on paper) and then final positive print by making contact print. Easy peasy ...almost ;)

I used Ilford Multigrade IV RC Pearl Deluxe paper (cut to 4x5 format)  which is very simple to handle due to quite fast drying and being flat during that process.

In case of paper negatives speed (ISO) is about 6. Quite slow but still faster than wet plate collodion  for example introduced about 10 years latter ;)

So photographs has been taken...

Here I can come back to my “drug story” from the beginning of this post ;D

I decided to give a try... Coffee  development (again, haha) which obviously is equal to darkroom printing in this case ;)

Very different proportions than in case of film dev process..

250 ml water

2 tsp of washing soda

3 tsp of caffe

1 tsp of vitamin C

Of course everything can be adjusted according to required amount of liquid. I was processing my papers in 500ml.

paper negative developed in Caffenol-C

Conclusions?

It’s a veeery slow process comparing to when I use normal chemistry. First shades of the image appears after about 3-4 minutes...then image was ready after about 10minutes (!).

As a comparison - week ago i took couple of photographs on the same paper and I processed them in Ilford Multigrade paper developer. They were ready in 1.5min

Anyway - I have negatives. Time to create proper print.

Mentioned before photograph taken week ago was presented on my Facebook page. This one was processed in Ilford Multigrade paper Developer  (click HERE please) and then inverted in photoshop to create positive. All looks great but Photoshop is not the right way.

Below is the other one created the same day... you know this photograph from my older post but it was taken on normal film back then ;)

paper negative developed in Ilford Multigrade paper developer

positive image created by negative's inversion in PS

I set my darkroom last night to process and print the other photograph taken yesterday (first image in this post).

Contact print is made by creating sandwich with clear paper and paper negative sticked together on emulsion side. Negative must be obviously on the top.

Exposure and hight of the lamp (enlarger head) is another crucial element in this process. It will provide differences in contrast of final image. I had a rather limited time so i could make just a 2 tests. One with 2 sec exposure and second with 4 sec. The last one was quite good but not good enough. Lack of contrast ...It only means I will have to come back to it ;)

 wet print in Caffenol-C 

Differences?

Big..it’s again depends on what you prefer. With paper negatives, traditional development gives quite strong contrast which usually I like. Coffee development gives however more details, nice brownish tint on paper but not enough contrast...

I am sure that something is not working here properly but don't know what. It may be soda again as in case of Caffenol-C-L ...or something else.

Before i tried it I spoke to Damian Dzialoszynski , photographer who is experimenting a lot with these materials (click HERE  please to see his blog). His prints full of fantastic blacks and shades and generally great contrasts where ready after a few seconds... (???)

Will have to work it out definitely. Its all constant learning curve ...

If somebody who is reading this post had a different experience or some advice you are more then welcome to post it here or contact me directly. Thanks a lot!

 photographs:
1. negative in Caffenol (first image) with positive print (last image) - The Irish Waterways Visitor Centre by OPW.

2. paper negative in Ilford Multigrade  Paper Developer with positive created in PS - Bolland Mills.
Here is link to my older blog post about it with the same photograph recorded on traditional negative (as a comparison):  please click HERE

"Coffee Flavour" - exhibition

"Coffee Flavour" is on the walls of Ranelagh Arts Centre Gallery. It’s doesn't really mean that the project is finished. I will definitely continue to work on it as long as I will have people happy to seat in the front of my camera with a cup of coffee...and they will be ready to expose their minds ;)

Most of you know what this project is about however here you can see a short note from the exhibition:

The idea of “Coffee flavour” project (carried on since 2009) was inspired by film “Coffee and cigarettes” by Jim Jarmusch. Presented series are portraits of personalities rather than people themselves, personalities shown through human thoughts and the moments in which they were born, quiet moments of contemplation.
Time with a cup of coffee itʼs time to focus and clear your mind, to hunker down and get ready for the day. It is simultaneously a wonderful way to relax and to lose touch with reality for a moment, time to slow down and recharge, time for “Coffee flavour “.

All presented photographs are silver-gelatin prints on Ilford Multigrade IV RC Deluxe Pearl paper. Printing itself took over a week which is quite a short time as for 21 prints. I am pleased with the result and appreciate all good feedback I received after all!

 

 

phot. Rafal Kostrzewa (three photographs above)

The opening night (07/11/2011 7pm) it was a very special event with lots of fantastic people. Thank you very much for coming in!!!
I would like to thank especially Mel, a good friend of mine for wonderful introduction, Sarah, David, Sara, and Terry from the Gallery, Sylwia, Artur, Bart and Luis for helping me before the opening and of course all models!

phot. Monika Sikora

phot. Edita Malenko

At the end fantastic underground video footage by Andy Sullivan. Thanks for that mate!