Getting Started in Color Printing

Materials needed:

(All color film and paper is best stored in a refrigerator (not freezer). Allow to thaw out for a few hours before using.)

Film: If you're shooting under daylight conditions or with flash, use any daylight color film. If shooting under tungsten light, use a tungsten balanced film such as Vericolor Type L (available only in 120 size). If shooting 35mm under tungsten light, use daylight film with an 80A filter to correct the color, since there is no tungsten-balanced 35mm film currently available. (You can also shoot without the filter and do the color correction in the enlarger while printing.) The relationship of grain to film speed is the same as for b/w photography, i.e., the faster the film, the grainier the image.

Some recommended films:

Daylight: Kodak or Fuji films, Kodak Vericolor Professional Type S (VPS) or VPH (daylight balanced with higher color saturation & more contrast).

Tungsten: Kodak Vericolor Professional Type L.

(The Kodak "professional" films are available only in photo stores and are intended for professional work where color control is more critical. They are refrigerated from the time of manufacture to the time that they are sold to prevent the color characteristics of the film from changing.)

A general rule for shooting in color: If in doubt, overexpose a little. Many photographers routinely give a little more exposure to the film by lowering the ASA. For example, with VPS (ASA 160) set your meter to ASA 100. A slightly overexposed negative is better than an underexposed negative.

Paper: Any brand of color paper that is marked "RA" can be put through the Colenta machine. Do not put any other types of paper through the machine.

Recommended: Ektacolor RA Supra (for normal contrast)

Ektacolor RA Ultra (for higher contrast)

Ektacolor RA Portra (for lower contrast)

The N (lustre) surface is recommended for the above papers. F surface is glossy (like the snapshots you get back from the lab) and will have a somewhat more saturated and contrasty appearance.

Have your color negative film developed at any lab with process C-41. Many supermarkets and drugstores will do this for a minimal charge. Specify that you want development only with no prints, or you can pay extra for the prints which you can use as your proofs and as a substitute for making a contact sheet.