Introduction to Printing
If you are enrolled in a Photo I class, you will be printing in the large group
darkroom. If you are enrolled in any class beyond Photo I, you may use either the group
darkroom, or you can check out a key from the equipment cage to one of the private
darkrooms, numbered 1 through 8. Students printing color must use one of the private
darkrooms equipped with a colorhead.
Your instructor will at some point do a printing demonstration, showing you the basic
procedures involved in making contact sheets and enlargements from your negatives. Please
read and review this section before printing in the darkroom on your own and use it as a
reference are you get started printing.
Equipment:
Each enlarging stall is equipped with an enlarger, timer, contact sheet glass and
8"x10" easel. If you are printing a negative size other than 35mm, ask your
instructor which enlarger you should use, since most of the enlargers are equipped with
lenses suitable for 35mm printing only. The enlarging stalls marked "2 ¼" are
equipped with lenses capable of printing either 35mm or 2 ¼" negatives. Although all
of the enlargers in the group darkroom are basically the same, it is suggested that you
try to stick with one enlarger for the duration of the semester. Please report any
mechanical problems or malfunctions to your instructor or to the equipment cage
immediately.
The lab does not supply negative carriers. Your instructor will show you how to
make a negative carrier out of mat-board that will work as well or better than metal
negative carriers.
You should keep a container in your locker which holds the following printing
accessories:
Of course, you will also need negatives and photo paper. For class sessions that have
been designated as printing days, you are expected to come to class prepared to print and
with all the necessary items that you'll need. For information on photo paper, see page
35, "Selecting a Photo Paper".
Getting Ready to Print:
Having all of your printing tools with you in a little shoebox or container. It is a
good idea to wipe down your enlarging stall with a sponge before working, especially if it
looks like someone has tracked chemicals into it.
It is important to understand that in any printing darkroom, there is an absolute
separation between wet areas and dry areas. The wet area is obviously the sink and all
of the chemistry. The dry area is your enlarging stall. Therefore, never place a small
print viewing tray or any other wet object in an enlarging stall. Maintaining this
distinction between wet and dry areas will help to keep the lab clean and will avoid the
possibility of contamination which can ruin your prints or those of your fellow students. Always
use your hand towel to dry your hands before going back to your enlarging stall to handle
the enlarger and unexposed paper.
Each enlarger is cleaned periodically, but please report to your instructor or to the
equipment cage any enlarger that seems to need cleaning. You can help by making sure that
the enlarger's negative stage remains closed except when inserting negatives and by
covering the entire enlarger with the plastic bag provided before leaving the lab.
Preparing the Print Chemistry:
Students are responsible for setting up chemistry if it is not already set up when you
come into the lab. The deep trays which hold the fixer should already be set up and are
dumped only when the fixer checks bad with hypo-chek (ask your instructor to show you how
to check the hypo). All the stock solutions for tray chemistry are stored on the shelf
above the sink. Follow the dilutions marked on the tanks of each solution which are as
follows and mix them into trays which you have rinsed out with hot water.
Print Processing Sequence:
The diagram on p. 29 shows the basic chemistry setup for the black and white darkroom.
The arrows indicate the path that the print follows through the various solutions.
Step 1: Developer
Shortly after your print is immersed in the developer, the image will appear. Your
instructor may suggest a specific development time. Usually 3 minutes for fiber-based
papers and 1-1 ½ minutes for RC papers is sufficient. You must agitate the print in the
developer by gently rocking the tray, or by moving the print around in the solution with
the print tongs. Please do not put your hands in the solution - use tongs. At the end of
the development time, lift the print out of the tray and let it drain for a few seconds,
then drop it gently into the Stop Bath. Do not place the developer tongs in the stop
bath. If you do so accidentally, rinse them with water before returning them to the
developer tray.
Step 2: Stop Bath
30 seconds with agitation for fiber-based papers, or 5-10 seconds with RC papers is
sufficient. The stop bath is a dilute solution of acetic acid which neutralizes the
alkaline developer that remains on the print and therefore acts as a chemical
"brake" on development. Stop bath must never be tracked into the developer,
since it will neutralize this bath and weaken it, possibly also staining prints.
Step 3: Fixer
We use a two-bath fixing system in the lab to assure adequate fixing. Fix for 2 minutes
in the first bath, then for 2 minutes in the second bath for fiber-based papers. For RC
papers, one minute in each bath is sufficient. After the first minute of fixing, it is
safe to take the print outside in a tray to view it, but don't forget to bring it back for
the remaining fixing time. The fixer dissolves the remaining unexposed silver in the
print, thereby making the image permanent. Both the first and second fixing baths are
identical. The first bath absorbs most of the unexposed silver and the second bath
finishes the job, remaining relatively fresh. When the first bath becomes exhausted, the
second bath is moved into its place and a fresh second bath is mixed up. Do not overfix
your prints. Prints left in the fixer indefinitely will bleach and lose highlight detail.
Step 4: Holding Bath
Prints are placed here after fixing and left until the end of the printing session. The
holding bath is the large Plexiglas washer. It should have cold water running into it at a
slow flow. Prints may be left in this bath for several hours. This allows you to
hypo-clear and give the final wash to your prints all at one time.
Step 5: Hypo-Clear
This step is done in the main area of the lab under white light, usually in the toning
sink. Hypo-clear for 5 minutes with agitation. This is a chemical which shortens the wash
time by turning the fixer into a compound that can be more easily washed from the print. Do
not hypo-clear RC prints.
Step 6: Final Wash
A final wash of 20 minutes for fiber based prints is sufficient, using the large
rocking print washer First wash for 10 minutes in the right bin, then move the prints into
the left bin for 10 minutes. Try to coordinate your washing with other students so that
you do not place your prints into a bin in which other prints are almost completed
washing, since your prints will contaminate them and turn the wash time back to zero. If
you are washing 10 or fewer prints, do not use the large rocking washer at all - it is a
waste of water. Instead, wash your prints in a large tray with running water from a hose
or faucet, shuffling the prints frequently. For RC prints, a 5-10 minute wash in a tray
or in the large washer is sufficient. The holding bath tray in the group darkroom can
also be used for providing a final wash to RC prints provided that other students are not
dumping their fixer-laden prints into it while you are giving your final wash.
Step 7: Drying
Prints should be gently squeegeed on the plexiglas boards on the print washer and then
placed on drying racks, face down. If you would like to take your prints home with you
before they are dry, you can purchase a blotter book at a photo store. When you get home,
do not let the prints dry in the blotter book, but rather place them on a clean sheet or
fiberglass screen, or hang them up to dry with clothespins attached to the bottom corners
as well as the top. (Drying prints in a blotter book can leave a layer of lint on the
print which may be difficult to remove.)