alternative processing

Diva · Post by **Diva** » Thu Dec 18, 2008 2:50 am

i don't think i've shared this. this is the project that got me an honorable mention! woot. this was a couple years ago. THIS is what i love to do...going back to the simplicity of light reacting chemicals. lulz need to work on this stuff more.

hazelwould · Post by **hazelwould** » Thu Dec 18, 2008 7:58 pm

That's awesome! What was the technique to do that?

Diva · Post by **Diva** » Thu Dec 18, 2008 10:59 pm

you mix up the van dyke solution...which i do believe is how light reacts with ferric salts (see...this shit is totally up my alley...chemistry and photo...ACE!). i used watercolor paper (acid free of course). i "painted" the solution on in the darkroom. you only need a drop, if that...then just used a piece of matte board to "paint" the solution. dry with a hair dryer. once it's dry, put the negative directly on the paper. expose to light...be it UV light or sunlight... you do need to do a test strip to see how long you need to leave it there. that was tricky, but once i got the timing down, all went together well. i used a printing frame to secure the negative to the paper, so the negative wouldn't move. once finish, wash it well and let it dry. i think i stuck mine to a flat metal sheet, as the watercolor paper cannot go through the dryer (print dryer). still looks fantastic and it's been a couple years. i do have some silver nitrate to do more, but haven't got a printing frame. i want one...

you have to make sure not to expose the solution to light until the chemicals have been fixed and washed. otherwise, you could screw it up.

fun shit.

filtercap · Post by **filtercap** » Thu Dec 18, 2008 11:13 pm

I've seen some amazing art made with that stuff, painted on glass objects and whatnot. "Liquid Light" is a trade name, according to my photographer wife. She grudgingly does digital, but loves all the old light/film/chemical processes. She likes collage too, so from time to time I ask her why not try that "liquid stuff.... uh, you know." Technical me.

There was something you could do by tearing open Polaroid film before it was fully exposed.... I forget what it was.

benecol · Post by **benecol** » Thu Dec 18, 2008 11:18 pm

Well hello filtercap, nice to see you round these parts again. Am PMing you, mainly just more gushing praise for your Vibrochamp thread, whic is still about the most useful thing on the internet.

My tiny photography pro-tip is that polaroid photos get much richer colours if you make them nice and warm for the first minute or so.

Diva · Post by **Diva** » Thu Dec 18, 2008 11:41 pm

filtercap wrote:I've seen some amazing art made with that stuff, painted on glass objects and whatnot. "Liquid Light" is a trade name, according to my photographer wife. She grudgingly does digital, but loves all the old light/film/chemical processes. She likes collage too, so from time to time I ask her why not try that "liquid stuff.... uh, you know." Technical me.

There was something you could do by tearing open Polaroid film before it was fully exposed.... I forget what it was.

polaroid transfers...i so want to do some of those.

been on my next to do list for awhile now. i love the look of that.

filtercap · Post by **filtercap** » Fri Dec 19, 2008 12:17 am

Thanks, Benecol. New baby girl (8 months now!) plus two recording projects plus a couple band false-starts have combined to take up a lot of time!

Diva, where do you get the raw materials for that liquid-emulsion wonderfulness?

I was going to say good luck finding instant film because Polaroid has discontinued it. I just saw these sites though, which I know nothing about.

http://www.savepolaroid.com/
http://www.polapremium.com/

Diva · Post by **Diva** » Fri Dec 19, 2008 12:30 am

filtercap wrote:Thanks, Benecol. New baby girl (8 months now!) plus two recording projects plus a couple band false-starts have combined to take up a lot of time!

Diva, where do you get the raw materials for that liquid-emulsion wonderfulness?

I was going to say good luck finding instant film because Polaroid has discontinued it. I just saw these sites though, which I know nothing about.

http://www.savepolaroid.com/
http://www.polapremium.com/

Um, sometimes you can buy it in a kit...or you can buy all the chemicals separate and make your own.

http://www.bostick-sullivan.com/

http://www.alternativephotography.com/p ... ndyke.html

that alternative site is pretty cool as it's got other stuff on there too!

btw, you can also look on ebay for the chemicals. like i said, i have some silver nitrate that i ordered. now i need to get the rest of the crap. lol

filtercap · Post by **filtercap** » Fri Dec 19, 2008 12:45 am

I'll take a look at those.

How you de-sensitize it to light when you're done? Does merely washing it off do the trick, or do you have to paint it with developer or whatever?

Diva · Post by **Diva** » Fri Dec 19, 2008 1:07 am

Well, you develop it in UV light....then fix it (weak solution)...then rinse in distilled water. Like a regular photo, but you have to make sure that stuff is rinsed WELL. I like to rinse twice in distilled to make sure. I can look at work I've done and see where I could've washed better.

But, it's a learning process...lol

Most of the work I did was in the evening, so I didn't have to worry about UV lighting. It was fine under florescent lighting...highly sensitive to UV, not so much to fake stuff. Our UV light was in another room, so I'd have to leave the darkroom and then walk over to the other building, put my stuff in the light, set the timer, and twiddle my thumbs. I think this exposure was 10-12 min.

It's crazy, when you coat the paper, the liquid is a bright yellow. Looks like you peed on it. Then, it gets exposed to UV lighting...and turns brown.

Neat to see!!

BTW, the instructions on the alternative site are spot on. Although, I find it best to do contact negatives vs the enlarger.

benecol · Post by **benecol** » Fri Dec 19, 2008 8:18 am

Diva shortscale: possibly the first person ever to be able to drop science on filtercap.

Diva · Post by **Diva** » Fri Dec 19, 2008 3:44 pm

benecol wrote:Diva shortscale: possibly the first person ever to be able to drop science on filtercap.

curtsy

filtercap · Post by **filtercap** » Fri Dec 19, 2008 8:35 pm

It's much to do easier than you think, once I'm outside my little realm... not to diminish Diva's accomplishment in the slightest.

For example, on these alt-photo websites I see mention of Van Dyke solutions, but nowhere do I see Tyler Moore solutions. Nor do I see a list of problems to which Van Dyke is the solution. I could chime in about this, and add that rescuing all the children from the dungeon of the evil Baron Bomburst's castle via some nifty dance routines and a flying car was my favorite Van Dyke solution, but this would merely demonstrate that I'm in way over my head.

Diva · Post by **Diva** » Fri Dec 19, 2008 9:32 pm

It is pretty easy to do, actually.

It's jumping in from the beginning point from which you scratch your head that is confusing. Like, how to begin, where, what, etc. Once you get it, it's cruise control.

btw, it's not really science. just answering questions on how i did it. tis all.