Split grade printing - DARKROOM PRINTING TECHNIQUES
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- Опубліковано 16 чер 2024
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Split-grade printing is a powerful darkroom printing technique that can be used in the traditional analog darkroom for printing black-and-white fine art prints. To use this technique in the darkroom you must be printing on variable contrast photo paper. With split-grade printing, you are able to achieve different levels of contrast for different areas of a single print. This offers a high level of final print control for the serious darkroom printer.
I learned photography in a darkroom and wanted to share my current setup and workflow. In this age of digital imaging, it is hard for me to believe that traditional silver wet printing is basically now an alternative process.
Analog film is having an amazing resurgence. Many people are shooting film and scanning negs with amazing results. I want to encourage people to keep the darkroom alive as well!
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Relevant Links:
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Ilford Mulltigrade Filter Set (filter gels) - amzn.to/393qLOI
Ilford Multigrade Filter Set (with under the lens holder) - amzn.to/3611R0p
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Go to film photography setup //
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Hasselblad 500 CM - ebay.us/I76k2J
120mm CF f-4 Makro - ebay.us/gX4UVm
80mm CF 2.8 - ebay.us/BRBAuT
50mm CFE f-4 - ebay.us/rcJhiz
Go to film - Ilford HP5 - amzn.to/3oPiyTU
Go to Dev. - ID-11 1:1 - amzn.to/3qpUck1
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Go to digital camera setup //
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Canon R5 - amzn.to/35FUX0r
Canon 35mm f1.4 L ii - amzn.to/3ioIBPl
Canon 50mm f1.2 RF - amzn.to/2N47Hax
Canon 85mm f1.2 - amzn.to/38PaH34
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Music:
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#distphotofilm #darkroom - Навчання та стиль
You can make one test strip with both filters. Use one sheet of paper and expose your lowest grade filter with the cover paper vertical across the print moving it about an inch left to right. Then turn the cover paper or card horizontal across the print and use the highest grade filter, and expose top to bottom. This produces a grid effect making little cubes. Find the cube that looks about right and you get both exposures at once, and you can see the entire range of contrast in one test image.
This sounds awesome! I will give it a go. Thank you!
Brilliant tip!
I've tried this in the past, with mixed success. When it works, I really like how I can see all the different combinations. When it doesn't work, the cube with the right combination ends up in the wrong spot where I can't see its effect very well. It takes a bit of planning how to lay out the test print. For example, if I have a bright sky on the top part of the image (like the photo in the video), I would probably print vertical stripes for the low contrast and horizontal stripes for the high contrast. In some cases it makes sense to print the stripes at a 45 degree angle. I like this technique but am having problems using it more often. Any tips or suggestions on how to use this well would be appreciated.
I'll echo some other comments and say this is the BEST demonstration of split grade printing I've ever seen. Thanks a lot for taking the time to give such a thorough explanation!
Thank you!
I agree! It shows a lot of things, how to make the test strips and how to go about printing. Importantly, it also shows why one would want to do split grade printing, which is to vary the contrast across the print. Without that, one could probably use a single grade for the entire print.
This was a really good rehearsal of things i was thought before by a darkroom master. Thank you for the refresh. Much appreciated.
Glad you found it helpful, thanks for the feedback!
Really well explained. Thanks mate
Really enjoyed this! Thanks for keeping the darkroom alive!
My Pleasure! Thanks for watching!
So much useful information. Thanks! :)
Splendid tutorial! Encompassing a complete workflow very helpful. Thanks!
Your welcome!
So glad I’ve found your awesome channel, this is by far the best video on UA-cam to understand split toning, thanks so much!
Please keep up the great work.
Glad you found it helpful!
Dope! Perfect video man, thanks
You’re welcome!
Great Video! Thanks for putting all these little details together! Wow! Very helpful! )))
My pleasure! Thank you!
Another top-notch video from you! You answer both those basic and more advanced questions I have been researching around for - including youtube. It's clear and understandable - and to the point. Well done! Keep these coming and your channel will grow fast 😊
Thank you. It is comments like these that make it worth while. It is awesome to see so many interested in older analog processes. Very inspiring!
Great video, well explained with clear demonstration. Thanks
Glad you liked it. Thanks!
Woah. So much to this! Endless possibilities!!
This technique opens up so many possibillities not available to fixed grade paper!
Amazing videos! Thank you
You are welcome!
Matthew, congratulation!!! This is a master class about split grade printing. Thank you!!!
Wow, thanks! Glad you enjoyed it!
Best explanation on split grad prining. Thanks.
Your welcome, Glad it made sense!
Excellent ! Thanks!!
You are welcome!
Really cool. Great technique. It is amazing what is possible in the darkroom 👍🏼
Thanks, You really are only limited by your imagination and patience!
thanks for the beautiful video
Your welcome. Thank you!
Wow I am so glad I found your channel! I am new to darkroom and and very excited to learn and get better at making my prints look exactly like I want them! I would love more videos on darkroom techniques!!! Thank you!!
You are so welcome! Got some things I am working on. Stay tuned!
Thank you Matthew! Nice picture! Split toning is the best once one master's it. Gives lots of creative choices.
👍 I do not always use it but when you need to it can really make a print shine!
Great work👏🏻🍀📸
Thanks Haymo ✌️
I’m so glad to have found your channel ! You explain it super well, never thought about using an ND fiter before
Glad you did to! I use one a lot for smaller formats & prints where the exposures are just to short.
Matthew That’s so amazing thank you for sharing this Beautiful work and your techniques, I’m enjoy a lot and learning so much from you, hopefully soon can build My Darkroom, Thanks for inspiring me on do that, and Bring back amazing memories I had from my Dad, seeing him printing His Pictures, Thanks again Bud !!
Your welcome! My father had a darkroom and have memories of him printing when I was very young. Good luck with the darkroom!
Nice technique...Looking forward to try that myself...
Thank you!
Just the best. No one else has demonstrated how to use filters for dodging and burning, only printing. Thank you.
Glad it was helpful
Thanks Matthew for your clear and concise demonstrations of darkroom printing. I am learning so much from your channel. Just started my first darkroom printing in my home darkroom last night and got some decent photos, but I have a long way to go with contrast filters and other techniques.
Congrats on the darkroom! Does take patience & persistence but so worth it. Keep it up!
Excellent. Very helpful video I'll share with our students!!
Great to hear!
Thank you, thank you very much ... I like the video not only for the split-grade printing part, but even more so for the explanation how to make a enviromental portrait more pleasing for the view .... this one was good, very good.
Glad you got a lot out of it! Thank you!
Well done for this video, you are probably the only one to explain properly and in an intelligible manner how split grading works… so thanks a lot !
You're very welcome!
Good presentation. I used to use blue and green gelatin filters to do the same. You have inspired me to work with these more. Thanks
Awesome!
grear content for learners!
Thanks!
¡fantástico! Gracias
Your welcome!
Wish I had known this process back in the 90's when I was doing a lot of B&W printing. Just now rebuilding a darkroom and going back to Analog B&W - can't wait to use this on both my new negs and the old ones to see the results.
Awesome to hear! Good luck!
This is a great video! With your wealth of knowledge and skill, you should offer a darkroom printing workshop. Personally, I learned a lot from your videos. Looking forward to your next video.
So great to hear! I have wanted to get a community darkroom going or someplace that would allow teaching. It has been in the back of my mind for a long time. My darkroom is to small. But someday I will!
A clear description of split contrast printing - especially with the clear test prints. I haven't been very adept at doing it so far.
I mix it up quite a bit. Sometimes just adding different contrasts to different parts of the print. Different negatives call for different approaches. This is a great tool to have!
Thanks a lot for this video, it is very informative! I will give it a try next time I am printing.
Please do and let us know how it goes!
@@DistinctionPhotoLLC well I don't have a "fixed" darkroom so I don't print so often as I would. Thus it might take a while ;)
Neger understood how to do, allmost explaned too complicated, but you showed it very practically, thx!
Glad it helped!!!
Thanks for the great explanation, really appreciate the upload. the comments below say it all, you have a phenomenal way of teaching, very unassuming and straightforward, I particularly enjoyed the afterthoughts flashing up on the screen. One to think about... We saw last week Way Beyond Monochrome have a cameo appearance, I know you have been printing for many years, what other books, texts, resources have helped you get to the point you are today, and which darkroom technicians/photographers do you aspire to, or have influenced your work.
Thank you! Oh boy this got me thinking.. it’s a pretty long list off the top of my head printers like Bruce Barnbaum and his Book The Art of Photography is just really well done. All of Tim Rudman’s books are awesome and I am lucky enough to have them :)
John Sexton’s Prints are just insanely beautifull.
Other photographers would be Michael Kenna and really digging Alan Schaller’s work (I love digital photography too!). Some of my favorite prints are of Tom Waits by Anton Corjbin - printed by Mike Spry. The list goes on and on..... Darkroom cookbook, Ansel Adam’s (The Camera, The Negative, The Print)..... And another great resource is Phototrio.com. (Used to be a apug) Just a ton of amazing photographers and info over there about analog photography!
Very helpful and detailed instruction, btw I ve never known the metronome exposure method before. I think it is more hardware saving than I did with restarting the timer for each 2 seconds.
Not sure where I got that from... (I think Ansel Adams did it this way but could be wrong) I do it both ways... the idea behind the continuous method is that if you did 8 - 1 second exposures you would get a different print density than a continuous 8 seconds because of the lamp start up and down time.. Never tested myself but made sense to me. Maybe I will test it out since I have a densitometer now. But if there is visually no difference prob does not matter what way you do it 👍
That’s a great demo of split grade. I sometimes struggle with getting the low contrast exposure right. The high contrast is usually easier. I use a Durst enlarger with a color head, but your VC head looks quicker and easier to use. Thanks very much for that. I hope you get your daughter back soon😁
I thought the same thing about my daughter when I rewatched the video 😂. It is an extra step with the color head. I never found it to troublesome but you could always go to under the lens filters if you wanted to. I always tend to back of the low contrast a tad to compensate for dry down as it tends to mostly muddy up the highlight anyway 👍
Yep, less is usually more with the low contrast. I’m going to look at swapping out my color head for a VC unit.
Really loved this m8 :-) Thank you :-)
Appreciate That 👍
@@DistinctionPhotoLLC I took a photo of a 55 year old Morris Minor car using a pinhole camera on a snowy night a couple of weeks ago. 5 hour exposure.... Should have been longer really.
Negative was quite thin and really high contrast because of the shadows and the street light. I decided to take your advice and split grade the print using your method..... Which is a really good and easy method to use... Thank you. I started at 0 and 5.... The print was a bit muddy. So I used 1 and 5 and nailed the print! Turned out pretty much exactly how I remembered the look of the car and brightness of the night..... And not a lot of paper was used to get it right.
Thank you again for this video and lesson in what is an awesome tool to have :-)
@@IainHC1 Awesome to hear!
What model Saunders LPL are you using? Thanks for the video - it’s great to follow along other people’s process and flow. Always something useful to add the the toolbox.
Agreed, love getting as much inside to others workflow as possible! It is A Saunders / LPL 4550 XLG (VCCE Head) Enlarger.
bravo
👍👍👍
Great explanation of the process, Matthew! Which developer do you normally use for split grade printing? Thank you!
Thanks Serigy! Depends on the paper I am using but Mosty D-72 (Dektol) or Ansco 130 at the moment!
Always interesting to see how other people work in their darkrooms. Great video. Was that an RH Designs timer I saw by the easel? Interested that you don't use the built in timer much. Re your test strip technique, I presume you let the light warm up and then move the card w/o switching off in between to avoid issues with the bulbs taking a bit of time to reach full brightness that would be exacerbated by a series of short exposures? Re dry down, I find it is quite noticeable on fibre paper. We have all made the mistake of judging a test strip in the fix only to find the print way too dark. A quick blast in the microwave oven (lowish power) will try a fibre test strip very fast. It also gets you out of the darkroom to the kitchen where the lighting is likely to be closer to display lighting than the darkroom! I was also interested by your stopping the lens down to f11. Was that just for test strip or is that normal? I ask as by f11 diffraction from the iris diaphragm is taking its toll, quite badly often. Ctein, in his excellent (and highly technical) book 'Post Exposure' (2nd Ed. Focal Press 2000) notes that enlarger lenses (of which he has tested a lot) reach optimum performance 1-2 stops down from fully open for lenses for 35mm printing, and 1 stop down for 120 lenses. This optimum is between sharpness and evenness of coverage. The book contains the results of lens tests for 24 lenses of varying focal lengths. He also stipulates the minimum aperture below which one should not venture if looking for sharp prints. So, for example, the Schneider Componon-S 50mm f2.8 he gives an optimum aperture of 4.8 and a min of f8. Looking down the list, the only lenses with a min recommended (by Ctein) aperture of f11 are large format lenses like a Rodenstock Rodagon 135 or 150 f5.6. Optimum for these two is f8. Might be worth experimenting with...dig out the test negs...
Re split grade. I like it but you would be amazed how heated some folks get about it. Some swear by it, others say it is a myth... I tend to just use it for localised contrast adjustment rather than a whole print as I cannot see, from a logical standpoint, how x of grade 0 plus y of grade 5 is different to z of grade 3 or whatever the equivalent would be. It does make you think carefully about contrast in a print though - you really see it.
Thank you! So many good valid points. Given me lots to think about!
First I agree and usually do not start with split grade printing as I can get the same contrast from a single filter setting as from multiple, I do feel it is powerful especially for manipulating local contrast areas when needed! I had a few people ask about split grade printing and how I use it and that is why I made the video. It is a great tool and if it helps someone make their prints realized then mission accomplished! People get heated about a lot of things the shouldn’t
Bypassing the timer does avoid the factor of enlarger bulb warm up especially on test strips with short bursts can add up for sure. In practice we are surely going to make more tests and not fully rely on the initial test strip but everything helps! Also, that is an RH Timer and it is useful but difficult to calibrate with the Variable contrast constant exposure head that I use. It still works well for starting highlight and contrast!
I do use a microwave (have one in the darkroom) and hairdryer to dry fiber based paper. One of the biggest things I have found to help judge prints is a viewing board to squeegee the prints and an initial dim bulb (about 15 watts) over the area to first turn the lights on. It is difficult indeed to judge the prints after you have been in the dark for a period of time. The low light on initially looking at the print helps your eyes gradually adjust. Looking at a dried print outside of the darkroom in different lighting is important too!
On this lens 105mm Nikkor F-11 has stopped down two stops and in practice, I can not (bye my eyes see any difference in sharpness between F8 and f11 at least up to 16x20 prints. I have the 150 Rodagon for large format and feel the same about that lens Either 1-2 stops looks great to me). I do feel there is merit to what you are saying but if I can not see a difference then I do not stress about it to much.
It takes A LOT for me to be TRULY HAPPY with one of my prints. So at the end of the day if I am happy with a print I have made in the darkroom It is quite an accomplishment! And the thing is a few of my favorites were shot with less than ideal “technical settings” - All the best!
Disregarding local burning with a different filter, you can get the same print by selecting the correct filter for the entire exposure. It seems like twice as much work for the same result as using a single filter.
I agree. I usually print with a grade and then use diff grades for local contrast control. I have gotten several requests on how split grade printing works… hence the video. Also as stated in the video it can be useful for “problem negatives” where you can not figure the right contrast you are looking for. In the end whatever gets you the results you are after is the “right” method in my opinion. Thanks for watching and your input!
Hi enjoyed your tuition what is the name of the audible timer you use that's a good idea instead of switching the lamp on & off thanks
I prefer to expose this way when it makes sense. This timer came with my enlarger and is a LPL ET-500. I also have just a basic graylag digital timer that has the same metronome feature built in!
Thank you very much for the clear explanation!!! I want to try this technique, but I have a question. I also have a VC head (Durst L1200 enlarger with VLS501 head). It has an automatism for adjusting the light intensity when changing the gradient filters, so as when changing from one contrast value to other, the required time for the exposure remains more or less the same. For applying split grade, I guess that it would be better to disable this automatism and let the full power go through the negative, right?.
Your welcome!
That sounds like a cool feature to have! Not sure it would make a lot of difference for split grade printing. Would lengthen/shorten exposure times which could be advantageous for dodging and burning but for overall contrast would work similar either way. I would just use it one way (prob at a constant setting) and be consistent.
Hey, short question. Less about the Video but more about the enlarger, I own a LPL7451 and just recently bought the VCCE module (more convenient) . Before i used the color head. I know the VCCE head has some ND filters in it but my exposuretimes seem to be too long fo my taste now. Before my average exposure time was like 8-14 sec making test strips using 2 or 3 sec. increments.
Since i use the VCCE my times riesed up to 42 seconds in average... that seems a bit long to me. Especially considering that i was only prinitng some 13x18 (cm) prints, so the enlarger is close to the paper. Not to think what will happen if i print 4x5 inch shots on 30x40 cm. Do i miss anything? Do i need to use a different lamp with that VCCE head? I used a vcc filter before on my Dunco 66 and it did not seem to produce such long times. Thanks for your time :-) Greetings from Munich Dennis.
That does not seem right to me. I would take a look at the bulb and make sure it is correct. Could be old and need replacement. Your times should be closer to what they previously were. At least that is my experience.
Is it better to use an ND filter (as shown here), versus changing the f/stop of the enlarger? If so, this would make sense for the same reason it does on a camera. I'm curious about the practical applications of this though, given the short distance.
I think this ultimately depends on the lens being used. If it is a cheaper to mid range lens this will make more of a difference. Nicer lenses will stop down with no loss of quality.
@@DistinctionPhotoLLC Thank you for the quick and informative reply. I am heading into my final year to obtain a BA in Art, with grad school hopefully beyond that. Channels like yours are the only thing that makes it possible to use alternative processes and other advanced techniques, lacking formal training beyond the traditional darkroom.
I'd like to think that the discontinued Nikkor lenses I bought are quality, although I haven't yet compared the EL-Nikkor 50mmF4N or 75mmF4N to a Rodagon or other premium lens.
Is it advisable to wear a reversed base ball cap in the dark room. Does it stop spots or hair lines on the print. I wear a dark grey lab coat but no cap.
Personal preference I guess. Mostly just keeps the hair out of my face and holds pencils, tools, etc… Have never owned a darkroom apron… no real reason just never bought one. Seems like a smart move though.
So I do my split grading slightly differently. I make a grade 2 print and then half that time as a rough timing for gr0 and Hr5. If it’s a 16sec and GD2 then that 8 seconds for Gr0 and 8 for Grade 5. Then play from there.
Cool, so many different ways you can approach this!
@@DistinctionPhotoLLC that’s the beauty of darkroom printing! Thanks for some great videos.
One thing I've noticed in my attempts at split grading is that, at least with my System 7 filters, is that C1/C3 works best. (My lowest is 1; highest is 4.) I don't believe I've ever come across any guides that stray from the typical extreme high/extreme low when split grading. Typically I find my exposures to be equal or just slightly longer with the higher grade as you do here. I'm wondering if I'm just not fully understanding or my filters are perhaps divergent from the norm with regards to color value.
Hey Dane, I am not familiar with the particular filters you are using so it is a bit hard to say.
However, different manufacturers do have different filters for their particular papers. For instance my enlarger has an Ilford and Kodak setting in the head that use different amounts of color filtration and would give different contrasts on the same paper. If you look at Ilford's gel set and Kodak's gel set you can visually see the difference.
The idea with split grading is that with the two extremes you can achieve any contrast with the paper and finer degrees of adjustments in between. It is my strong opinion that you can diverge from this and use whatever means necessary to get the print you are after. This could be printing with a filter 3 and then burning in an area with a 1 filter or vice versa. this is still putting different contrast to different parts of the print which is ultimately where I find the magic in this method!
Odd question but what font do you use for your thumbnails?
No prob… Big Noodle Titling
Sounds silly question but can you print without filters? I just got durst home size enlarger and it doesn’t come with filters
Yes for sure. Without filters most enlargers should print in the middle of the contrast range. You can change contrast with different developers but if you are using variable contrast papers it is easiest to use filters. Ilford sells a pack for under or over the lens for pretty cheap 👍
How do you video record in the darkroom without compromising the print paper?
It’s not easy. I added another brighter safelight for when I record. I max out the Canon R5 iso. Shoot wide open sometimes 1.4 / 1.2 aperature or 2.8 and crank the exposure in premiere.. also flip the display facing inward on the r5 and put a piece of gaffers tape over the viewfinder 👍. Grainy but works
@@DistinctionPhotoLLC it looks good. Thanks for the reply
How come you didn't get this completely overexposed with 12 seconds at f11? Is it because of the special paper used? I don't get it😢
hi , how is paper ?
The paper is great 👍
Respectfully dude, are you aware @ 11.50 you said you were going to do a 4sec (soft) and 5sec (hard) yet you still did a 4sec and a 6sec??
Nope. Was not aware. Sorry about that 🤷🏻♂️
Why not just set your time for 2 seconds and just fire, move, fire, move, fire, move, fire?
Not sure it would make a ton of difference either way but if you do a test of 8 seconds straight vs. 8 - 1 sec bursts depending on your enlarger you will get a different exposure. This might only be seen measuring on a denistometer so mileage may very.
When you start and stop the bulb or light source it has a start up and stop influence. Running it continually is technically more accurate.
For the record I do it both ways.
REALLY??!!!!! Counting seconds in your head?!! You even mentioned the word "metronome" at the beginning of your video, which has been the proper way to time exposures without having to look at a timer for well over half a century, yet you don't use one! It is as if all the books and magazine articles on photography for over a hundred years simply vanished and the makers of youtube videos have no access to any of them... like all the articles completely debunking the ridiculous idea of split-grade printing!
I was using a metronome…
@@DistinctionPhotoLLC There was no metronome sound and if there was one, why count out loud?
@@davidkachelwell I was counting for the video… normally it is just in my head. all my timers have metronomes and that is what I use. I assure you I was not keeping time by my own sense of time… it would be way off.
I can clearly here the beeps in the video.