Print #1: This is a single coated cyanotype with a redevelopment treatment. In comparison to the other prints, this one have lighter, almost brown or yellow tones coming through the blue. These prints all were taken on a very sunny day and only took about 7 to 10 minutes each. In looking at all the prints from this course, I would consider this one the best all around print. Very crisp details and striking contrast. good range of tone and I believe the redevelopement process only benefited the print when the potassium ferricyanide reacted with the tanic acids in the tea.
Print #2: This is a double coated true cyanotype with no further treatment. It was exposed and then fixed and washed thoroughly. This print came out a bit more blury and there for alot of detail was lost. I decided from here that the single coating was pleanty of coverage to get a good accurate print. This print demonstrates great contrast but loses all details, but however manages to keep its range of tones. Once again exposed for 10 minutes.
Print #3: This print was slightly under exposed however it was set out for the same duration of time as the others. The is alot of light areas and yet still pretty decent contrast through out. I chose the reverse treatment for this print which was to first try to bring back some of the darks with the tanic acids of the tea and then a very brief wash in the strong ammonia bath. It is evident however that the duration in the ammonia bath was too long and I ended up losing just as much if not more of my darks. If I were to try this again I would not even let the print sit in the bath. Just in one swift motion it would go in, submerge and come right out.
Print#4: This print was a single coating, exposed for 10 minutes in good sunlight, and then sat in a tea bath and afterwards fixed. Interestingly, I find this print to be most like the double coated true cyanotype. I don't see many brownish tones and very little changed the image. I don't know if a longer bath time would have helped however I feel that once the tanic acids have reacted then that's that. Certainly great contrast, and I have found that to be true for most of these cyanotypes that are correctly exposed.
History:
Essentially this process yields a cyan blue print. This process is easy to produce, and non toxic making it a very popular all around the world for many applications. Most notably it is the predecessor of the blue print. Cyanotypes were to easy to produce and especially on a large scale, that it made replicating drawings much easier. The process itself was founded by John Herschel in 1842. However he regarded it more as a tool for reproduction. Anna Atkins is more acclaimed for taking this process and using it as a photographic process in her making of botanical records.
Process: As stated before, this is a non toxic process that combines two chemical mixtures to create a photosensitive coating. Combining Potassium Ferricyanide which is the blue solution with Ammonium Iron Citrate which acts as an intensifier. Once coated to the paper or surface, it is exposed to light and created a positive print from a negative.
Negative: The negatives we used for these prints were also digital negatives created on photoshop. Using the same formula of inverting the image and so on, the only difference is that the color hue layed over the image was red. I believe this was so we could control the intensity of the photosensitive reaction. I have been choosing action shots as negatives to see the juxtpostion between a very old and what I would consider still process, and combine modern technology or action shots.
Conclusion: I found this to be by far the easiest process thus far, however not the easiest to control. The variables are still very much up in the air and it requires constant adjustment and control. I would like to next time play more with the tea bath and bleaching processes to tweak the images.
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