Black and White photo printing

Recently enrolled in an introduction to photographic medium course in college, I am finding it difficult to get correct borders during the enlargement process. Does anyone have any tips on using the easel and getting even borders around prints?

I had a cheap easel that was only good for 8x10 prints with two adjustable blades. Invariably I would place the photo paper slightly crooked in it. When I finally bought a large Saunders easel with four blades I rarely had any problems.

As noted above . . . It largely depends on the easel. Interestingly, the best borders are created with the cheapest and most expensive ones . . . It's the ones in the middle that cause the most problems.

 

Of course, the need for even borders is really dependent on the display that you plan for the print.

If you require borders you can easily make your own easels with matte board and duct tape for the hinge. Cut the board the size of your paper, and cut the window to deliver the borders you want. Use blue painters tape to center the gadget on the enlarger base. An outfit called Airequipt (sp) used to make a frame with 8x10 on one side, 3 sizes from wallet to 5x7 (I think) on the other. There also used to be a company than made metal single sized frames that you just slipped the paper into -- they were painted a dull yellow -- can't recall the MFR name, The old stuff was pretty durable, and nowadays, when found is cheap. Another approach is to print borderless and create the border when mounting. Good luck, have fun!

Sandy, in think the yellow slip in easel was 'Speed Easel'

Thanks, Gary,I think that's it.

I bought my Saunders 4-bladed 11x14 easel when I was taking a darkroom class and didn't even have my own darkroom. It was one of the best investments I've made, darkroom-wise. One thing I've done is to take a piece of photo paper (even the back of a contact sheet) and mark on it where I want the borders with a sharpie, then put it in the easel and see where I have to put the blades to get those edges. Each type of easel has slightly different ways of securing the paper to hold it, so it's worth experimenting with the one you're using to find where the best spot is. I also don't always worry that much about the edges because I cut my own mats and do them so they cover the border anyway.

I cannot thank you all enough! It is a little intimidating while in the dark trying to get the borders perfect. We are graded on the borders, so it is extremely important. Thank you all very much for your advise.

If you require borders you can easily make your own easels with matte board and duct tape for the hinge. Cut the board the size of your paper, and cut the window to deliver the borders you want. Use blue painters tape to center the gadget on the enlarger base. An outfit called Airequipt (sp) used to make a frame with 8x10 on one side, 3 sizes from wallet to 5x7 (I think) on the other. There also used to be a company than made metal single sized frames that you just slipped the paper into -- they were painted a dull yellow -- can't recall the MFR name, The old stuff was pretty durable, and nowadays, when found is cheap. Another approach is to print borderless and create the border when mounting. Good luck, have fun!

 

Sandy, somewhere in my boxes that hold all of the darkroom stuff I have an interesting easel. Made of metal, on one side it clamshell's to hold an 8x10. Flip it over, and it has several different aperatures--5x7, wallet, and some other odd size.

 

For the most part, Saunders has always worked for me. I just pulled out the 11x14 and the 16x21 easels. Both have alignment slots for common paper sizes--troughs that have a red delineation mark at the top of them. I have also made the alignment "ells" out of thin shirtboard to accommodate both common and off-size prints. One needs to hold the blades tight on the right and bottom to prevent light bleed, but the strategy works well.

Papa Tango -- probably the same thing, in similar boxes piled in our box room. I finally got a work surface for the basement bathroom, no excuse now but pure sloth for not setting up a minimal darkroom! Digital is just too dam' easy!

Does anyone have any tips on using the easel and getting even borders around prints?

We are talking about borders of similar width? - Easy! - I assume you are using a budged easel with a fixed "L" and 2 moving borders? - Take a waste print you are unhappy with, and a sharpie. Flip your print face down into the easel with moving parts way off, take sharpie and use the easel's "L" as rulers to draw along. Open easel, spin print 180° and repeat. Eyeball your 4 lines if they are even. - If not your easel is too hard to load precisely. - If they are even adjust the two moving parts according to your lines.

If nobody else uses that easel and you are printing 2 different paper sizes I would use adhesive tape to mark the upper and lower stop for the moving parts. Checking if thea re really a 90° angle might make sense. you could do so with the easel opened and abusing your waste print as a makeshift set square. - If others use the same gear on different days keep the waste print with lines and use it everytime before you'll print.

This thread got me to thinking about darkrooms--and the fearsome debate I have been tossing about for the last few years. So as not to totally hijack this thread--my cogitations on the matter are here (click on line for link):

 

To Darkroom or Not Darkroom--That is the Question!

They are speed-ez-els:

 

3 Vintage Ganz Speed Ezels - 5 X 7, 3-1/2 X 5 & 2-1/4 X 3-1/2 Wallet With Boxes | eBay

 

I have an 8x10 that I got from Goodwill. Otherwise, they are pretty expensive new.

Hello friend,

 

You have started really a nice course and practice makes a man perfect so don't worry about it. When you practice more then it's not a difficult task.

As long as the easel blades cover some of the paper you will get a white border. The paper only gets an image (or any mark) if it sees the light. the problem when making full frame prints from 35mm on 8X10 paper is that the aspect ratio is different 4:5 (8:10) rather than 3:2 (36:24). That's why you have one thick and one thin border. Of course, what most people do is cut the paper after the print has dried so that it is easy to make the border even on all sides.

I used to use a fixed, but not developed sheet of paper as a focus aid. (You could also use the back of a gash print for the same thing) If you make several you can actually draw your desired mask position with a fine sharpie. All you'd do then is slide the easel clamps & arms to fit the drawn lines.

One easel I used to have, had the part the holds the paper as you close it down, just a little loose.

 

It would sometimes move just as you closed the easel, and move the paper.

 

But otherwise, if you need really close borders, cut them after drying.