Liquid emulsion on paper

Hi,

 

I have just started learning how to use liquid emulsion and was wondering if someone could help me out. First of all, is there any particular suggestion as to how I can best avoid airbubbles forming. Also, after I develope my print and let it dry, the paper always curles all over the place and it is impossible to get it to dry nice and flat. Apart from laying a large weight over my print when it dries and hoping that it will cause the paper to flatten, can anyone out there offer any advise please? I am currently experimenting with Aquarelle Arches (cold pressed) and Liquid Light (Rockland).

Thanks,

 

Mark

Mark, I've not used the stuff, but I was wondering- is it really intended for use on paper? Or why not just use photo paper if the end result is a picture on paper? On the curl issue, I have seen several posts related to negatives curling, and the main response seems to have been the "large weight" method!

I don't know what coating method you are using but, in other alt processes, when there is difficulty with coating the practitioner often adds a drop or two of dilute Tween-20. I use it at 5% for both rod and brush coating. You might also find you like a hot pressed paper better than the cold.

 

To assist with drying flat, I suggest you get a package of plastic clothesepins and attach four or five to each end of the paper. This isn't a perfect solution, but is better than nothing.

Double coating: Coat the backside of the paper with neutral gelatine. This will dry at the same rate as the emulsion, so it won't curl (as much).

I print on Arches quite a lot. In answer to a previous poster who asked "why not just use regular photo paper", the answer is texture, friend. Handmade and rag papers offer a wide variety of textures not offered by standard photo papers.

 

In answer to your question: I tape the Arches sheet to a backing board before I coat, then remove the tape when it dries. No buckling of the paper.

 

Regarding bubbles, I think it's a combination of temperature and technique. It takes a while to get the hang of coating your own paper but you will get the hang of it.

 

I recommend a book called "Silver Gelatin" (as usual I don't know the author) which is an indispensible reference for hand coating.

 

Cheers

 

Colm

Thank you all very much for your comments and suggestions.

 

Mark

I think Colm has said everything important. I use Arches and Fabriano papers and Liquid Light. To avoid bubbles, it's important to keep the gelatin always warm. I use a warm water bath around the gelatin recipient. Some coating methods will be better than others. One

option for even coating is to pre-coat the paper with gelatin.

(ca. 44g of food gelatin/l of water). Dip the paper and move it

around for rougly a minute. Dry it out and make it flat (I use books).

 

Taping the paper on the table will avoid curling. After

developing/toning I hang the print to dry. Before it's completely dry, I place the print over a thin absorvent (acid-free) material, under a couple of matts and lots of big books on top of it.