increase gloss on photo papers

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is there a way i can increase the gloss on a photo paper? i use graded Oriental seagull G and wondered if there was something i could soak them in that would add a little heavier gloss (aside from marine varnish). glyceryn?

what kind of paper did brett weston use? when he was aiming for super gloss, did he use some kind of solutuion for the paper?

thanks!!!

-- patrick locke (patricklocke@yahoo.com), March 25, 2002

Answers

We used to dry prints face down on a ferrotype (sp?) plate to give them a super gloss. It was a real pain but that is the way many expected prints were to look. I don't think glycern will help with the gloss but it used to be the basic ingredient in the flattening solution the many used.

-- Joe Miller (jmmiller@poka.com), March 25, 2002.

I believe that Brett Weston used Oriental Seagull G paper (among others). Based on what I have read, and upon seeing many of his images in galleries and museums, I believe that he dried them “normally” and did not use a ferrotype plate. As noted above, some people used a ferrotype plate about 35 years ago, and the glycerin was needed to get consistent contact with the metal plate. I doubt if the glycerin itself (without the ferrotype plate) increases gloss, but I am not 100% sure. Having tried ferrotype drying many years ago with the infamous Premier dryers, its much more trouble than it's worth (I had many “failures”) to do this unless you have a very expensive automated ferrotype drying machine.

-- Michael Feldman (mfeldman@qwest.net), March 25, 2002.

Hardening the emulsion and applying modest heat helps to get a nicer gloss. There is no need to ferrotye. I suggest hardening after fixing and washing, since this will not prolong the washing times. Use a hardener based on potassiumaluminiumsulfate (40g to 100g in 1 Liter is the minimal version of a hardening solution which non the less works well -- Potassiumchromiumsulfate will work too) and give it a 10 minute wash to remove the solution from the paper base. Formaldehyde hardeners are even more effective, but I cannot suggest them due to health risks. Use a drying press and put the prints on face up -- towards the cloth! Apply modest heat until they are dry. Even without the heat the hardened emulsion will have significantly more gloss and shine, but the heat helps.

-- Volker Schier (Volker.Schier@fen-net.de), March 25, 2002.

Try (carefully!) steaming the print.

-- Jim Kish (jim@kishbike.com), March 26, 2002.

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