I've been wanting to do color large format for awhile. When there were photo labs around the corner, it wasn't hard to do a E-6 process in a day or two. Now that process has gotten expensive and if you're doing sheet film, its even more pain. So my solution... Polaroid! well technically, it should be called "instant film" since Polaroid is trademarked term. I'm using Fuji FP 100c45.
But here's the twist. I wanted a different look. If I want true colors, I wouldn't bother with the cost of 2 bucks per shot. I also was fascinated with some surface texture that I saw on polaroids.
I recently came across some sites that talks about turning a polaroid into negatives. Its true that Polariod years ago did have those positive/negative film, but they've discontinued all instant film a couple of years ago.
The process is simple. you take bleach and take off the black stuff on the part that you throw away. Once the black part is off, you have a negative! Its ironic that now I throw away the print and keep the gooey messy part.
The greenish stain was an accident. its the polaroid gooey stuff. Its in the emulsion so it will not wash off. The scan of the negative is so much sharper than the print. The reason being the negative part is the area where the light hits.
Claude Moore Park. Linhof Technica III with Fujinon 150mm 5.6 lens. Scanned using Epson V750 and colors worked in PS and LightRoom.
This was a lot of fun. There are more experiments that I need to do. but overall I'm happy with the results!
So I dont really understand all of these technical stuff but the images are sensational Dan :-) I wanna try this too...so much to learn!
ReplyDeleteCould you give me the details?
ReplyDeleteI have been trying to save the negatives, but they never seem to dry.
Do I wash them in water first, then soak in bleach?
How long?
This is very intriguing. Nice work!
Hi Mandy,
ReplyDeleteAlright, this is what you do. First, this process only works with Fuji FP 100c as far as I know. The idea is to get rid of the black stuff so you can reveal the neg. There is no "developing" here.
After taking the exposure, I do not peel off the print after 90 sec like you're supposed to. The reason is that in the field, there is really no way to keep the neg part from touching and smearing the green stuff (this does effect the image). I've tested upto 2 hrs with the print and neg not being peeled apart with no ill effects. The print came out fine too.
After you come back home, you can peel the print off and peel off all that paper so all you have is the neg. let it dry.
Take the neg and place face down(the part that was hugging the print) onto a piece of glass that is larger than the neg. I develop 2 4x5's at a time so my glass pane is like 10x20in.
Once face down, take scotch tape and tape around the edges to the glass. I try to just cover about 1/8 inch all around. What this does is it seals and protects the "neg side" from bleach seepage.
Once done, take some bleach. This is the key here. USE NON SPLASH BLEACH. This make the process much quicker and less messy. you can use regular bleach but then you'll have to use paper towel to uniformly cover the neg since the liquid is more watery. The non splash one is thicker so its more manageable and a lot quicker. Its worth the extra 75 cents.
So you take like two table spoon full and cover the neg. I use my fingers (gasp!) Wait about about a minute and start testing smmosh around with your finger to see if the black stuff is starting to come off. Its hard to see sometimes. Light source from underneath will work nicely. But after a few, you'll know when its ready (about a minute or two). By the way old bleach loses strength, so time may vary.
Now, wash the neg (still on the glass) with water. if you still see some black spots, bleach it again.
take the tape off (doesn't have to be dry) and free the neg from the glass.
Now you have to wash the neg side(the side that didn't get stripped off). This takes time. I use small trickling running water with my hands. I'm going to experiment with some acidic solution like diluted vinegar, stop bath or lemonade so I don't have to stand in front of the sink listening to my wife talking about water shortage problem. The green stuff is very alkaline, so acid will neutralize it. Highschool Chem remember?
I guess you can use photo-flo or something so it dries nicely. (tiny drop of dish detergent diluted in water does the same thing I think).
Then hang dry. That's it. Give it a try.
Don't use vinegar to accelerate the washing process like I mentioned... it fades the image.
ReplyDeleteAwesome photos! Is there a way to get negatives from non peel apart polaroid film? Like spectra film or time-zero? I want to make some gum bichromate prints! If you know of anything place let me know! Again, beautiful photos!
ReplyDelete