Building the Gum Print

Another color layer was printed each new gum print this morning, respectively. A Phthalo Blue, about the color of a clear blue sky, if mixed correctly, was added to the Old Jerome Hotel print, with the design of adding to the orange/yellow shades left from the earlier two coats, leaving brown/green. The trickier part to this image is the sky. The idea is leaving a blue sky, without the orange or yellow coloring. This is important being subtractive color theory, which would then leave the sky brown and green in places. This is where the print time is important. The sky is somewhere in the zone 6-7 area, and I have been keeping the print times down to 10 minutes for the two earlier colors, and 5 minutes for the black run. This is to keep those colors within a predictable tonal range. The float time is the second tool you have to remove the gum from zone 8 downwards, one tonal range at a time. Reverse of silver gelatin printing considerations.

The image is printing in well so far. The details and texture is beginning to make headway, adding more each layer. I keep away from heavy coating, as in a lot of pigment per layer. This is contrary to arriving at any detail or texture, just dark colors overlain one another. Not my type of gum printing. When the gum print is finished, it should be basically photo quality, as far as tonal separation and detail is concerned. To achieve that necessitates many thin layers of color, stacked deep enough to add up to a rich depth in the image, leaving detail and hopefully a textural feel. This isn't theory, completely. I have gum prints to back this up, although the gums I'm printing at this time far exceed what I was able to print thirty years ago. Back then I couldn't afford film for the Burke & James 5x7 so cut up sheets of Kodak or Ilford bromide grade 2 printing paper, rated at 6ASA (back then) through a 300mm enlarger lens. No shutter of course, so I used a chemical bottle lid, which fit the lens nicely, and set up shots that needed 3-5 seconds, at the least. I still have a good stack of such negatives, as well a few of the gums I printed at the time. The last print I made back then is made up of thirteen color layers, with some localized work as well. I should also note that paper negatives contact print just as well as a film negative. Slightly slower print time, that's all.

Paper used; Arches 140# Hot Press
Pre-shrunk @ 120 degs ~ 
2 coats of sizing ~ Knox Gelatin   2 1/2% solution @ 110 degs
13 printed color layers

Gum Dichromate Print
"The Quiet Pond" ~ 5"x7" ~ Unique
Eugene, Oregon