UCSB - art120 - COLOR PRINT PROCESSOR GUIDE

• If you don't know something ask. [Joel Sherman is the photo/print technician - his office is in Print upstairs - arts2235].

• At the beginning of a print session, if the machine is not on, put ALL four switches on the front of the machine to the ON position and put the water valve (GRAY main valve on the lower side of the machine) to the horizontal position to fill.

• KNOCK LOUD AND WAIT before you enter the print processor feed room.

• ALWAYS CUT paper for test strips, NEVER TEAR paper.

• Do not feed in any test strip less than 8 inches by 5 inches.

• Paper feeds into processor face-up. Wait five seconds after paper has left the feed tray before you put through another sheet. 'Parallel' feeding [side-by-side] is OK, with no overlaps.

• At the end of each printing session - check if you are the last user - turn the gray water valve at the side of the processor down to dump the water. [ONLY THE MAIN GRAY VALVE] . Turn off the machine.

• Leave processor top off at the end of the day.

• Note how much chemistry is in the feed tanks of the processor and leave a note for the technician if it is getting low.

• DO NOT RUN THE MACHINE: WITHOUT PROPER FLUIDS; WITHOUT PROPER INSTRUCTION; IF YOU ARE NOT ENROLLED IN A PHOTO OR HONORS CLASS.

PRINTING FROM COLOR NEGATIVES

• Acclimate yourself to the darkroom in the light before starting to print with the lights AND SAFELIGHT off.

• The paper is Kodak RA4, any surface (N is Matte, F is glossy) proof sheets are made the normal way. Different contrasts are Portra, Supra and Ultra. Portra is the softest-Ultra is the strongest in contrast.

• Put your negative in the negative carrier and in the enlarger. Always shiny side up.

• To focus, set your color filter pack on WHITE, open lens to maximum light, adjust focus.

• Set your color filter pack to 40 Magenta/50 Yellow/ZERO Cyan and change lamp intensity from WHITE to HIGH
  (FORGET THIS STEP AND YOU ARE PRINTING WITHOUT A FILTER).

• We will refer to all color filter packs by using the MAGENTA FIRST/YELLOW SECOND/CYAN [ONLY IF NECESSARY] guide.

• Stop down enlarger lens and make a test strip, emulsion side up.

• Feed into the print processor emulsion side up. Don't put in tests smaller than 5"x8". Wait about 10 seconds after the tail of the preceding print goes through.

• EVALUATE PRINT: Think of your filter pack as holding back color - absorbing it.
  If the print is too green: remove some magenta to allow more magenta into the print to neutralize the green. If it is too blue: remove some yellow to allow more yellow in to neutralize the blue. If it is too red: add some Magenta and Yellow... and so on [see below 1 - 6].

• JUDGE THE PRINT ONLY UNDER PROPER [DAY]LIGHT CONDITIONS. Use print viewing filters to assist you if necessary. Remember a correction of a point or two in filter is a small change, 5-10 points is a moderate change and 10-20 points is a pretty extreme change.

• Make first tests when there is someone around to help you evaluate your results.

  1. If the PRINT is too RED, add Red (equal parts of Magenta and Yellow filtration) to the pack.

  2. If the PRINT is too MAGENTA, add Magenta to the filter pack.

  3. If the PRINT is too YELLOW, add Yellow to the filter pack.

  4. If the PRINT is too CYAN, subtract Red (equal parts Magenta and Yellow filtration) from the pack.

  5. If the PRINT is too GREEN, subtract Magenta from the pack.

  6. If the PRINT is too BLUE, subtract Yellow from the pack.