Bromide Printing and Enlarging / A Practical Guide to the Making of Bromide Prints by Contact and Bromide Enlarging by Daylight and Artificial Light, With the Toning of Bromide Prints and Enlargements

by John A. Tennant

What is bromide paper? It is simply paper coated with gelatino-bromide of silver emulsion, similar to that which, when coated on glass or other transparent support, forms the familiar dry-plate or film used in negative-making. The emulsion used in making bromide paper, however, is less rapid (less sensitive) than that used in the manufacture of plates or films of ordinary rapidity; hence bromide paper may be manipulated with more abundant light than would be safe with plates. It is used for making prints by contact with a negative in the ordinary printing frame, and as the simplest means for obtaining enlarged prints from small negatives. Sometimes bromide paper is spoken of as a development paper, because the picture-image does not print out during exposure, but requires to be developed, as in negative-making. The preparation of the paper is beyond the skill and equipment of the average photographer, but it may be readily obtained from dealers in photographic supplies.

What are the practical advantages of bromide paper? In the first place, it renders the photographer independent of daylight and weather as far as making prints is concerned. It has excellent “keeping” qualities, i.e., it does not spoil or deteriorate as readily as other printing papers, even when stored without special care or precaution. Its manipulation is extremely simple, and closely resembles the development of a negative. It does not require a special sort of negative, but is adapted to give good prints from negatives widely different in quality. It is obtainable in any desired size, and with a great variety of surfaces, from extreme gloss to that of rough drawing paper. It offers great latitude in exposure and development, and yields, even in the hands of the novice, a greater percentage of good prints than any other printing paper in the market. It offers a range of tone from deepest black to the most delicate of platinotype grays, which may be modified to give a fair variety of color effects where this is desirable. It affords a simple means of making enlargements without the necessity of an enlarged negative. It gives us a ready means of producing many prints in a very short time, or, if desired, we may make a proof or enlargement from the negative fresh from the washing tray. And, finally, if we do our work faithfully and well, it will give us permanent prints.

The bromide papers available in this country at present are confined to those of the Eastman Kodak Company, the Defender Photo Supply Company and J. L. Lewis, the last handling English papers only. Better papers could not be desired. Broadly speaking, all bromide papers are made in a few well-defined varieties; in considering the manipulation of the papers made by a single firm, therefore, we practically cover all the papers in the market. As a matter of convenience, then, we will glance over the different varieties of bromide paper available, as represented by the Eastman papers, with the understanding that what is said of any one variety is generally applicable to papers of the same sort put out by other manufacturers.

First we have the Standard or ordinary bromide paper made for general use. This comes in five different weights: A, a thin paper with smooth surface, useful where detail is desirable; B, a heavier paper with smooth surface, for large prints or for illustration purposes; and C, a still heavier paper with a rough surface for broad effects and prints of large size. BB, heavy smooth double weight; CC, heavy, rough, double weight. Each of these varieties may be had in two grades, according to the negative in hand or the effect desired in the print, viz.: hard, for use with soft negatives where we desire to get vigor or contrast in the print, and soft, for use with hard negatives where softness of effect is desired in the print. For general use the soft grade is preferable, although it is advisable to have a supply of the hard paper at hand as useful in certain classes of work. The tones obtainable on the Standard paper range to pure black, and are acceptable for ordinary purposes. For pictorial work or special effects other papers are preferable.

Platino-Bromide paper gives delicate platinotype tones, and where negative, paper and manipulation are in harmony, the prints obtained on this paper will be indistinguishable from good platinotypes in quality and attractiveness. This paper comes in two weights, Platino A, a thin paper suitable for small prints, and having a smooth surface useful for detail-giving; and Platino B, a heavy paper with rough surface, peculiarly suited for large contact prints or enlargements. Both varieties are obtainable in hard or soft grades, characterized as above. Matte Enamel, medium weight; Enameled, medium weight; Velvet, medium weight.

Royal Bromide is a capital paper in its proper place, i.e., for prints not smaller than 8 × 10 inches, and then only when breadth of effect is desired in the picture. It is a very heavy cream-colored paper, rough in texture, and giving black tones by development, but designed to give sepia or brown tones on a tinted ground by subsequent toning with a bath of hypo and alum. This paper, also, may be had in two grades for hard or soft effects; it is further adapted for being printed on through silk or bolting cloth, this modification adding to the effect of breadth ordinarily given by the paper itself. I have seen prints on this paper which were altogether pleasing, but subject and negative should be carefully considered in its use. Rough Buff papers are very similar in character. Monox Bromide, made by the Defender Photo Supply Company, is obtainable in six surfaces; No. 3, Monox Rough; No. 4, Monox Gloss; No. 5, Monox Matte; No. 6, Monox Lustre; No. 7, Monox Buff, heavy rough.

The Barnet bromide papers, comprising ten different varieties, differing in weight and surface texture but very similar to the kinds already described, are imported by J. L. Lewis, New York.

As a suggestion to the reader desiring to have at hand a stock of bromide papers, I would advise Platino A, or a similar soft paper for prints under 5 × 7 inches; Matte-Enamel for soft effects, or a similar paper, as an alternative; Platino C and Royal Bromide for soft effects, or similar papers, for prints 8 × 10 inches or larger, and for enlargements. To these might be added a package of Standard B, and another of one of the above varieties for hard effects, to complete a supply for general purposes. The beginner, however, will do well to avoid the indiscriminate use of several varieties of paper, although he is advised to get information of all the different varieties in the market. It is better to select that variety which is best suited to the general character of one’s negatives and work, and to master that before changing to another. It is true that an expert can get more good prints on bromide paper, from a given number of bad negatives, than another expert can get with the same negatives and any other printing paper; but it is also true that for the best results on bromide paper the variety of paper used should be suitable for the negative. It will be found, however, that this word “suitable” covers, in bromide printing, a much wider range than is offered by many printing papers. In fact there are only two sorts of negatives which will not yield desirable prints on bromide paper: first, an exceedingly weak, thin negative lacking in contrast and altogether flat; and second, a very dense negative in which the contrasts are hopelessly emphatic. Even in such cases, however, it may be possible to modify the negatives and so get presentable prints.

The ideal negative for contact printing on bromide paper is one without excessive contrasts on the one hand, and without excessive flatness on the other. A moderately strong negative, such as will require from three to five minutes in the sunlight with a print out paper, fairly describes it. In other words, the negative should be fully exposed and so developed that there is a fair amount of density in the shadows. I have never been able, with bromide paper, to get the detail in the shadows of under-exposed negatives, such as we see in a good print made on glossy printout paper. For this reason the use of bromide papers with under-exposed negatives is not advisable. But there are a great many negatives which, while unsuitable as they come from the drying rack, can be easily adapted to the process by slight modifications. A very dense negative, for instance, may be reduced either with the ferricyanide of potash or persulphate of ammonia reducer; and a thin negative with proper graduations can frequently be intensified to advantage in the print. While, as has been said, there is great latitude in the matter of the negative, this latitude should only be availed of when necessary. Local reduction or intensification of the negative is seldom necessary, as better results can usually be obtained with bromide paper by dodging in the printing.