We really enjoyed working with Rachel to film this series of darkroom technique videos. She is a very talented lady and we were lucky that she agreed to take part in this new series for us. We really hope that you enjoy watching it as much as we enjoyed filming it in our black and white darkroom at ILFORD Photo. Dodging and Burning is a simple technique to try yourself with your own darkroom prints, bringing out details in negatives that are sometimes lost in a straight print. You can make masks from many different materials or just use your hands. (Top tip from Rachel is to stick the mask to a thin wire so your hand don't block the exposure).
We were really please that the talented folks at Tomfoolery were able to get that shot. It really helps people to understand what they should be looking for. Glad you appreciate it:)
Thanks Martin glad you enjoyed it. Rachel is the perfect person to feature in this new series all bout darkroom techniques. We can't wait to share the next one.
This makes me so happy to hear Richard! We wanted to create something that would be a simple, non-scary introduction to various extra techniques in the darkoom so that people were just a bit more confident in getting in there and trying things out 😊📸🎞️ Really appreciate the feedback.
Thank you, Ilford, you are keeping this old type of photography alive. I have never experienced the age of film but it’s amazing finding out how the things we now do digitally were done in the past. I have even recently got myself an improvised dark room, thank you for igniting the love for film photography in me, Ilford.
I come from the digital era and it's astonishing to see how much of the current lexicon is just borrowed from the film days. In spite all the fancy features Capture One provides me, Dodge & Burn is definitely one of the most powerful and expressive tool out there. Amazing video: thanks for sharing!
Rachel ! You are just magical! What a great teacher. It feels like just standing right there next to you absorbing all these little details. My enlarger is on it's way. So I am watching your video for the second time. Hopefully, I will be ready to do some dodging and burning! ))) Thanks so much for the inspiration! ILford... thank you for sharing Rachel here! She is just super! )))
Thanks Bert. You should definitely give darkroom printing a try. There are quite a few community darkrooms about and many of them offer courses for beginners which is a great way to get started. (Or you could build your own)!
After years of shooting film, I just bought an enlarger and am in the process of setting up a darkroom. Incredibly helpful and straightforward tutorial. Looking forward to using Ilford paper!
Happy to say that I've gotten some successful prints with MGIV (expired, but still good) kindly gifted by my local photographic shop. Posted and tagged on Instagram!
Since I am a digital photographer and used dodge and burn with just sliders, it was nice to see how its done in the dark room. Great video and I appreciate that you did not want to sell anything and just inform us.
Thank you Rachel and Ilford; although I have (slowly) returned to the darkroom it's good to watch such a clear example of the process and it reminded me to get some more prints done.
This brings back so many memories of being a darkroom assistant back in the early 80's. Dodging and burning, photo touch-ups. All on Ilford paper using Fp4 and Hp5. Main cameras were Pentax, then one day we got ourselves a Minolta 7000. To us, that was mind blowing that it could autofocus. Haha... Great work.👍
Thanks Paul. We're really excited about this series. We are working on the next videos already and have some of the filming with Rachel completed so it shouldn't be long until the next Darkroom Techniques video is released. Please subscribe if you haven't already to make sure that you don't miss it!
Great video. Weddings are brutal. I've shot many on film years ago. I tried to save time in the darkroom by getting the exposure correct in the camera. I personally would have moved the bride away from the window a smidge or turned her body/right shoulder clockwise knowing that her white gown would be to "hot" close to the window. That scene is high key. It looks as if the final print is to burnt, right shoulder compared to left. Just my opinion. Worked as a photo assistant from 85' to 94' NYC and then a custom b/w manager/printer. Watching this now because my daughter is taking a darkroom class in school and finds it confusing. Ansel Adams was a master at judging a scene and breaking it down into tones or zones while viewing it.
Thanks for the great feedback. We're really excited as we've recently finished filming some more videos on this darkroom printing series with Rachel so make sure that you subscribe if you haven't already:)
You're welcome. Glad you found it useful. Once lockdown is over, we're looking forward to adding some other videos to this series on darkroom printing.
@@Ilfordphoto it's a very good idea, nice to see this kind of content on YT. ( i am pretty new to film printing so it's a good help and not only for me )
I was taught to print in 1978, had a temporary dark room in 1991 (two sessions)! And I’ve just found all my stuff in the attic - glad to see not much is changed I think I might give it a go :-)
i would prefer going down about 2 f-stops so that I don't need to rush and have more control over dodging times. also, when working with larger prints and smaller hot-spots, sticking a circular black card on the tip of a metal wire works best for me. great video btw..
Absolutely! I mention this option (Stopping down) at around the 5.5 min point. If you want a more leisurely process (or need to do more than just one small area), stop down the lens to give you more control :) And yes, hopefully you saw that Ilford pinned the 'Top Tip' that you've also mentioned, about using black card on wire for more precise areas. Hope you're having lots of fun in the darkroom!
Thanks Juan. We will soon be launching a new community darkroom locator on www.ilfordphoto.com which we hope will enable more people to find and access darkrooms in their area. Keep an eye on our social feeds (we are @ilfordphoto) on IG / Twitter and FB as we'll announce here once it is live
Its funny because u will see some people posting comments like people should have the shot right to begin with and not need to edit the photo. The thing they fail to realize is post processing happens in camera to a degree anyways, and editing photos has always been done even before digital. Digital photography just revolutionized the process and gave u even more options.
Have you ever seen some of Ansel Adams straight prints? Images have always been edited to some degree whether in the darkroom or digitally. Have a look at this video with Chuck Kelton ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-xWLw3VKwxxA.html
Great video . I always had a good habit though.. after the print had been in the fix and was going to be inspected........BEFORE putting the white light ON..... AWAYS check the lid was back on the box of photographic paper...... Andrew.....A Press Photographer for 35 yrs.
Amazing. We'd love if if you could share a picture of your darkroom when it's up and running on our online #mydarkroom gallery. www.ilfordphoto.com/gallery?type=9 and also on social media using #mydarkroom. We are trying to share and inspire others to set up their own darkrooms so the more ideas we can show them the better. We are @ilfordphoto on Instagram / Twitter and Facebook
@@Ilfordphoto How can we share to your my darkroom gallery on your website? I have been on your website and created an account, but I don't see anywhere to upload.
Thanks for joining us. Please make sure that you check our some of the other videos on our channel and we'll be adding to this series soon. Do you print much yourself?
I try to always start with a 15 second exposure just so I have more precision in how much is and is not dodged. With a 5 second exposure even half a second off can make a huge difference.
BURNING = an extra partial exposure of the printing paper AFTER the exposure. DODGING = an less partial exposure of the printing paper DURING the exposure The dodging instruments are made of carton. A quarter size of a credit card. In four different forms: SQUARE, TRIANGLE, CIRCLE and ELLIPS. Plus four +/- 30 cm thin rods ( spoke of bicycle wheel, knitting needle, ???) Make with a plier at both ends of the rods an eye or a hook. Tape / glue the SQUARE, TRIANGLE, CIRCLE ad ELLIPS to each end of te rod. Place the DODGERS during the exposure of the paper in the beam of the projection light. Keep it moving smoothly. The size of th projected shadow can be altered by rising or lowering the dodger.
Great video, looking forward to seeing more! I'd like to make one suggestion regarding the dodging that Rachel demonstrated if I may; it can help to use a longer exposure time (by stopping down the enlarger lens) so that instead of 1.5 seconds followed by 3.5 seconds of dodging (hard to time and execute) you extend those times to 3 & 7 seconds or even longer. Just a thought. Keep up the great work.
Hi James, thanks for the feedback and glad you enjoyed watching it. Yes, you're absolutely right! We did include a little section (around the 5.5min mark) called 'Stopping Down' to appear as text on screen and explain that stopping down the aperture will, as you say, help make it a more leisurely process. For anyone using the video as a pause/play tutorial, this is a top tip! Thanks so much for watching. :)
@@rachelbrewster-wright3805 Oh yes, so you did!! I totally missed that. There's some more feedback for future videos then - the text is great and a nice way to add extra info but it's very hard (for humble me at least) to read it and listen at the same time. They were displayed at the same time as you talking sometimes and they were often displayed a bit too quick to read as well. But please don't think I'm being overly negative - the video was excellent, just a way for them to improve. Looking forward to more!
@@rachelbrewster-wright3805 Hi Rachel...a couple of questions, if you have time. Would stopping down, or up alter the depth of field as with a camera lens, or because the enlarger lens is flat that concern in not a consideration. Also, for this print, was a contrast filter used? thanks
Looking forward to this! Hope there will be a video on the different types of masking eventually, how to make them and how each one works etc. Also combination printing. Not enough information online on advanced darkroom techniques and too saturated with the basic techniques like dodging/burning and split grading
Thanks James. By combination do you mean split grade printing or something different? We are intentionally keeping our videos simple to start with to encourage more people to try the various techniques but will be looking at more advanced ones in future. All suggestions greatfully received.
@@Ilfordphoto what I meant by combination printing is combining two or more negatives in the same print for example an overlay. Easier done in Photoshop but it started originally in the darkroom! And also what I meant by masking was things like unsharp masks, fog masks, highlight/shadow masks etc
This is great and hope to see more! Thank you for those videos. One note though, a better audio would be nice. Right now your boom mic picks up a lot of the room tone and sometimes it is difficult to understand what she’s saying. Next time try a lav mic on her/him :)
Thanks for watching Robin and for the feedback. There were a couple of sound issues early on but these will be sorted on future videos. The darkroom at ILFORD Photo that we filmed this in is quite echoey, but now we know we can work with that next time.
Hi, nice information nicely presented (and lovely Britisch Accent too). There was some information as a texted overlay, which was too fast disappearing and at the same time as the narrative, same with the list at the beginning. Probably too much for a novice. So generally I would advise keeping it a bit more longer/relaxed if you want this information to reach the audience. Besides, this will not be seen by the native English speaking audience, only! Generally I would advise to start with f-stop printing once and for all. The concept is so helpful even when the series is targeted at novices primarily. This can be done without a dedicated f-stop timer with certain time combinations, others will need a table to look them up. It is soooo much easier to envisage precisely what the outcome of a certain burn or dodge will be, when comparing it with a properly done (f-stop-printed) test strip!
Thanks so much for your feedback! We're working on creating a series of video tutorials, so it's great to know the kinds of things that people would like to see! In terms of the text overlays and the section for the equipment list, we were conscious of not wanting a lengthy video that people found time consuming to scroll through so decided to create these more as bitesize tutorials for people to play/pause as needed throughout. Thank you for watching and joining in the conversation. Keep on printing in the darkroom!
@@rachelbrewster-wright3805 Thanks for the reply! Unfortunately my Darkroom work is currently impeded by a) construction work in the cellar of our tenant house and b) by my job as a nurse in home care… without pointing to obviously towards the competition, "The Naked Photographer" has great serious of videos on darkroom work (but not only) which are quite good on some topics, albeit more specialized/advanced. The idea to create a library of short basic/standard but comprehensive videos to start with is really good. My background to darkroom printing goes back to the late 80ies and early 90ies (when this was the only available venue) and restarting in say 2015 was comparably easy. I do believe reading a good book on darkroom work is helpful too. Perhaps point to some good standard primers (Like the Kodak series) nowadays available cheaply second hand.
Great video! My only comment is that, having done extensive darkroom work, 5 sec is much too short an exposure time to properly control the dodging and burning process of a print. Stopping down the lens to achieve an18 to 20 sec exposure would be much easier to deal with.
Thanks for watching Norbert. We appreciate that different people will use different techniques and know that often depending on the image there can be multiple timings over one print. Our aim with these videos is to help people have the confidence to progress with their darkroom printing journey but also to keep it as simple as possible. Stopping down to increase the exposure time is a great tip - Thank you!
Hi Norbert, Yes, you're absolutely right! We did include a little section (around the 5.5min mark) called 'Stopping Down' to appear as text on screen and explain that stopping down the aperture will, as you say, help make it a more leisurely process. For anyone using the video as a pause/play tutorial, this is a top tip! Thanks so much for watching and for the feedback. :)
I'm a beginner on darkroom print and I want to ask... Wouldn't it be easier to make this technique stopping down the lens which gives you more exposure time to make the dodge & burn more carefully and preciselly?
Absolutely! I mention this option at around the 5.5 min point. If you want a more leisurely process (or need to do more than just one small area), stop down the lens to give you more control :) Hope you're having lots of fun in the darkroom!
Love this!! Can you do a breakdown of your printer papers? I shoot solely on ilford film and print on ilford papers in my business now so this is awesome!
Glad you enjoyed it :) Try this video (number 3 in our Darkroom Guides series with Rachel) ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-FIh6aEFCX4A.html which looks at our different papers. Our most recent video (number 7) looks at our FB papers.
nice series, but can you PLEASE show us some 4x5" & 5x7" sheet film negative developing and printing, as everyone shows us 35 mm format prints, so it has been done to death, and if you are interested in Large format cameras, knowing what kind of gear to get is important, as it is NOT just the regular 35mm gear.
@@Ilfordphoto yes, but there is also the BTZS film tubes, and other hanging tank options too, but as a bonus this also gives you a chance to show us what the films actually look like, in LF size, so we can choose the film we want to get the 'look' we are after, or conversely, to see what look is possible with each film, contrast, push/pull and toning abillities, so we can work with the stock better.
Great video, I am just getting into film photography and have just purchased a few rolls of 35mm hp5. I have the opportunity to buy a durst Da900 enlarger, which is a condenser type. I have just come across an article that the development time in the tank should be less than if you were developing for diffuser enlarger. I was considering microphen as the developer. I would really appreciate some advice
Very good! Finally something from Ilford. 👌🏼 I got myself a nice enlarger and I am planning to start printing my self. I tried it once, and I am considering to use Ilford products, but I prefer mate paper. Any recommendation from you guys?
Hi Angelo. I know it's been a while but we promise the next few videos will be out quicker. Congratulations on getting yourself an enlarger. We'd love to see a picture of your darkroom if you're happy to share on our website www.ilfordphoto.com/gallery?type=9 In regards to paper, i'd suggest starting with RC although their isn't a Matt surface available, you may find the Satin is a happy compromise. Once you are comfortable printing then our MULTIGRADE FB darkroom paper is available in a Matt finish and our FB Warmtone in a semi-matt. We also have the MULTIGRADE Art 300 which is a cotton rag base and very soft eggshell sheen which you may like. Please let us know how you get on and share some images with us.
Hi @@Ilfordphoto, thank you for your recommendation. I have just uploaded a photo of my darkroom to your website. I decided to go with a pack of glossy paper and a pack of pearl paper to see the difference. Glossy paper is really not my thing, but the pearl paper is beautiful. That will be my paper from now on. You should make a series of episodes about the differences between the papers you have and the techniques to enlarge and print with the different papers/types of papers you have. Now I need to control the whole process and then learning about contrast. This time because I had so much equipment to buy, I couldn't afford the set of under the lens filters you have, but that's the next thing, as I am very interested in learning split contrast technique.
Hi @@rachelbrewster-wright3805, I really enjoyed to enlarge photos this last weekend. Got very nice results. Now I need to keep on learning and especially how to control the whole procedure. If you are doing more episodes with Ilford, consider doing some episodes about contrast and especially about the split contrast technique.
I'm a newb to all of this. I knew that we are to use the grain enlarger to focus on the grain for optimal focus. However, in my limited experience, I had yet to see the grain, and this video did an excellent job of focusing on that aspect...no pun intended. Is it possible that my use of 100 ASA film; exclusively, has hindered my ability to see the grain? I now know better what I'm looking for.
Hi. It's great to hear that you found this helpful. Yes, you are correct that it is harder to find the grain on a 100 speed film opposed to a 400. Generally the slower the film, the finer the grain. try shooting some DELTA3200 if you want to make it as easy as possible to spot the grain.
The tray with the stopbath is too close to the tray with the developer. If possible place a "wall" in between to avoid backsplashes into the developer A carton (tray size) ; make in the middle of the lengthside a 4 inch cut .Fold one half to the right and the other to the left. Place the two half under the trays. The separation wall is finished.
Thanks for your feedback Jaco. We have never found the need for this separation as long as you always move dev - stop - fix but it may be useful for some:)
The way we normally describe ensure you get your negative in correctly is to hold the strip so you can read the edge numbers, then turn it around (not over) so the numbers are further away from you. It's shown more clearly in this video ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-O31OZgnCoAw.html
@@Ilfordphoto yes, I get it, as it is uncommon thesedays, where in digital not much "cleaning" can be done, in fear of scratching the sensors, so these tools are only seen in old films about this older film technology (lf cameras, and their film holders, which needed cleaning); I didn't use the word 'puffer' , although appropriate, as I have Autism, it gives me connatations of a womans perfume sprayer, with the bulb on the end, like in old movies, or the "medical tool" used by Asthmatics to administer their meds, but fair call, esp. in the days of "security"- we don't want the sensors taking these words the wrong way😉.
I really like the style of this video. Just one thing though... Rachel refers to having dodged and burned, but we only see her dodging the print. Or did I miss the burning in?
I have used my developer already for a few sessions , I made the mix about 6 weeks ago and store it in a bottle. I haven't noticed any problems developing ? Please advise why you mention that the developer should be used the same day ?
Developers oxidize and their effectiveness is reduced, this doesn't mean that you need to toss it. You can use it until you notice your blacks starting to lose their deep nature and your prints take longer to completely develop. At that point you can do one of two things: 1 - toss it and make new, 2-toss some fresh un-dilute developer into your old developer and keep using it. I use method 2 and enjoy the slightly softer midtones it gives, either way make your own tests and find what works for you. Good luck
Hi Stefaan. We never recommend keeping working strength MULTIGRADE developer for more than 24 hours even in a tightly capped bottle. More information can be found on the technical data sheet www.ilfordphoto.com/amfile/file/download/file/1828/product/709/
There's no reason not to use an enlarger with a colour head. You can use b&w filters as usual or dial in the correct contrast depending on which grade you require. www.ilfordphoto.com/amfile/file/download/file/1824/product/1706/
So I'm seeing ppl print with 5-6sec exposures in f/8 while I need around 30s with the same aperture on my enlarger. Am I doing something wrong? Do I maybe need a brighter lamp?
Hi Frank, it could depend on a variety of things. including the lamp / density of your negative / what filters you are using. If it works for you then don't worry.
Couldn't you make a test print and then cut out the area you want to burn or Dodge to make a super precise mask? I feel like this would dodge pun intended the issue of the feathering on the edge
Hello Ilford Photo! I just want to ask if it's safe to apply a fixative spray (like the Grumbacher fixative) on to a Photographic paper? Let's say after drying period just before mounting and framing process.
Spray mounts can interact with fiber based papers so we would recommend testing before using. You should be din with RC papers. For archival purposes you are better using dry mount tissue.