It is something I did when I worked at a printer when doing an apprenticeship in the late 80’s. I remember using the litho film to enlarge a image onto it and then masking the litho to include titles and the like. We did this with colour transparencies with filters to split the image into four colour for printing. Yes, complex but it was something I loved doing.
Good info for dodging ideas, I use a hole punch on a 5x7 failed paper test for burning. I like the film exposure idea with different densities, seems a lot more favorable for creating masks with a bit more control than light vs no light. Creating various shapes on 4x5 film is probably the best way to go, with trees and objects with hard round edges. I was thinking of making an enlarging head with a built in LCD screen that you could dodge and burn at the same time with various colors for the multigrade papers and it would making printing much more controlled and consistent.
I looked at doing a built-in LCD screen for the LED enlarger head I built, but I couldn't find a clear LCD screen at a reasonable price and the right size. Do you know of a component like this?
@@faraz2498 i was thinking of using those cheap portable 5" screens combined with a brighter light source and some sort of motor to slowly oscillate the screen for blending (avoiding the screen door effect). There would have to be software made that would take the scan of the picture, first align it with the film carrier then add air brushed filters and colors for the contrast grading and then all that would be saved for later copies of prints. Something that could run on a raspberry pi 4 that has dual hdmi, with an attached touch screen for artwork. Would take a lot to make it all work though...
Thank you for this! I’ve been hoping you would cover more masking techniques, and this didn’t disappoint. Is there another, more precise/photo specific method for use with pin registration? I have one photo in my collection that has some sharp angles against the sky that make a standard soft-edged dodging mask less desirable and it results in a halo effect around those sharp foreground elements (such as a building against sky). I’ve been beating my brain on how to overcome this problem. This video definitely gives me a few ideas though and some experimenting may be in order!
I am a fairly new darkroom user and found this video interesting, and something to come come back to in the future. Could you print these masks digitally using inkjet transparency film? Thanks for the video.
What a great question, Andrew. You got me thinking about different ways of generating dodge and burn masks in PS/LR and digital negative techniques. I'd think it should be possible because I know you can create digital negatives for alternative printing techniques so I'd imagine you could use the same technique to create digital dodging/burning masks for your negatives. I don't know if it'll actually work (obviously never tried it) but theoretically it should be possible.
@@azadpeymaparhamyes, you can, I use them quite often. You just need to register them together (which you can do with tape and a light table) I use a pin registration carrier but not necessary for these. and use a piece of diffusion material between the neg and the mask. You can dodge/burn and change contrast in different areas using magenta and yellow inks. Very powerfull!
Really great video very useful information. Truly the best darkroom pro on TH-cam. Could you take a pic of clear film, place over negative and use say spotting pens to taken specific area of the negative? Is this something you have done or could do? Many thanks
@@TheNakedPhotographer yeah pencil on some frosted surface. Maybe architectural tracing film we used to use in arch school. I can imagine that working well. Thanks
I don't know, Greg. This is amazing, but somehow...useless. You have made basically gradual ND filter for negative, but you have no time control of exposition on the paper. If you do dodging and burning on paper, you can easily find the correct time by test strip. With this you can do nothing. ND filters are good during shooting on film, 'cause film has exposure flexibility. Photographic paper is way less sensitive to light than photographic film.
It is something I did when I worked at a printer when doing an apprenticeship in the late 80’s. I remember using the litho film to enlarge a image onto it and then masking the litho to include titles and the like. We did this with colour transparencies with filters to split the image into four colour for printing. Yes, complex but it was something I loved doing.
Good info for dodging ideas, I use a hole punch on a 5x7 failed paper test for burning. I like the film exposure idea with different densities, seems a lot more favorable for creating masks with a bit more control than light vs no light. Creating various shapes on 4x5 film is probably the best way to go, with trees and objects with hard round edges. I was thinking of making an enlarging head with a built in LCD screen that you could dodge and burn at the same time with various colors for the multigrade papers and it would making printing much more controlled and consistent.
I looked at doing a built-in LCD screen for the LED enlarger head I built, but I couldn't find a clear LCD screen at a reasonable price and the right size. Do you know of a component like this?
@@faraz2498 i was thinking of using those cheap portable 5" screens combined with a brighter light source and some sort of motor to slowly oscillate the screen for blending (avoiding the screen door effect). There would have to be software made that would take the scan of the picture, first align it with the film carrier then add air brushed filters and colors for the contrast grading and then all that would be saved for later copies of prints. Something that could run on a raspberry pi 4 that has dual hdmi, with an attached touch screen for artwork. Would take a lot to make it all work though...
Thanks
Thanks!
Thank you for sharing! Really cool old school technique!
Thank you for this! I’ve been hoping you would cover more masking techniques, and this didn’t disappoint. Is there another, more precise/photo specific method for use with pin registration? I have one photo in my collection that has some sharp angles against the sky that make a standard soft-edged dodging mask less desirable and it results in a halo effect around those sharp foreground elements (such as a building against sky). I’ve been beating my brain on how to overcome this problem. This video definitely gives me a few ideas though and some experimenting may be in order!
Thank you very much for sharing this!!
I am a fairly new darkroom user and found this video interesting, and something to come come back to in the future. Could you print these masks digitally using inkjet transparency film? Thanks for the video.
What a great question, Andrew. You got me thinking about different ways of generating dodge and burn masks in PS/LR and digital negative techniques.
I'd think it should be possible because I know you can create digital negatives for alternative printing techniques so I'd imagine you could use the same technique to create digital dodging/burning masks for your negatives.
I don't know if it'll actually work (obviously never tried it) but theoretically it should be possible.
@@azadpeymaparhamyes, you can, I use them quite often. You just need to register them together (which you can do with tape and a light table) I use a pin registration carrier but not necessary for these. and use a piece of diffusion material between the neg and the mask. You can dodge/burn and change contrast in different areas using magenta and yellow inks. Very powerfull!
@@matthewkoller4556 That's such a powerful technique.
Really great video very useful information. Truly the best darkroom pro on TH-cam. Could you take a pic of clear film, place over negative and use say spotting pens to taken specific area of the negative? Is this something you have done or could do? Many thanks
I’ve done that with white frosted acetate sheet and pencil
@@TheNakedPhotographer yeah pencil on some frosted surface. Maybe architectural tracing film we used to use in arch school. I can imagine that working well. Thanks
example??? from mask
Yeah I was hoping to see what the mask did for the final print.
It dodges darker areas and makes them lighter
🤣
I don't know, Greg. This is amazing, but somehow...useless. You have made basically gradual ND filter for negative, but you have no time control of exposition on the paper. If you do dodging and burning on paper, you can easily find the correct time by test strip. With this you can do nothing. ND filters are good during shooting on film, 'cause film has exposure flexibility. Photographic paper is way less sensitive to light than photographic film.
this sounds really dodgy