Large format without film!

[Larry Shone]

Anyone tried using the paper negative method? I've done a similar thing to this at college. Basically you replace the film in the camera with paper, then in the darkroom you place the negative print onto another same sized sheet of paper and expose. Exposures may have to either be longer or the enlarges set to be brighter. One advantage is that because you're not projecting a negative you don't need to stop the enlarger lens down so much,or have it racked up so high,and in some cases you can use it wide open,thus giving you exposure times similar to those with the conventional method. You would need to use a piece of glass to ensure the paper to be exposed is dead flat tho. Anyone tried this,does it produce good results? I dabbled with it in college as I said but not to great lengths and I cant remember the results.(we didn't use a camera but made a paper negative from a finished photo and used that to make another print this way.

[mediaman]

Try to "Borrow" or otherwise "Aquire" a 5x4 [or larger]
camera, and load [in darkness--of course,] the darkslide with a sheet of enlarging paper....as opposed to neg film.
[Trial and error for the paper ISO speed]
develope in print dev. etc..wash/dry.
This will give you a black /white paper neg.
A contact print can be made as follows...
unexposed paper...emulsion up.
lay on top, the paper neg, emulsion down.
expose to light for aprox same time as a projected enlargment to that paper size / Enlarger hight combo.
sometimes you get a better result if the back of the paper neg is wet,or you could just scan paper neg into your computer....but image will be laterly reversed.
This brings back happy memories...thanks.

[mediaman]

P.S. Silly old me....After loading darkslide..
expose as you would normaly do, with film....
Take a photograph. Then develope etc.
{It's been a long day!]

[LargeFormat]

This is how I started my interest in photography. At about 9 years someone gave me an old 8x10 to play with and a box of printing paper. The problem is that lighting through the paper gives its own grain but the effect may have possitive ( ) appeal.

[mediaman]

Yes, printing was fun.Years ago, Agfa had a one chemical reversal paper that you used for trannies.I tried to use that in a 7x5 monorail with very mixed results.Images were laterly reversed which meant that a portrait, looked mirror image [and acceptable] to the portait sitter,but unatuaral to anyone knowing the sitter.IYKWIM

[Zou]

I've a paper neg use 5x7 ultrawide pinhole which I am still trying to perfect. "Shutter" speeds can be horrendously long though.

[Larry Shone]

I've a paper neg use 5x7 ultrawide pinhole which I am still trying to perfect. "Shutter" speeds can be horrendously long though.

Yea i did that with a 35mm film carton. A hole in the lid and a tiny square of paper in tother end. Trouble is i never got my work back from college!