14 May
DARKROOM BUILD, DARKROOM CHEMISTRY, OTHER, Zebra Dry Plates

Building Professional Darkroom: Flooring, Painting, Ventilation, Lighting & Layout

It’s time for another update—and honestly, this one feels pretty special. After so many months of groundwork and invisible progress, the new Zebra darkroom is finally starting to look and feel real. I can walk through the space now and actually imagine working in it. It’s happening! Tiling, Sealing, and Treating It Like a Bathroom One of the biggest milestones lately was finishing the tile flooring throughout the darkroom. This was a key step for me, especially around the sink area, which will be used constantly. I decided early on to build this part of the darkroom like a bathroom—properly sealed and...

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17 Apr
DARKROOM CHEMISTRY, EMULSION, PRINTING PROCESSES, Zebra Dry Plates

Turning Negatives into Golden Positives – How to Make Orotones with Zebra Dry Plates

Technique documented by Tom Lee (UK) It all starts with a good negative...One of the most beautiful ways to showcase a photograph on glass is through the creation of an orotone—a luminous, golden-toned positive image backed with metallic brilliance. And yes, you can absolutely achieve this magic with Zebra Dry Plates. This in-depth process has been documented and generously shared by Tom Lee, a fellow photographer and dry plate enthusiast based in the UK. What You need to Get Started Zebra Dry Plates (for both negatives and positives) HERE OHP transparency film (for inkjet negatives) Photo inkjet printer (capable of printing on transparencies) Enlarger or consistent UV light source (a...

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24 Feb
DARKROOM CHEMISTRY, EMULSION, Zebra Dry Plates

Coating Ultra-Large Plates: Expert Tips and Techniques

I often get asked if coating ultra-large plates—like the impressive 20x24 inch pieces—is much harder than coating smaller ones. The answer? It’s both yes and no. When you’re working on a plate of this size, every step of the process demands extra practice and precision. Spreading emulsion evenly across such a vast surface isn’t as simple as it sounds. For instance, using a syringe coating technique means you might need to stop and refill your emulsion cup three or four times while maintaining a perfectly level plate to avoid messy spills. On the flip side, the substantial weight of these plates...

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19 Feb
DARKROOM CHEMISTRY, EMULSION, PRINTING PROCESSES, Zebra Dry Plates

The Art of Contact Printing on Zebra Dry Plate Tintypes

Adrian Anderson has been using Zebra Dry Plates for quite some time now, and he absolutely loves them. While he plans to use a camera to expose them eventually, the cost of large-format photography has led him to explore an alternative approach: contact printing. This method allows him to produce beautiful positive plates using digital images, and I want to take a moment to appreciate Adrian Anderson’s invaluable contribution to this process. His meticulous research and experimentation have provided a solid foundation for anyone looking to try this technique. Thanks to Adrian’s work, it’s clear that you don’t need an...

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Sabbatier-effect-Step-by-Step-Tutorial
27 Oct
AUTOCHROME, DARKROOM CHEMISTRY, EMULSION, OTHER

Sabattier Effect – Detailed Step by Step Tutorial

In this tutorial I would like to explain and talk about a very interesting darkroom phenomenon that I came across recently and it absolutely stunned me with its beauty. But let's start at the beginning... A few days ago while scrolling through Facebook I was shocked by a direct positive Zebra Dry Plate that was shared by one of my customers. I had to ask him how he did it and he responded that he had no intention of making a positive but it was all just an accident. He told me how he made the exposure and started to develop...

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How to make Silver Gelatine emulsion
28 Apr
AUTOCHROME, DARKROOM CHEMISTRY, EMULSION, OTHER

Basic Silver Gelatine Emulsion

Introduction There’s something deeply rewarding about making your own photographic materials by hand. In this tutorial, I’ll take you through the entire process of creating a basic silver gelatin emulsion completely from scratch. Whether you're a curious beginner or a seasoned alternative process enthusiast, this guide will walk you step by step through everything—from the tools and materials you need to the tips and tricks I’ve picked up over years of experimentation. Together, we’ll demystify the process and unlock a piece of photographic history that still has so much to offer. The silver gelatin emulsion process has a fascinating legacy. First developed...

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Reuse-scrap-dry-plates-large-format-film
24 Apr
DARKROOM CHEMISTRY, EMULSION, OTHER

Reuse scrap Dry Plates & Large Format Film

If you shoot analog on a regular basis you know how much film gets wasted due to experimenting, failed exposures and so on. In a very short time you are left with a stack of unusable film. I have the exact same problem with dry plates and because nature already has enough weist on its shoulders I would like to show you how dry plates or even modern film can be recoated and reused. Types of base / support ? Emulsion can be coated on different transparent surfaces. When making glass dry plates light sensitive emulsion is coated directly on a glass support...

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17 Mar
AUTOCHROME, DARKROOM CHEMISTRY, OTHER, PRINTING PROCESSES, Uncategorized

Salt print – Detailed Step by Step Walkthrough

Introduction I love working with alternative printing processes because they require only a few ingredients and are perfect for those interested in learning the fundamental principles of recording light. One of the earliest alternative printing techniques for transforming negatives into positive prints was salt printing, a process pioneered in the mid-1830s by Henry Fox Talbot. Talbot’s method involved soaking plain writing paper in a weak solution of ordinary table salt, followed by a strong silver solution. This treatment rendered the paper light-sensitive, allowing it to darken upon exposure to sunlight. Once fixed with a hypo solution, the image became permanent. Salt...

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Kodak-d-19-original-recipe
03 Mar
DARKROOM CHEMISTRY, OTHER, PRINTING PROCESSES

Making Kodak D-19 from scratch with Original Recipe

In this week's Blog I am showing you how to make Kodak D-19 Developer from scratch including all the steps and recipes. Developing film at home is always a special pleasure if you have the right equipment. Kodak D-19 is really hard to get these days specially now during the lockdown when everything has to be bought online. I always like to make my own stuff as you learn so much along the way. Kodak D-19 is actually made out of only a few ingredients and it's not hard to make so let's start. Kodak D-19 is a very high contrast...

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Reverse-developing-dry-plates-to-positive-foma-emulsion
01 Feb
AUTOCHROME, DARKROOM CHEMISTRY, EMULSION, EQUIPMENT, OTHER

Reverse Developing Glass Dry Plates To Direct Positive

Introduction After being quite busy in the last few months doing exams and practical work for the acadAfter months of being buried in academy work—exams, practicals, the whole lot—I finally have some breathing room. And you know what that means: time to dive back into the darkroom and explore. One technique I’ve long wanted to revisit is reverse developing dry plates into direct positives—a magical process where the final image appears directly on glass, ready to be admired without printing. My earlier Autochrome research demanded similar skills, so this feels like returning to a familiar puzzle, but with new pieces. Autochromes, if you’re...

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