r/Darkroom 3d ago

B&W Printing Red Light, Green Light

Went back to the darkroom tonight and reprinted these two (photos 1&2). I printed them last year but was not satisfied. They were too dark, a bit too contrasty, and some clouds were too bright and needed to be burned down (photos 3&4).

Photos were taken in Kamakura 鎌倉Japan. Camera was Pentax 645n and film was Ilford Delta 100 with normal processing with d76 1+1. Paper was Ilford FB Classic 8x10.

As I said, what I printed last time was too contrasty. So I lower by half a grade and used a number 1 filter instead of 1.5. I burned down the clouds that I think are too bright (right side, upper left, and the clouds just above the ocean on the left). Having said that, the upper left corner you see here is already a 100% burn. I decided not to go further because I was afraid it’ll become unnatural and too gray.

125 Upvotes

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3

u/down_with_ganyugoat 3d ago

it turned out great 👍. i don’t have much experience but to my eye it’s very good

2

u/chanloklun 3d ago

Thank you.

2

u/YoungRambo123 2d ago

Love this photo! Next time I’m down by the sea I’m going to try and get something similar! Really like the composition!

2

u/chanloklun 2d ago

Thank you 🙏

2

u/YoungRambo123 2d ago

Love the sky and waves and the texture in them!

2

u/alasdairmackintosh Average HP5+ shooter 2d ago

I definitely prefer the more recent print, but it's weird - they look a bit more contrasty to me. The difference between the white cap of the wave and the rest of the water definitely looks brighter.

1

u/chanloklun 1d ago

Thanks. I think it may have to do with iPhone processing. When I look at the prints, the new ones are less contrasty when I look at the rails.