Carbon Transfer Photography: Using paper support, coat one side with a very pigmented gelatin solution. After exposure, transfer to temporary rubber support so that it can develop. When dry, the image is transferred to final paper support. They can be made in any range of colors, the basics being black, sepia and purple brown. The main keys of carbon Transfer Photography are:
- Sharpness — Unlike some of the other historical printing processes carbon prints have great apparent sharpness. In fact, because of the manner in which relief accentuates apparent sharpness, carbon prints with relief often appear sharper then silver prints.
- Choice of color — Bostick & Sullivan offer carbon tissue in several colors, and the hand manufacture of tissue makes it possible to produce images in literally any color imaginable.
- Stability — The archival quality of carbon prints is superb. When suitable pigments are used the stability of carbon is limited only by the final support, making it the most stable of all photographic processes.
- Surface Quality — Depending on choice of tissue, and the final support, carbon prints are capable of a wide range of appearance. Prints may have a matte surface like Pt./Pd., a glossy surface like silver prints, or a relief surface that gives them a three-dimensional quality.
- Shadow Detail — The shadow separation of a well-made carbon print can be startling. Unfortunately it is impossible to fully capture this print quality in magazine reproduction so that is one of the qualities we cannot show in this article.
- Choice of Final Support — Since carbon reliefs can be transferred to any suitably prepared surface there is an almost unlimited choice of final supports: watercolor papers, fixed out photographic papers, canvas, glass, even metals. Surface preparation of the final support merely involves coating with a layer of hardened gelatin.
- Tonal qualities — Carbon has a long tonal scale and excellent straight-line characteristics, qualities which allow the use of fully detailed negatives with long density ranges, resulting in an even distribution of tones from the highest lights to the deepest shadows.
Paul Smith
Jens Liebchen
Works Cited
"Art & Soul - Color Carbon Printing for Fine Art Photography." Art & Soul - Color Carbon Printing for Fine Art Photography. Web. 09 Sept. 2016.
Rose, Eric. "Sandy King." Carbon Transfer: Contemporary Printers. Web. 09 Sept. 2016.
