1 Colour
A C-Type
Colour prints made using light-sensitive RA-4 paper and chemistry, from either digital files or film. This process offers smooth tonal gradation, rich colour depth, and a lab-quality finish well-suited to photographic work intended for exhibition or publication.
B Direct Positive
This method creates a positive image directly onto the paper, bypassing the need for a negative. The resulting print carries a unique tonal quality and a more direct relationship to the original image, with minimal interference or manipulation in the process.
2 Black/White
A Gelatin Silver
Black and white prints made using traditional silver gelatin paper. This process produces crisp detail, strong tonal depth, and a classic photographic finish. It remains one of the most trusted and widely used techniques for monochrome printing in the darkroom.
B Partial Chemistry
A technique that interrupts the development process partway through to reduce contrast and introduce soft, expressive transitions. This controlled imperfection brings a subtle texture and atmosphere to the final image, making each print unique.
C Selenium Toning
A chemical treatment that deepens blacks, introduces warm or cool tones, and increases the print’s archival stability.
D Lith Printing
Printed using lith developer for gritty shadows, soft highlights, and pronounced grain. Each print is highly individual.
E Liquid Emulsion
Silver gelatin emulsion is hand-applied to a surface before exposure, allowing printing on non-traditional materials like wood, fabric, or found objects.
3 Alternative
A Cyanotype
Iron-based contact printing method that produces deep blue images. Paper is coated with sensitiser and exposed under UV light.
B Platinum Palladium
Prints made with platinum or palladium salts known for subtle tonal transitions, soft highlights, and long-lasting permanence.
C Wet Plate Collodion
Invented in 1851 by Frederick Scott Archer, this process involves coating a glass or metal plate with collodion, sensitising it in silver nitrate, and exposing it while still wet.
D Gum Bichromate
Pigment, gum arabic, and dichromate are layered through contact printing to create softly textured, painterly images.
4 Techniques
A Full Frame / Easel-Cropped
Adjusts how the image sits on the page. Full frame prints show the entire negative, while easel cropping allows for a tighter composition.
B Pre-Flash
A controlled flash of light applied to the paper before exposure. Reduces contrast and brings out detail in the shadows.
C Dodging / Burning
Manual lightening or darkening of specific areas during printing. A foundational darkroom technique for controlling tone.
D Creative Burning
Used more expressively than traditional burning. Shapes light and shadow to create mood or guide the eye across the image.
E Blurring
Soft focus or movement introduced during exposure. Adds atmosphere or abstraction to the image.
F Chinagraph Pencil / Paint
Post-print mark making applied by hand. Used to draw attention, disrupt, or enhance areas of the print.
G Tape / Torn Edges
Physical interventions such as torn paper or masking tape. Introduces texture, frames the image, or reveals its process.
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