[Leica] Leica MM and M9 Comparison

[mark at rabinergroup.com (Mark Rabiner)]

I have been lucky that even before I started double fixing and toning and
making sure my wash water was not below 65 degrees and making sure they were
not stuck to each other in the long enough  and not too cold wash and using
Hypo clear or at least Sulfite my body of work is 99.99 percent clear of
really any staining and or discoloring at all. That's my fiber prints. I do
have commeraillaily done by me RC prints which I may have rushed through or
someone else did with a client coming over to see them in  which they needed
more fixing and washing but just got the below minimal.  That stuff is not
near the fiber so the gasses some of these discolored RC's may give off I
don't think  is going to reach them. So they've stayed clear.
That's from 1967 on. 45 years.
Toning RC prints may have been problematical I did that in line for awhile.

I see the age of the silver gelatin print was from 1880 to 1960 where it was
supplanted by the far more dominant color processes both for consumers and
commercially.  1960 - 1880  = 80 years
So that's 80 years silver gelatin was king and I got in on it for half that.
And we know that our intuitions and tests panned out so far on longevity.
Nobodies thinking that that stuff we cranked out according to Hoyle in the
last half of the 20th century is going to turn up multicolored all of a
sudden next time somebody  looks at them and have collectors asking for
their money back or a fresh print.
My intuitions and common sense tells me the inkjet technologies I'm using
from Epson and others I've used of late are going to work out at least as
well. But I'll breath easier when I'm looking at them in the decades on down
maybe I'll have another four.

But the lab shining Fluorescent lights on prints dabbing them with smelly
cotton balls telling me how long to the day its going to last in the year
2525 I find quite comical. Some form of mass hypnotic wishful hysteria which
does not mask the fact that as far the burgeoning technologies in printing
coming out this decade goes we just don't know yet. But will know when they
invent the time machine which I'm sure is just around the corner and be made
in Cupertino I'm glad that guy didn't steal it out of Job's house~!. It will
look just like a microwave but you can set the year 2525 on it hit the
button and wait a minute than a bell goes off and you can see what you're
print looks like.
"oops better not use that paper with that ink! Lets try another one!"
When that happens I'll breath easier with the materials I'm now using.




Mark William Rabiner
Photography
http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/lugalrabs/


> From: Marty Deveney <benedenia at gmail.com>
> Reply-To: Leica Users Group <lug at leica-users.org>
> Date: Tue, 4 Sep 2012 10:04:52 +0930
> To: Leica Users Group <lug at leica-users.org>
> Subject: Re: [Leica] Leica MM and M9 Comparison
> 
> I used to hand coat buffered rag paper with silver gelatin emulsion.
> I needed to use fresh developer and fix for each print, but the
> results were nice.
> 
> I have fibre base prints that have been processed for optimum
> stability that are now showing all sorts of odd artefacts after 10-20
> years of storage.  I suspect the air where I live isn't as nice as it
> seems.
> 
> Marty
> 
> 
> 
> 
> On Tue, Sep 4, 2012 at 9:59 AM, Paul Roark <roark.paul at gmail.com> wrote:
>> Mark Rabiner <mark at rabinergroup.com> wrote:
>>> ...
>>> It was brought to my attention that there never was a darkroom paper that
>>> was 100% rag. ...
>> 
>> This is getting a bit OT, and I apologize for that.
>> 
>> The situation with the wet darkroom paper is worse than it not being
>> rag.  Good alpha cellulose, which most good wet darkroom paper was, is
>> very nearly as good as rag.  The real problem was that it could not be
>> buffered due to the acidic chemicals used.  As such, our silver prints
>> are being attacked by air-borne acids.  I have seen in my own metal
>> cabinet yellowing after 20 years of storage.  The good inkjet
>> cellulose (rag or alpha), not having to withstand the development
>> chemicals, are buffered and should resist the acids much better.
>> 
>> Paul
>> www.PaulRoark.com
>> 
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