Sun Printing Galore

Classic Marilyn

                              

It's official. My neighbors probably think I'm a crack head, going back and forth into the house hours at a time. I've been on a good one lately with my Sun Printing! Ever since that first sun print I've been hooked. After calling all of my local art supplies stores in the Sacramento area I discovered this sun printing paper was not as easy as to get my hands on as I'd hope. So of course I hit up the Internet and found some instantly. After some searching around I found the best deal for this special paper on http://www.natureprintpaper.com/. I love this supplier because of the prices, they offer different quantities for ordering, and I received my order on the 5th business day so they're quick too! I ordered the 5" x 7" 40 sheet package which lasted me about a week, at a rate of doing a ton a day! I plan on ordering another 40 sheet package, as well as the 11" x 17" 20 sheet package so I can do some bigger pieces.

I've learned a whole lot since my last blog about this form of photography and have done a ton of experimenting with it since here are the results.

Positive/Negative Sun Prints

Negative/Positive Sun Printing

After doing a bunch of "shape" capturing objects I decided I wanted to try something new. So I did some research online for different techniques/methods and found some pretty awesome ideas! I could use actual photographs and "print" them with just the sun & sun printing paper.

I started out by creating negative sun prints with photos. In order to make a negative sun print you simply find a photo you'd like to experiment with and change the colors to black & white. Next you print the b & w photo and set it outside on top your sun printing paper. I found that the best way to get the cleanest lines without having to worry about the photo getting distorted when moved is to press the photo & sun printing paper underneath a piece of plexiglass. I had an empty poster frame laying around and used that to press the photos & sun printing paper, be resourceful! I'm sure even an empty picture frame would work. Once the sun print had been exposed to the sun for about 30 seconds-1 minute I brought it inside and let it soak in water for about a minute and then set it flat to dry.

In order to do positive sun prints with photos simply find a photo you'd like to print, change the colors to black & white, then invert the colors, after set the contrast as far as it will go to make the picture super dark. Print and repeat the steps above.

Since my first sun print I've learned that once you take the sun print out of the water you want to shake off as much excess water as you can so the sun print doesn't get distorted. I've also learned that in order to get cleaner lines/whiter white areas you can use a paper towel and dab up some of the excess water (just be sure to only touch the white areas on the sun print so the blue areas don't get distorted).

I did try to create a sepia look using black tea, which I had written about in my previous post but it was unsuccessful. I plan on trying again soon as I don't believe I let the print soak long enough in the tea water. As far as the gold tone look I haven't been able to find a laundry detergent that contains phosphates, but I've got my eye out for some and plan on trying the gold tone when I can.

It's kind of ironic how even in these modern days one can still yearn for the simple, classic times and the things they offer. I definitely plan on continuing this new hobby of mine and have been sharing it with all of my family and friends. I've even started giving the prints away as gifts, and plan on trying to sell some at my dad's 50's style restaurant.

Until next time..cheers! 

Sun Print Glory

Hot Rods