How To Make A Darkroom Print Flasher

[@f1remandg]

I hope your recovery from Covid continues and that a full recovery will be achieved, I’m old but new to Darkroom, but not to photography, I collect cameras and like everyone, you in getting around to this project is a great example. I was thinking that old camera filters maybe another method, threading the caps to screw filters in, or just glueing them. But certainly an adaptation of unused items. I look forward to checking out your other videos DG

[@Distphoto]

Thank you, been long and frustrating but I remain optimistic 👍 I have a heap of old lens boards, bellows lenses and whatnots I might look through now that you mention it!

[@billhackley3540]

Joe's channel is great have all the parts to do the same thing but for paper negatives/positive paper, now you've given me another idea thanks

[@Distphoto]

Awesome, thanks!

[@MattWeddis]

I had never even heard of a flasher before this. I’m looking forward to seeing it in action.

[@Distphoto]

Print flashing was used a lot more with older graded papers but has some unique benefits to multi contrast paper that is overlooked.

[@garageworker]

Hope you’re feeling better, glad to see a new video.

[@Distphoto]

Thanks!

[@philipu150]

I may make one. I have also been using diffusion under the lens; I don't often need to flash prints; maybe I will as I start doing more work again. You have a remarkably relaxed presence on camera. It makes your video easy to watch. Your family in the background on this one?

[@hansjzeller]

Thanks, great video as always! Your video comes at a very good time for me, since I'm thinking of building a flasher as well. What I am planning is to make it battery-powered, with diffused RGB LED strips that can be blue, green or white. I'm thinking of a built-in microcontroller (Arduino, etc.) that provides the timing and an ultrasound distance meter that tells me how high to hold the flasher so that it has a constant distance from the paper. This way I won't need another enlarger and not even a copy stand, I could do it in the same easel that's under the enlarger, right before or after doing the exposure. Your explanation of the apertures showed me that I need some way to channel the light onto the paper and to avoid having light spilling all over.

[@Distphoto]

That sounds really nice. I think the light can spill as long as it is even across the paper. I made the smaller apertures to focus the light more for selective use. The main cap and aperture are for the most part to hold the filters 👍

[@marcogiai-coletti354]

Nice! Joe is a legend!

[@Distphoto]

Indeed!!!

[@rcfgnu]

Nice to see you back. Yes maybe a nice video on selective pre-flashing can be awesome.

[@Distphoto]

Got some negatives that fit the bill! Thanks!

[@MichaelLloyd]

Good to see you back. McMaster Carr sells brass inserts that you can use to press (might be male threads) into the plastic tube. That way you get brass (or stainless steel, I'd use brass) threads in the plastic. A good hardware store may have them too.

[@Distphoto]

Thank you! I was looking for something like that. The plate does seem to be on there really god but might upgrade it in the future.

[@f1remandg]

Thinking more about this and watching it a couple of times an old projector lens with helicoid even the front end of an old lens of the right size, this would give you a threaded front for filters.

[@Distphoto]

That would be interesting. Just have to mount the lens somehow 🤔

[@John-jl3ky]

That's very cool, I'm going to look into that. I look forward to your dark room videos!

[@Distphoto]

Thanks John!

[@steven1000000000]

I've recently started in the darkroom by converting my shed into my printing space. After shooting B&W and scanning for years now, darkroom printing seems to be the final piece of the analog process. It's good to have these "beyond the basics" videos. And this one is particularly usefull - I've got a roll of Adox CMS 20 which is a bit contrasty and need a way to manage the highlights. Looking forward to some more darkroom videos.

[@Distphoto]

Great to hear! Enjoy the darkroom!

[@JohanSvenssongbgpixtures]

Rad ! Joe van cleef is awesome! Can you use it as burn down tool also?

[@Distphoto]

Yeah for sure 👍

[@CristianGeelen]

Always happy to see your videos man. :)

[@Distphoto]

Appreciate that!

[@ChrisVidouras]

Very interesting!!

[@Distphoto]

Thank you!

[@alfredozappetelli1473]

Hi I have created a similar system, to start I will do some test prints to find out how long I can use to flash the card before fogging. Did you use the same? Tks for your videos and ideas.

[@Distphoto]

Thanks Alfredo! Yes I test and retest now and then to get proper flashing and fogging times 👍

[@igaluitchannel6644]

I've often thought of doing that under the safe light filter. The green, blue and ND filters are improvements on the original technique. Covid (and maybe the vaccinations too) is a bitch; it saps your desire from working in the darkrooom at all - seems like too much effort.

[@Distphoto]

Hey Igaluit. There is so much potential here it only limited to your creativity in my opinion. I feel you 100%. Has been very trying for me as well. My whole world has been changed around in how I take care of myself and mental health. Have had to recalibrate my excercise and diet several times and am constantly fighting brain fog and other crap to this day. I take the small wins and do what I can. Mostly just staying optimistic and slowly but surely healing. Stay well friend!

[@igaluitchannel6644]

@@Distphoto Thanks! You too! High dose vitamin C seems to have helped, but eventually you have to bring the does back to normal. Taking the first step of getting back in the darkroom seems ro break the pattern even though I can't spend as much time on it as before. By the way, I fashioned a highlight proofer similar to the one you used in one of your videos. Should spare me from a lot of useless testing.

[@Lebenspiel]

I don't understand this so much. I spent some amount of time in the darkroom and never needed something like this. Not even thought about it.

[@Distphoto]

It is very useful for controlling contrast when printing. You essentially flash the paper with non image forming light to bring the paper to its light threshold. Allowing dense areas of a negative to be printed more easily.

[@raleigh6589]

💘 𝐩𝓻Ỗ𝓂Ø𝓈Ｍ

[@Distphoto]

huh?