Salt Printing - Detailed Step by Step Tutorial | Alternative Photographic Process

This is an Instructional video on how to make a basic Salt Print. Salt printing has been around from the very birth of photography and it is really simple to make as you only need 3 ingredients to work. Step by Step I guide you through the whole process including the materials & chemistry you need, coating techniques, exposure and processing. Now prepare the materials and let's get started!
Link to the detailed blog post on Salt Printing:
lostlightphotography.com/salt...
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📷 GEAR I USED TO MAKE THIS VIDEO:
Canon M50
Canon EF-m 15-45mm
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[@francoismassin8649]

What I like the most with Nejc's videos is his "Straight to the point" approach. No superfluous bla-bla, no product placement, etc. He makes everything very doable !

[@lostlightart6064]

Thank you for the kind words Francois. Showing people that things are in fact quite simple and doable is my goal!

[@fruitlessbeast]

What jerk would go to the trouble of hitting dislike on this? Nice demonstration. Thanks! You now have another subscriber.

[@RogerHyam]

I think that might be the best walk through of salt printing I've seen. Short, sharp and to the point! One tip I'd add is that if you can't get a brown bottle just wrap a clear bottle in aluminium foil from the kitchen. In fact I prefer doing that because you can peak under the foil and see if there is precipitate.

[@lostlightart6064]

Great tip thanks for sharing!

[@swfotography]

ive never learned this process and Nejc has made it clear and simple and didnt make me feel poor for not having some expensive equipment laying around for this. He keeps it real and makes me feel like I can do it!! thank you!

[@germanmurillo]

Great video. Thanks for sharing.

[@OneEyePhoto]

Thanks for the tutorial! Very helpful

[@tgchism]

Certainly a must try!! Thanks for sharing!

[@bodudas8346]

thank you for presenting an honest and simple tutorial where an amateur like me can easily understand and grasp this process. Now let me go try this - cheers . bo

[@tracyhickman1359]

Love this!!

[@andrewsleigh]

Great teacher! Thank you

[@gabrielecoassin1020]

Very useful, thankyou!

[@albertoortegafina7086]

Excellent video, very ease to understand the complete process in record time.

[@JamesPearson]

Excellent demonstration - so concise and yet informative. I love making salt (and albumen) prints, but I'm still struggling to make time to hone my skills. This has inspired me to make more time for it. Thanks!

[@Omar-vy4vg]

eres el primero en explicar el paso paso de este proceso, muchas gracias, eres increíble.

[@acepzev3851]

im really happy watch this video..great job !!!

[@lostlightart6064]

Thank you 😊😀

[@jpcgordon]

Great walkthrough. I'll definitely be giving this a go.

[@lostlightart6064]

Thanks

[@5aturnia]

Thanks brother

[@fstopPhotography]

As the start of cold temperatures and winter months creep in, here in the mid Atlantic states, USA, I've decided to take my Zebra dry plates I shot this past summer and make a few prints. And, yes, you guessed it, I'm following the instructions in this video. I am pleased to say, it worked very well. So my winter months will be mainly printing my glass plates from the warmer months and printing in the colder months. Great video, I love the Zebra dry plates and holders. Thanks for the tutorial.

[@chancewoolery3702]

Thank You for your simple, to the point explanation of salt printing, easy peasy. I think I will try this method after I work on cyanotype for a while. Much obliged.

[@dieufoetus8718]

Definitely trying this some day

[@lostlightart6064]

Yesss 😎

[@russmerbeth9312]

Thank you for your videos. They're terrifically helpful. Good, clear instructions and tips, great editing and commentary. An, your prints are wonderful.

[@lostlightart6064]

Thanks Russ 🤗

[@jcc7286]

Really straightforward explication! Thank you very much, you have really inspired me , I'm about to buy all needed haha

[@lostlightart6064]

😅👍

[@matt-analoguelife]

A very good basic introduction. It can get more complex the further down the 'rabbit hole' you travel..!

[@lostlightart6064]

Yes agree. I wanted to keep things plain and simple in this one so people can get started and thene the whole universe of possibilities opens up...

[@Chiaroscuro1991]

Nice tutorial. You deserve a split back printing frame; much easier for establishing the correct exposure during printing. Also … when waxing it’s easier to just melt wax in a shallow dish in a microwave and then let it cool. To apply put drops of lavender oil on the wax and work it into then rubbing pad. Best regards, Scully & Osterman

[@zangasperic11]

Thank you! Awesome!

[@lostlightart6064]

Prosim 😊

[@albertoortegafina7086]

Very interesting

[@marcelryser]

Thanks 👍

[@lostlightart6064]

You are welcome :)

[@dalehammond1749]

Very clear, thanks. Are there advantages over Cyanotype?

[@gregwostrel8124]

Excellent, quick run through the process. I’m just starting to look into some of these old processes so this is really helpful. Salt prints are really beautiful, but the process requires a fair amount of stuff. You don’t NEED a darkroom but it sure helps. A sink, running water, light you can control etc obviously makes it so much easier. I’ll try it eventually though!

[@lostlightart6064]

Thank you Greg 🤗

[@TheStockwell]

So much work, but the result is a unique, hand-crafted Artwork. There is nothing to compare with something you made with your own hands. I'll try this process - after I get bored with cyanotypes and anthotypes! ☺ You speak very quickly in this tutorial. But, all I have to do is change the speed to .75. If I slow you down to .50, you sound drunk. At .75, you only sound stoned. 😁

[@lostlightart6064]

Haha I really wanted to bring it home under a 10min mark as holding peoples attention for more than that is an art on its own these days!

[@TheStockwell]

@@lostlightart6064 I can help! There are three things which - I guarantee - will keep people interested in long videos: 1. Cute, adorable kittens; 2. CGI dinosaurs or sharks; 3. Porn. Seriously, though, thank YOU for living such an interesting life and sharing your adventures with us. ☺

[@lostlightart6064]

@@TheStockwell yeah exactly. It terrifying to see in which direction world is going. This is why I love to take my time and make things with my own hands and not steal a filter here a background there and call myself a photographer!

[@danielrock4144]

love your stuff, keep building that subscriber base

[@lostlightart6064]

Thanks Daniel

[@goligabooks]

Yeah! Looking forward to more good stuff from this channel.

[@lostlightart6064]

@@goligabooks Thanks. Its comming :)

[@danielb.7165]

Great Video! Can you use Vaseline to protect the image at the end?

[@ugrandolini]

Hi Nejc, thank you so much for this tutorial! You are opening me a new way in this trip in the world of photography 🙂 May I ask which kind of paper do you suggest to use? I ordered some watercolour paper, hopefully it will be fine...

[@iStobs]

Can you explain more about how specifically you create the mixture for buffing the image at the end? Thank you!

[@Janardandas108]

Super 👌

[@lostlightart6064]

Hvala Jure 😊

[@ceh76740]

Hi! I’m excited about trying this with my class and I’m wondering how long the 100ml of the silver solution lasts? As in how many prints? I have a small class but want to be sure to mix up enough of the solution! Thank you!

[@adrianamihaelapop19]

Great information, thanks! I would like to know about the silver nitrate solution.. after the preparation with water, what about its expiration date? for how long it can be used?

[@lostlightart6064]

If stored in brown bottle in the fridge deffinetly a few moths. However there are so many variables that can affect this from PH, quality of the storage container, temperature, light exposure....

[@KarinMajoka]

This is incredible, what a fascinating process and what beautiful results with the painted coating! Does this only work with glass negatives or also film negatives, do you have any experience on this?

[@lostlightart6064]

It works with any transparency from plates to film to printed negatives. Or you can put objects on as well to make photograms 😊

[@KarinMajoka]

@@lostlightart6064 Ah, that's awesome, thanks for the info! I love photograms, so that's a pretty cool idea as well.

[@rbx22]

i love you bro :)

[@tlhawkins6699]

I absolutely love salt printing. With the cyanotype have you ever tried coffee tinting? I've been playing around with it and like the results so far. Cheers!

[@lostlightart6064]

Havent done coffe with saltprints yet but I saw some results and they look great!

[@ArwenLune]

would this work on fabric? I've done cyanotypes on fabric and would love some prints in this gorgeous brown

[@maxshootsfilm306]

hey, do you think you could link where you got the silver nitrate, and I just want to make sure I get the right stuff you know! thanks! lived the video and I would love to try it myself

[@lostlightart6064]

Hey I buy it from eBay most of the time so I can not give you the link as it is no longer available from that merchant sorry :(

[@rckyd7003]

Great video. Thank you so much! Does anyone know approximately how long the 12% AgNO3 can last in the brown bottle? I am using some I made 2 weeks ago, and the prints are coming out very light. Could it be the solution is no good anymore? Thanks!

[@lostlightart6064]

It will definetly last for more then a few weeks however you are always better to coat it fresh. After a few months the solution will brown and turn bad

[@azfactor7875]

Now that you've shown us your salt working process, will albumen be next?

[@lostlightart6064]

Everything is on my list 😁

[@ognjenmarkovic2512]

What do you use for fixing?

[@andzejkuncevic6586]

I really like the old method of photography

[@lostlightart6064]

Me to! Have you tried salt printing yourself?

[@andzejkuncevic6586]

not yet, but I'm going to want

[@lostlightart6064]

Go for it!

[@LuckyEarners]

Can we use it in pinhole camera

[@camillehakeem4936]

Can you make a salt negative with a camera obscura?

[@lostlightart6064]

Surely it would just take a while buy its definitely doable

[@DesertRider999]

Another informative video Nejc, thank you very much I learned a lot. I would love to try this process however ,I don't have anywhere to develop glass slides at present so unfortunately I can't give it go, but you never know in the future :-) Keep producing the excellent videos friend, I really enjoy them.

[@azfactor7875]

If you have access to an inkjet printer, you can print negatives out on transparent media such as Pictorico or Fixxons.

[@DesertRider999]

Hey Bob, thanks for the reply mate, I will look into that, cheers.

[@azfactor7875]

Careful, Steve. It's definitely a rabbit hole you can fall down in pursuit of the perfect negative. Entire systems have been created in trying to achieve desired results.

[@DesertRider999]

Ha ha thanks for the warning Bob. Having just bought an Intrepid 4x5 camera literally two days ago and having been going out with a Noon pinhole recently, I appear to have a growing number of rabbit holes that are pulling me down at the moment. (But I'm loving it truly 😉)

[@matt-analoguelife]

I shoot 4x5 negatives (Fomapan 100 currently). Developing in 510-pyro for N+N developing times to create negatives with enough density for Salt Printing. Contact printed is quite nice at this size. The 'digital negative' route is useful for smaller formats, digital images or colour converted images particularly, but as mentioned it is a Rabbit Hole of chasing perfection...

[@manikandasubbu7959]

Thank you for this wonderful video. Could you please help me on fixer ? Where can I get one, or any replacement for that ? I am from India ...

[@lostlightart6064]

You can make your own with HYPO I also made a video on it which is on my channel 😉

[@manikandasubbu7959]

@@lostlightart6064 Thank you very much for the reply. I would like to ask another question. Can we use 0.02N silver nitrate solution, which is readily available in store here?

[@JanKratochvilcom]

Great one, what do you use for fixing? Hypo?

[@lostlightart6064]

I use rapid fix but yeah Hypo is just as good 😉

[@JanKratochvilcom]

@@lostlightart6064 Thank you for your answer and good luck! Jan

[@Brendan9674]

Can the print also go through a bath of Hypo clearing agent or could that damage it ?

[@lostlightart6064]

Haven't tried it yet. Share the results if you give it a try!

[@mrxanadu82]

How do you get your negative on a glass plate? Also, what if you want it larger? I shoot 120 film but I would want a photo larger than a 120 negative.

[@lostlightart6064]

The same as on LF film. You need a large format camera, proper Dry Plate Holders and some plates. The rest is very simmilar to developing film or paper. I make plates even up to 50x50cm in size 😉 You can learn more on: www.zebradryplates.com

[@andyvan5692]

aha! you are making PHOTO paper, like ilford darkroom paper!!, NOT negatives, but can you buy pre-coated salt print paper?, just like dryplates?

[@lostlightart6064]

Sure it could be done but I need a few more workers first 😬

[@NoahKainWhittington]

would this technique work with a pinhole camera?

[@vedostuu]

Few questions; have you succeeded with film negative, getting good density? Do you know what is the density in your glass plates? Also why the whole paper cannot be submerged in salt water? And one question more: I've understood that normal "hardening" fixer will dissolve too much silver, but that wasn't problem here. Did you use some tricks? I think sodium thiosulfate should be used for fixing.

[@matt-analoguelife]

I have used negatives developed in 510-pyro at 100%+ increase in normal developing time to build density. So far as I know, if you get Salt solution on the reverse of the paper it can affect the Silver coating and cause staining. I use Sodium thiosulphate + pinch of Sodium bicarbonate to fix x 2 baths.

[@vedostuu]

@@matt-analoguelife Pyro is a good choice as the staining is protecting even more from UV. Lost Light Art used Adofix so that is why I'm questioning the fixing. My Sodium Thiosulphate fixer has much radical effect than the Adofix on this video. Maybe I should try Adofix too.

[@matt-analoguelife]

@@vedostuu - you can reduce the bleaching effect of the thiosulphate fixer by first washing (1 - 3 min's) the print in a weak salt solution (same as the coating is fine) , then by adding Sodium bicarbonate to the fixer to maintain alkalinity.

[@lostlightart6064]

I am getting good density negatives by developing in HC-110 otherwise many other paper developers will give you nice density as well. If you submerge the whole paper you, also thr back side kf the paper would get exposed but if you dont mind that just go for it! I use adofix for everything without any problems 🤷‍♂️🙂

[@PrinceMeowmers]

So I'm trying this for the first time and I'm a bit confused. You have to coat the silver nitrate solution onto the salted paper under a red light, but once it's dry, it can be under tungsten light again? For my first attempt I did everything under a (dim) tungsten lamp, and my highlights look brown. Thanks for the great video.

[@lostlightart6064]

Its pretty simple the less you expose your salt-silver mixture the better it is. So you can do the whole coating and drying pocess under red light. You turn the lights back on just for exposure...

[@PrinceMeowmers]

@@lostlightart6064 Appreciate it, thanks!

[@vertusmatjaz]

You are unbelievable. P.s. where do you usually buy the chemistry? Do you even shoot films? Or just plates?

[@lostlightart6064]

I buy 90% of it from ebay. Its been a long time since I last shot film 😅

[@vertusmatjaz]

do you know there was one Slovenian priest back in the days who also is famous for shooting on a dry plate? In the 19th century. I guess it's from the area around you somewhere.

[@lostlightart6064]

If you mean Janez Puhar and his invention Puharotipija than sure I do!

[@nasragiel]

So the silver bath for collodion plates is ~10% and here we use just a 2% solution? Whats the reason for that? :) It obviously works I'm just curious. Great video by the way! Right in time before my salt print equiptment arrives. :)

[@lostlightart6064]

Hey, I havent made or even shoot wetplate before so a bit hard to answer but as far as I know Collodion is much faster process ;)

[@nasragiel]

@@lostlightart6064 how did you create the glas negative when it is not collodion?

[@argentum_on_glass]

@@nasragiel do not mix up the salt with silver... here salt is 2% and 12% silver nitrate!

[@Mishuthlu]

Hello! Is it possible to print on glass or acrylic plate with salt? I'm very interested in printing on glass

[@lostlightart6064]

Hey. I havent seen anyone do it.

[@swishpan]

So you also need regular photo fixer right?

[@lostlightart6064]

Yes to stabilize the image

[@itsumonihon]

your fingertips..oh dear. silver nitrate is a very useful thing for people into photography and chemistry. you can make beautiful high quality mirrors with it. or semi-silvered mirrors, or beam splitters. the quality of reflection is much higher than that of normal mirrors used in every day life. it's commonly used in the medical field as well. don't let it get on your skin, or you'll have stains like in the video for a few weeks :)

[@arisfopalan9004]

What is the fixer?

[@nedimsu]

How did you make that negative? And can some items found at home be used as a fixer?

[@hanmade54]

ferns, feathers, flowers, almost anything!

[@nedimsu]

@@hanmade54 I know, but that wasn't my question :) But I watched your video on how to reuse old plates after I commented here so I got my answer

[@lostlightart6064]

Hey. You can fix in a very strong salt solution but it takes a few days at 20C ;)

[@drwarson]

Hello! I have a problem with a fixing. I use 5% Sodium Thiosulphate solution and after fixing my picture gets to light. Why does it happen?

[@Piratesjunior]

Hi. I wonder why my salt print faded when it few months past.

[@ajaaoka6364]

Typically from incorrect fixing. Fixer is a stabilizing chemical that prevents the fading

[@imnotria]

dense negative that can be made on glass how to make it?

[@lostlightart6064]

Shoot with glass plates that are coated with silver emulsion and developed in high density developer

[@argentum_on_glass]

negative collodion glass plate

[@imnotria]

what is that white capsule?

[@lostlightart6064]

Which one?

[@azfactor7875]

I believe that is the magnet that does the actual stirring as it spins.

[@clintoncarves]

about the 2% salt solution you diluted it up to 100ml but it seems you filled your 250ml bottle container from that beaker. TIA

[@paulisaez]

Too complicate Too long

[@itsumonihon]

lazy brat