Accidental emulsion

This emulsion is sort of accidental, made on the side, more as an element of general practice or gelatin testing. Still it proves to be a quite useful chloride emulsion for contact printing.

Actually, I have never before tried to make chloride emulsions or never used chloride papers, even the modern ones. I knew of their existence; more recently from customers of Alternative Photographic Supplies who bemoaned their disappearance from the market. I even have a copier designed for use with such papers only no chloride papers. Guess that is what I have a lab for.

Reading one of the books about silver gelatin emulsions, I came across a description of the process along with a recipe for a chloride emulsion for contact printing. Well. One night later…. well, actually two nights as the emulsion is dreadfully sensitive to the type of gelatine used and the first test came out desperately foggy, and here is a working emulsion. More or less working that is.

Similarly to the negative emulsion the results aren’t quite what I want yet. The contrast is on the low side. Probably somewhere between grade1 and grade 2, closer to 1. But, a beginning has been made and I hope that the rest is a matter of rather simple tests and modifications.

Below the first test print; a 13x18cm print from a handmade colour blind negative of about 1,5 ISO