How Prints Are Made

The black and white photographs in this portfolio were shot with black and white film using a 4x5", 5x7", or 8x10" view camera. I process the film in a traditional pyro formula and then scan the image at a very high resolution. After manipulating the tones of the image to match my visual intentions, I print with a modified ink jet printer on imported, acid free, 100% cotton rag paper using six shades of archival, carbon-pigment inks. The result is an image which has the tonal range and archival characteristics of a gelatin-silver print while simultaneously providing the rich, velvety surface quality of a platinum print. The museum nomenclature for these new prints is "digital carbon-pigment prints." The process combines the best of traditional and modern processes.

The color prints are shot on the same large format cameras with the addition of a 2.25x7" panorama camera. The images are scanned on a high-resolution scanner and then corrected for color and tonal range. Then they are printed on acid free, 100% cotton rag paper utilizing a wide-format ink jet printer loaded with seven colors of micro-encapsulated pigment inks. These new color prints eliminate the distracting surface glare of traditional color prints, and provide the finest archival color print process ever invented. Thoroughly tested, these inks show no sign of visible fading for at least 75 years.

Like any fine piece of artwork the prints should be kept away from moisture and displayed in an area that does not receive exposure to direct sunlight. With proper care these prints should last for generations.

Edward Riddell