The DARKROOM COOKBOOK, Third Edition

198 THE DARKROOM COOKBOOK
● Stop the lens down one stop. If you are using graded paper choose grade 1 or 2. If you are using
variable contrast paper use fi lter 1½ or 2.
● Rough focus the light on the baseboard. It does not have to be sharply focused.
● Place the proofi ng frame in the center of the light projected on the baseboard or easel. I place
a Print File® Custom Proofer in the center of an 11 � 14 inch easel so I can easily reposition it
should it get moved.
● Place a sheet of enlarging paper, 1 emulsion side up, in the proofi ng frame and lay unexposed strip
of negatives or a single 4 � 5 inch sheet of unexposed but developed and fi xed fi lm on top, emulsion
side down. Close the glass and give a 2-second exposure to the entire negative and paper.
● Cover 1/2 inch of the negative with a piece of cardboard and give a second 2 second exposure.
Do not use paper to cover the negative as light will migrate through and fog your enlarging paper.
● Continue giving 2 second exposures moving the cardboard 1/2 inch between exposures until
you reach the end of the blank fi lm strip.
● Develop the paper for 2 minutes, wash, and fi x. As with everything else, standardize on the paper
developer and dilution.
Turn on the room light, squeegee the excess water from the print and place it in your
customary viewing light. It does not matter if you dry the print fi rst or look at it while wet as
long as you are satisfi ed with the fi nal results and are consistent in how you achieved them.
You will see a progression of strips across the fi lm from light gray to pure black. Look for two
adjoining black strips in which you cannot see any difference between them. This is the maximum
black point and there is no reason to give more exposure. Choose the shorter time as
your new time for proofi ng all negatives made with that fi lm/developer combination on that
enlarging paper at that f/stop and at that enlarger height. This is now your standard proofi ng
set-up. Test other fi lm developer combinations to be completely accurate (recommended) or
use this set-up for all developers with this same emulsion.
Proofi ng for maximum black is not the only way to make proof sheets, but it is a way to
standardize making proof sheets. By proofi ng for maximum black you will stream line your
working procedure getting through the proofi ng stage and onto the printing stage in the shortest
time possible. You will also have a standard by which to judge your negative quality. If your
images are too dark you will immediately know that you are underexposing or under developing
your fi lm. If the images are too light you will immediately know that you are overexposing
or overdeveloping your fi lm. If your exposures are consistently good and one day they start to
appear uneven or too light or dark there is a chance there is something wrong with your camera
or light meter.
Special Considerations
1. If the maximum black proofi ng time is less than 10 seconds stop down one stop and retest.
2. If there is no maximum black within the initial test open the lens one stop and retest. If there
is still no maximum black give an overall fi rst exposure between 10 and 16 seconds, cover the
fi rst strip and continue with 2 second exposures. If this fails to produce a maximum black then
switch to using 3 second exposures instead of 2 or use a faster paper to make your proof sheets!
1 It is not necessary to use your regular enlarging paper, though it ’s not a bad idea. Some workers like
to use RC for proofi ng, I prefer FB for everything I do. As John Sexton likes to say, we speak with our
pocketbook. If we don ’t use FB the manufacturers will stop making it.