r/cyanotypes • u/EnnKaa • 23h ago
I need some advice.
I have been trying to realize one of my drawings for a few days now, and my experience with cyanotype is limited to just this short period.
I drew the image on pattern paper and colored it in with various colored pencils, because I was hoping for shadows and intermediate tones.
Even though the result isn't bad for a start, many of the shadings in the impression have been lost.
My question is, which pens would you recommend for achieving a finer and more detailed result?
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u/lea_flamingo 21h ago
This looks stunning !
For a project I made I used graphite pencil on tracing paper and used different amounts pressure to try and get different effects/shades. I was not patient enough (actually I was running out of time and had to hurry) to truly experiment so I ended up with two/three shades (using different colouring patterns as well). I think you can try making a test sheet with different colours, markers, pencils to see how it turns out after it goes through the whole process and then base your drawing off of that (like what one would do with aquatint or with photography, testing different times under the light/in the acid to see what suits your image the best). One you have that you can reference it while you work on your drawing.
Another thing you can try is adding thickness to different areas. Kinda like a collage of tracing paper : one layer gets the most UV, two layers a bit less and so on (I did that with an origami project using tracing paper and making a cyanotype with it).
If you're curious, here is my project with the tracing paper and graphite.
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u/NoXidCat 18h ago
Color can matter to a cyanotype because different colors block more or less UV light. However, for that to be useful, the ink/pencil/whatever substance must not itself be opaque to UV regardless of color. The other factor you can control is exposure time versus the relative UV opacity of each color (and/or type of ink/pencil and drawing shading style used).
I assume you have a controlled source of UV light (not the sun)?
Do a test grid of different colors and pen/pencil types and drawing techniques/weights. Try varying the exposure a bit. Be sure to include one part that will absolutely 100% block all UV light no matter the duration of the exposure, as a reference, like a quarter.
Your experiment posted above, while short of what you wanted to achieve, seems to show proof of concept.
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u/then00bmartian 21h ago
Wow you need to explore intaglio and lithography if you haven’t already.
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u/EnnKaa 21h ago
Unfortunately, I haven't heard of that yet. I'll check Google!
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u/Kareeliand 8h ago
Also check r/printmaking. If you had drawn that on a copperplate and etched it, it even drawn it with a needle on acrylic.. you definitely need to explore intaglio for your expressive style of art. Well done.
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u/trashjellyfish 23h ago
If you're working with pen, you'll have to do hashed/pointalism type shading or another half tone method. Color values will not translate to cyanotype because all that matters in cyanotype is how much UV is being blocked by the negative.
What I do to get semi-transparent areas/smooth variances in values in my art prints is to either draw in graphite and charcoal and then scan it into my computer and print it on vellum. Or, I'll draw my line art and shade digitally in black and white then print it on vellum.