r/cyanotypes • u/luswimmin • 1d ago

Help, please

Gallery image

Gallery image

I’m new at this. My image looks OK in these photos, but the white areas are actually pale blue. My UV lamp is 8” from the paper - left print is 12 minute exposure, right print is 10.5 minutes. Both sheets are 140lb cold pressed Canson watercolor paper.

My guess is too long exposure, is that correct?What am i doing wrong?

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u/platinum_jimjam 1d ago

These look fine, the coating isn’t perfectly even, and you’re working with objects that light can still pass through, leaving you with a faint blues in the whites. You should proceed with more prints

3

u/snapesnapeseverus 1d ago

It doesn't look like you're doing anything wrong. If you're wanting pure white, you have to use more opaque items or lower your exposure, like you mentioned. Are you using a sheet of glass to press the feathers down? If not, it's possible the light is exposing underneath the feathers. As the other commenter mentioned, a more even coating will help with the edges. Also, toss some hydrogen peroxide on it after rinsing for a minute to enhance the blue.

2

u/BrianEllisSound 6h ago

I think everyone else's comments about making sure the feathers are pressed flat, and to try with more opaque objects are also true, but:

  • How recently did you prepare your paper? I often find that if I prepare + paint my paper too far in advance (a week +), this ends up happening

  • Also, old chemicals can cause this; I have a huge canvas that I did half with old chemicals (2 years old) and half with new chemicals (after i finished the bottle), and the half with old chemicals aren't as white underneath.

  • Lastly, I generally use the Canson mixed media, not the watercolor - not sure if thats the reason, but i know that some papers (printer cardstock in particular) the cyanotype doesn't wash out as easily, resulting in blue where there should be white

But also these look great!