The Essentials of Illustration: A Practical Guide to the Reproduction of Drawings & Photographs for the Use of Scientists & Others — John Shaqi
The Essentials of Illustration: A Practical Guide to the Reproduction of Drawings & Photographs for the Use of Scientists & OthersHill, Thomas George
Science
The Essentials of Illustration: A Practical Guide to the Reproduction of Drawings & Photographs for the Use of Scientists & Others
Hill, Thomas George
Engraving -- Printing; Illustration of books; Photomechanical processes
The photographic part of the process is essentially the same as making
a carbon print from a photographic negative. This consists in exposing
under the negative the carbon tissue, which is a mixture of gelatine,
in which is dissolved bichromate of potash, and a suitable pigment.
Such a film of bichromate gelatine is, when dry, sensitive to light.
If no light gains access to it, the gelatine is readily soluble in
warm water; if light acts upon it, the gelatine becomes insoluble in
proportion to the degree of its exposure. Obviously, the pigment will
be retained in varying degrees according to the relative insolubility
of the different parts of the gelatine.
The carbon tissue having been exposed, is rolled down on a wet sheet
of paper covered with some adhesive and is dried under pressure. The
paper is then soaked in warm water when the basis of the carbon tissue
easily peels off; the picture is developed by laving in warm water,
which will dissolve the gelatine in proportion to its exposure to
the light. The print when dry is remarkably permanent and, from the
picturesque point of view, is infinitely superior to the ordinary
silver print.
The method of making the photogravure plate is, in outline, as
follows:
The original drawing is photographed, and it is very important that
the negative should be as perfect as possible.
From the negative, a positive is made upon transparency carbon tissue
which is mounted upon a sheet of plate glass. The procedure is, in
essentials, exactly the same as described above for the making of a
carbon print. This positive when dry may be touched up; after which
a negative, which also may be touched up, is made from it upon an
ordinary sheet of carbon tissue.
The negative so obtained is transferred to a prepared plate of copper,
developed with warm water and dried.
The copper plate is prepared as follows: after being well polished
until quite free from all scratches, the surface is dusted over with
finely powdered resin or, more usually, bitumen. The plate is then
heated until the dust adheres.
After the carbon negative has been stuck on to the plate, developed
and dried, the margins and back of the copper are protected with an
acid-resisting varnish. When dry, the plate is placed in the etching
bath of nitric acid or, more generally, of ferric chloride. The
etching fluid will pass through the thinnest parts of the negative
first, so that the surface of the copper will be etched to a degree
corresponding to the thickness of the gelatine. The high lights on the
negative obviously will be represented by thick coatings of gelatine,
consequently such parts will be but slightly etched and vice versa.
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