Board_Advisors_etc 3..5

In the presence of acetic acid, gelatin absorbs
dye. Each matrix is soaked in its proper color,
cyan, magenta, or yellow, then rinsed and rolled
individually onto wet paper treated with a gelatin
layer and a mordant to hold the dye and to prevent
it from bleeding when it hits the paper. Because the
paper is much less acid than the dye, the dye
migrates from acid to base, transferring from the
gelatin on the matrix to the gelatin on the paper.
The matrix is peeled away and the next color is
rolled down while the paper is still wet. After all
three colors are applied, the print is dried and
flattened. Because each color is applied separately,
precise registration of the matrices is essential.

Manipulating the Process

The contrast range of a transparency is greater than
that of a print. Once the separations have been
made,maskscanbeusedtocontrolcontrastand
shadow. Primary masks can be used to lower the
contrast in making separations and matrices. Using
speciallithographicfilm,severaladditionalsetsof
three black and white images can be made to mask
highlights. These highlight masks can be placed on
top of the separations during part or all of the
exposure of the matrices, resulting in a brightening
of the lighter parts of the print and control of the
colors in the highlights. With highlight masks, the
highlights can be controlled separately from the mid-
tones and shadows. Contrast reducing masks enable
the printer to control the density and color of sha-
dows. Additional shadow separations can add con-
trast to the shadows, and by exposing a sheet of
matrix film through all three shadow masks at
once, the black parts of the image can be isolated
and printed separately. Thus each print can depend
on at least fifteen black and white sheets of film used
as separations and masks. Because a variation in any
one of these can make a print unusable, the devel-
opers and trays must be kept within a quarter of a
degree of the proper temperature. Moreover, the
printer must understand the unique characteristics
of the different types of black and white film used to
make separations, highlight masks, and contrast
reducing masks.
Burning and dodging, the common techniques
used in printing black and white photographs, are
considerably more difficult with dye transfer

because the alterations would have to be repeated

exactly for each of the three separations or ma-

trices. For dye transfer, dodging effects are

achieved by painting with a dye called Crocein

scarlet on clear film sheets that are placed on top

of the separations and masks. Crocein blocks light

and can be painted where it is needed. For effects

similar to burning, windows can be cut from

Amberlith or Rubylith, translucent graphic arts

materials that are orange or red. These block the

blue light to which the matrix film is sensitive.

Practical Application

Despite its difficulty, dye transfer has distinct

advantages as a process for making color prints.

Because each color is developed and applied sepa-

rately, minute alterations can be made to individual

colors, resulting in precise control of the final

image. The prints have a unique richness and

depth, since the dyes actually soak into the fibers

of the paper instead of resting on a plastic coating

on the surface of the paper. Most important, the

prints are archivally stable. Recent research has

shown that in dark storage, dye transfer prints

would show little deterioration in six hundred

years, if properly cared for. Although computer-

based digital techniques have replaced the use of

dye transfer for commercial photography and only

a small handful of art photographers still use the

process, existing dye transfer photographs may

someday be regarded as some of the most beautiful

and enduring color images from our age.

KirstenA. Hoving

Seealso: Emulsion; Non-Silver Processes; Print

Processes

Further Reading

Beede, Mindy. Dye Transfer Made Easy. New York:

Amphoto Books, 1981.

Doubley, David A.The Dye Transfer Process. (published

privately), 1984.

Kodak Dye Transfer Process. Rochester: Eastman Kodak

Co., 1951.

Powell, Luke. ‘‘The Dye Transfer Process,’’ unpublished

technical notes.

Wilhelm, Henry.The Permanence and Care of Color Photo-

graphs. Grinnell, Iowa: Preservation Publishing Co., 1993.

DYE TRANSFER