If You Knew Dye Transfer

How many times must a process die before you learn why? The insistence is common, consistent, durable — it lasts longer than the process itself. People of the Net hold the belief that dye transfer would be resurected, successfully, if peopls could see how fantastic it was, particularly in this age of terrible stuff.

You have to see it to believe it… You have to believe it to see it. Is that true in the case of dye transfers?

The role played by product names in art appreciation is high at the sales table, and among the foremost forums.

“Not to find one's way around a city does not mean much. But to lose one's way in a city, as one loses one's way in a forest, requires some schooling. Street names must speak to the urban wanderer like the snapping of dry twigs, and little streets in the heart of the city must reflect the times of day, for him, as clearly as a mountain valley. This art I acquired rather late in life; it fulfilled a dream, of which the first traces were labyrinths on the blotting papers in my school notebooks.”
— Walter Benjamin

understand the magic

Dyes were seen and made by hundreds in the era of Photograph as Object suited to gallery and museum. The growth years of photography in art schools — 1975 – 1995.

Even still, it failed, being superseded by other processes. Direct to print processes such as Type Rs (Cibas, too) for Slide to print. And, Type Cs (chromogenics, RA-4s)for Negative to print. This later printing mode strikes hardest, since Kodak Pan Matrix film was introduced with Kodak masked color negative film

the advantage of real world experience is that is is real.
i read history in the bathroom; philosophy in the bedroom; poetry in the kitchen

If you knew it was a dye transfer would it interest you more? One group of people have made dye imbibition prints over the past decade. Have shown them in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Houston, Brooklyn, London … never calling them Dye Transfers, instead, they were dye prints, or ink transfers, and similar names. Some prints were sold, but so too were Epson Inkjets, Fujifilm RA-4s. Without making these as dyes, they sold as images. This was the basic interest of the collective group that had gone to the trouble of learning to make dyes. By make, understand that this meant having matrix film produced again.

Why did they keep this a secret private among themselves?

what would you rather talk about: process or *c, where *c is being defined, refined. Who asks, who would you be limited to talking too, with, if the topic were “process”.

Most people diffuse their interest by a bit of gossip. That mannerism is what diminishes a process to the point of pointless conversation.

Would people dive into dye transfer if given the chance? Nope, one [J* 826 ] of the Neu Ds posted on LFPF, offering a complete working dye transfer lab, including supplies… even going so far as saying she would meet them at an upcoming conference. No one, not even the loudest of counter pounder experts on dye transfer, and all topics color.


2011: 3 students
‘12 : +3
‘15 : +8

Showing Prints on the Web

Beginning printers learn by coordinating their eye and hand, by looking at more things, until they can make assessments of greater abstraction, ie, things removed, even remote, from the origin object. With skill, you see the tree not the print — do this enough and you will see the print as you look at the mountain… The representation of an image may serve as mnemonic, even as illustration to other visualizers. A common grounding; a touchstone needn’t be stonehenge. The self aware growing their visual mindscape. Certainly making a point in the Web2 world can be made with an illustration.

While a “print” can’t be shown over the wire, it can be transmitted, even understood; understood well enough that Telemedicine works.

craft doesn’t have to limit, nor does conversation have to be limited to craft 
“The real voyage of discovery consists, not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.” — Proust

It was commonplace to teach by way of slides. I used it as supporting background teaching dye transfer. Additionally, I was able to demonstrate differences in filtration methods in making Type C prints. Side by side on the same slide. Humans capable of making art are quite apt at understanding comparisons. We see in relationships. For absolutes we need a machine. Our eye is the bundle of the revealed brain.

One use of the cellshot is a record, a timestamp of that “light”

You Don’t Show, not even as illustration because:

  • don’t have
  • embarrassed by what have
  • don’t know how to show
  • afraid [you/ someone] will steal
  • don’t care about your opinion
  • [why expend so much effort claiming a ‘one true’ way] Even the emoji using redundant engineer. I assume he didn’t study physics, or isn’t interested in current “frame” meanings.

Can I show more using the ‘net? Is electronic imagery more flexible? Can you, using chemical means, balance the curve differences of color (RA4) paper? Not without recourse to multiple colored masks. An almost triiavl task for intermediate skilled digital based retoucher/printer. A well managed system provides immediate soft=proof.

Assessing the Mentor:

said / meant

I’ve never taken a photograph with my cellphone.  [i’m not good enough photographer to use the simple tool, to make memorable or useful picture]

Prepaid cell offering less coverage in remote locations. Still, makes a great retort of comfort to those steeped in creating a nearer to Thee legend.

An underdeveloped visual mind is terrible thing to brag about.

Their safety concern– how deep is their ocean?

  • ” I have only a cell phone for emergency roadside need.”
  • “I have never taken a picture with one [MEANING: so he can’t show you anything he has or has seen.]”
  • ” Besides, even the cell phone selfie phonies couldn’t get reception at the beautiful points in my recent travel.”

If you carry the phone for emergency roadside use… and there is no reception…. your life lessons may be flawed. Not the best guide; not a skilled map-maker.

The logicians involved are retired very active forum posters. One, an aerospace engineer who was retired at 55; the other an order processor at a softwoods shop. He retired in his late 60s; clearly more critical in job function than the redundant engineer.

They would have you follow their advice, (why they give it so often) that a cell phone is only good for roadside emergency — even where there is not service[?]. Lacking cell service, the supposed phone provides recording features, alas, not of use for these cellular phonies. Perhaps they mean they have a satellite phone. Good for them.

Behind their legend: in one case, mystery permits changing his story to fit the need for boasting of skills. In showing nothing, he lets you imagine him more capable than he is; more productive than he ever was.

Reasons for maintaining their legend:

  • they are embarrassed by what they have
  • they don’t have what they claim
  • maybe lack skill of translation

Skill types… the reason for craft is translation. Good to see your work is well regarded.

Exposure. Composition. Using the meter and following the measure of 18th century drawing rooms has a simple reward. Just not up to meeting on the majors stage

You must know where to show. Certainly the large, long-lived photo forums lack the shared background for worthwhile exchange. As well, they fail at being able to exchange craft information.

Perhaps they have stalled in all roads of their life — the roadside service has no on-ramp ramp

Tip toe through the tall tale

You can’t show on the Internet, you can’t evaluate a photograph, yet he didn’t like the prints, the photographs only seen on the Internet .
 That web fight was between Drew, Kirk Gittings,& Bob Carnie over print quality.

once this was pointed out to him, once it was pointed out to others that he had a website, within weeks his “own” website was taken down — chose to no longer show on the internet.