496 HANDBOOK OF PHOTOGRAPHY 



If this method of control is not desired, greater contrast may be obtained by the 

 use of a weaker sensitizer, say ) 2 or 3^ of 1 per cent, together with a correspondingly 

 longer printing time — two or four times normal — and a soaking water at the standard 

 temperature of 88°F. Overprinting and a warmer water may also be used in conjunc- 

 tion with the weaker sensitizing. 



If softer prints than normal are wanted, the sensitizer may be used stronger than 

 1 per cent, with correspondingly shorter printing. It is not advisable, however, to 

 attempt to use the sensitizer stronger than 5 per cent at most, since above this con- 

 centration it will tend to strip the emulsion from the paper. 



Local J\[odifications. — It is extremely easy to make local modifications of values. 

 Extra weight may be given to an area by avoiding it in pouring the soup, or by tilting 

 the support at such an angle that the soup does not run over the portion which is 

 to be left dark. Broad areas may be lightened by pouring the soup from a greater 

 height, so that it strikes the print with more violence in some places than in others; 

 this technique, however, is likely to result in a grainy appearance in the finished print. 

 Still greater lightening may be secured by the use of a soft brush, though this must be 

 applied carefully, a little at a time, if scratches and brush marks are to be avoided. 

 It is best to rinse the print free of sawdust, place it in a tray of cool water, and work 

 under the surface of the water. However, it is sometimes necessary, in order to 

 secure the maximum effect, to work in the air. However, by working carefully, it is 

 possible to carry this local modification very far indeed without it becoming appar- 

 ent; in this respect, Fresson is far more flexible than carbon, and almost as much so 

 as gum. 



Javelle Water. — It is sometimes recommended that the Fresson paper be greatly 

 overprinted and given a prehminary soaking in a dilute Javelle water before develop- 

 ment. The writer has found this technique to be altogether unsatisfactory; the great 

 desirability of Fresson lies in the extremely delicate manner in which it renders the 

 gradations of the negative, together with the beauty of surface of the finished print, 

 but the treatment with Javelle water increases contrast, loses the finer gradations, 

 and gives a coarse and grainy texture to the surface. The result is quite foreign to 

 the best expression possible with the medium. 



Final Remarks. — If the print is too dark when dry, it may be soaked until limp in 

 cool water, placed for 1 min. in water 2 or 3° warmer than was used in the original 

 development, and then developed still further with the sawdust. This treatment may 

 be repeated several times and does no harm. 



It is ordinarily recommended that Fresson prints be spotted by softening an 

 unsensitized piece of the paper in warm water and using the pigmented gelatin thus 

 loosened, applying it with a brush. This is necessarj^ when large areas are to be 

 spotted, especially if they are in the darker portions of the print, as any great amount 

 of penciling will leave a shiny mark. But for small spotting the writer prefers to use 

 a carbon spotting pencil (sharpened to a needle point on sandpaper) and stippling 

 rather than stroking, this being much easier than the brush method. 



If for any reason the finished Fresson seems too dull and heavy, it maj- be given 

 the brilliant appearance of a wet print by waxing, as described in the section on Plati- 

 num Printing, though this, of course, destroys the inherent beauty of the matte surface. 



If greater strength or richness is desired in a somewhat weak Fresson, this may be 

 secured by coating the finished print with a gum-pigment mixture, printing and 

 developing as described in the section on Gum Printing. Both waxing and the addi- 

 tion of a printing of gum are more satisfactory on the rough Fresson paper than on 

 the smooth. 



At its best, Fresson may fairly be considered a worthy rival of platinum, its long 

 scale of gradation, rich blacks, and matte surface giving it a good claim in this respect. 



