Post Exposure, Second Edition: Advanced Techniques for the Photographic Printer [Paperback]

Ctein (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0240804376 | ISBN-13: 978-0240804378 | Publication Date: October 27, 2000 | Edition: 2

Distilled from over thirty years experience and addressing both black-and-white and color printing, Post Exposure's purpose is to teach photographers the refinements of photographic printmaking, taking them from making merely competent prints to making excellent ones.






Post Exposure provides clear explanations of principles and theory, but the focus is on practical techniques and examples of fine printmaking. Post Exposure contains numerous photographic prints, including sixteen pages of color.





Covers the producing of prints with various enlarger heads
Updated "Tricks of the Trade" covering safelight fogging, adequate wash steps in reversal print processing, and litho film masks for dodging and burning in
Expanded coverage on how to do split-filter printing, how to use Sistan and color film masking

Editorial Reviews

Review

Advance Praise for Post Exposure:
"The short review is this: buy the book. It is not just another how-to-book, but is filled with theoretical backgrounds to a wide range of photographic questions; it will be an invaluable reference work on your shelves. The section on development inhibiting couplers, for example, is brilliant."
- Shutterbug

"Step-by-step, detail by intricate detail, Ctein takes us from the very beginning of the photographic process, to the most advanced and sophisticated techniques as no other author ever has. From subjects as essential as determining if an enlarging lens is properly centered, to procedures taking the image from exposure to the making of the fine print, Ctein leaves no detail unexplored and wipes away long perpetuated ideas that have no basis in fact. This book will be the key reference text in just about every darkroom dedicated to quality work. It is truly a masterpiece of technical analysis and instruction that answers every elusive question photographers have long wondered about."
-Arthur Kramer, author of "Kramer's Korner" for Camera 35, "View from Kramer" in Modern Photography, and "Pro View" in Popular Photography.

"Post Exposure provides unique background information for printers, including all of Ctein's significant researches into a variety of issues of importance to serious darkroom workers. More intelligent and scientifically literate by far than the standard fare, it is the best such synopsis to be found in any current book directed at a lay audience. Post Exposure is the essence of Ctein's distinguished career as one of the nation's leading magazine writers on photographic technique."
-Mike Johnson, editor, PHOTO Techniques

"Comprising more than a dozen chapters, the book explores not only how we see, but also how film and print material sees. This is a book favored by many photography experts, even prompting PT Contributing Editor Howard Bond to call it "one of the best six books ever written on photography." - Photo Techniques, April 2001

"Now in an updated and expanded second edition, Post Exposure continues to be an indespensable photographic printmaker introduction and reference to the underlying principles and practices needed to produce professional quality photography prints. Post Exposure is a "must" for any photographer aspiring to produce professional quality photographic prints. - Bookwatch, March 2001

From the Publisher

The book provides clear explanations of principles and theory, but the focus is on practical techniques and examples of fine printmaking. Post-Exposure will contain numerous photographic prints, including sixteen pages of color prints. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Focal Press; 2 edition (October 27, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0240804376
• ISBN-13: 978-0240804378
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 8.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,670,807 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent discussion of factors which enhance print quality., May 11, 1999

By 

R. B. Hallock (Leverett, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Post-Exposure: Advanced Techniques for the Photographic Printer (Paperback)

Ctein indicates up front that this book is not designed as an introduction to printmaking, but is dedicated to teaching the refinements of printmaking. At this the book remarkably successful. Topics include film characteristics and calibration, enlarging lenses and the subject of image sharpness, black and white and color printing, and many tidbits of useful information gleaned form many years of experience and experimentation. Those familiar with and comfortable with graphical information will particularly like the book. From my perspective the section on image sharpness was extremely well done, including a technical discussion about what matters and what does not as well as a tabulation of recommended enlarging lenses and their characteristics. Another good discussion is the thorough presentation of contrast and the effect of various filters on different papers. Although color printing is also covered, even for those who limit themselves to black and white the content in the color sections is interesting. Ctein presents facts for the most part, but on occasion also states his opinions. When he does, he makes it quite clear he is doing so. This is quite simply a superb book, one of the best I have read, and filled with useful information.

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Full of tips for the serious printmaker, July 13, 1999

By 

Jorge Ma Trevino Garcia "Jorge M. Treviño" (Uruapan, Mich. Mexico) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Post-Exposure: Advanced Techniques for the Photographic Printer (Paperback)

Do you know how to make an unsharp mask for your color negatives? How to evaluate your enlarging lens? Why your variable-contrast prints might be unsharp? These are just three of the unique tips I could found on Ctein's book and that made it worth its price but the whole book, from cover to cover, is superb reading material.

Although the book is assembled from seemingly disconnect articles, it is an out of the ordinary collection of techniques focused on improving your darkroom work.

A must for dedicated darkroom workers.

12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars ADVANCED!!! Good book, but not for the average amateur, January 2, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Maryland, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Post-Exposure: Advanced Techniques for the Photographic Printer (Paperback)

I do not consider myself to be technically lacking, however this book (informative as it was) is written for those in the higher levels of photographic sciences. If you don't have a good science background, or a knowledge of optics or physics, this book will be extremely difficult for you. Many of the technical terms required explanation, however they weren't. The majority of the charts and graphs were meaningless to me. I don't want to put the book down totally, there are some things that you could learn from it, however the fact that it is written in such highly scientific terms makes the book difficult for the average layperson like myself.