Amazon.com: Master Photographer's Lith Printing Course: A Definitive Guide to Creative Lith Printing (9780817445393): Watson-Guptill: Books

Product Description

The intrinsic beauty and creative potential of the lith printing process is accessible to anyone who has access to a darkroom. This technique requires only special developers that are readily available and cost no more than conventional materials. This is the first step-by-step book on this exciting approach to print making. Written by Tim Rudman, the acknowledged master of this process, the book is aimed at all levels from first time lith printer to the advanced darkroom worker.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

Paperback: 128 pages
Publisher: Amphoto Books (January 1, 1999)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0817445390
ISBN-13: 978-0817445393
Product Dimensions: 11.2 x 11 x 1.3 inches
Shipping Weight: 13 ounces

Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7 customer reviews)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,045,736 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
pepper fogging, lith paper, toning lith prints, weak ferri, lith printing, dilute lith developer, infectious development, lith effect, lith development, developer replenishment, gold toner, lith developers, selenium toner, toning bath, fresh developer, bromide levels, conventional printing, colour control, colour shift, sodium sulphite, stop bath, image colour, extra exposure, weak blacks

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Art Classic, Old Brown, Sterling Premium, Lith Printing Advanced Class, Multigrade Warmtone, Golden Rules, Highlight Fogging, Taking Control of the Process, Kentmere's Kentona, Forte Polywarmtone, Fortezo Museum, Paper Characteristics, Takeaway Tip

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Citations (learn more)

This book cites 1 book:

San Jose by G.M. Johnson & Associates Ltd in Back Matter

1 book cites this book:

Max Ferguson's Digital Darkroom Masterclass by Max Ferguson in Back Matter

Books on Related Topics (learn more)

The A-Z of Creative Photography by Lee Frost

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Elements of Black and White Printing, Second Edition by Carson Graves

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The Digital Printing Handbook by Tim Daly

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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

	63% buy the item featured on this page: Master Photographer's Lith Printing Course: A Definitive Guide to Creative Lith Printing 3.9 out of 5 stars (7)
	25% buy The World of Lith Printing: The Best of Traditional Darkroom and Digital Lith Printing Techniques 5.0 out of 5 stars (1) $7.81
	4% buy The Book of Alternative Photographic Processes 4.8 out of 5 stars (38) $47.40
	4% buy The Print (Ansel Adams Photography, Book 3) 4.9 out of 5 stars (12) $16.50

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Customer Reviews

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Average Customer Review

3.9 out of 5 stars (7 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent guide to an intriguing alternative process, March 21, 1999

By	belleame (CO) - See all my reviews

If you are not a photographer who enjoys B&W for the ability to interpret an image by how it is printed or if you don't like darkroom work, you don't need this book. (If you have no darkroom experience, you need to learn the basics before buying this book. The text does assume familiarity with common processes, chemicals, and equipment.) But, if you are looking for alternative ways to print your images, lith printing may be for you. This is NOT lithographic in the sense of stark graphics, although you can get a similar effect. This process uses lith developer to affect the appearance of light and dark tones, usually with striking, soft, subtle, colorful effects. It is a simple process requiring patience and attention and this book tells you how to do it. The author writes in a style that is comfortable both for photographers that don't like technical details and for those who like a deeper understanding of the process. He includes lots of sample and comparison photos. He has very helpful charts, an index and a glossary at the back of the book. He discusses papers and their characteristics. Instructions are simple but clear, with lots of tips. They cover basic lith printing up to more advanced techniques such as toning, bleaching, and redevelopment. This is the only book dedicated to this process that I know of, but it is pretty much all you need.

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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Complete, Well-Organized Lith Lesson. Stunning Examples., July 13, 2004

By	mirasreviews (McLean, VA USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER) (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)

This review is from: The Master Photographer's Lith Printing Course: A Definitive Guide to Creative Lith Printing (Paperback)

"The Master Photographer's Lith Printing Course" is a beautiful comprehensive guide to Lith printing. Not to be confused with ultra-contrasty lith film, Lith printing is a technique by which a print is overexposed and then partially developed in Lith developer to produce a print that is colored monochrome. Prints typically have black shadows, colored mid-tones and burned-out highlights. The photographs must be printed on lith or other suitable black-and-white paper, and the colors produced vary according to the paper and technique. Lith prints may also be toned for additional color effects. Lith printing can be done from color negatives, but normally black-and-white negatives are preferable.

A photography book should be illustrated with example photographs that the reader can admire and would want to emulate. Author Tim Rudman must agree. "The Master Photographer's Lith Printing Course" contains about 125 example photographs, nicely reproduced, that are inspirational. The book is also very well organized. It starts with an introduction and FAQ. Chapter 1 provides an overview of lith printing which explains what effects lith printing produce, why, and to what subjects it might be suited. Chapter 2 talks about the equipment and materials you will need, including the qualities of each paper and developer that may be used in lith printing. Chapter 3 explains how to make a basic lith print. Chapter 4 goes into more detail about controlling printing and developing for various effects, including dodging, burning, and selective development. Chapter 5 talks about the whys and wherefores of pepper fogging, among other difficulties, and offers solutions. Chapter 6 is a short course in the chemistry behind lith printing, an understanding of which will help you prevent and solve problems. Chapter 7 is about controlling color in prints during development. Chapter 8 discusses toning lith prints, specifically with gold, selenium, and selenium plus gold toners for stunning effects. Chapter 9 talks about redeveloping conventional prints in lith developer. Chapter 10 introduces some "lith look-a-like effects" that can be achieved with sodium-hydroxide enriched developer, split-thiocarbamide toning, and various bleaching techniques. Some of these produce breathtaking results. Everything is generously illustrated. Tips and cautions are displayed in conspicuous colored boxes. The topics covered in each chapter are set out at the beginning of the chapter. The only fault I have with the book is minor: The captions that explain the photographs are quite good, but they are so small as to be difficult to read.

It should be noted that Tim Rudman is British, and he uses the British names for lith papers. UK/US/Australian paper equivalents are given in the excellent appendices in the back of the book. Also found in the appendices are: a troubleshooting guide, paper characteristics for 19 papers discussed in the book, a color guide that tells us which papers produce which colors under what circumstances, a paper speed reference table, an f-stop chart for printing, a glossary, and a list of US, UK, and Australian suppliers.

Some photographers might like to duplicate the style of lith prints in the digital darkroom. It would certainly be safer. If you're committed the digital darkroom, Tim Rudman's breathtaking prints can still serve as an inspiration. I generally prefer traditional prints for black-and-white photographs, as they convey a depth that is easily distinguished from digital prints when examined closely. And all lith prints will be one-of-a-kind, which could be a source of great pride or great frustration, depending on your mood. In any case, "The Master Photographer's Lith Printing Course" is a comprehensive, easy-to-follow, beautifully illustrated manual of Lith printing. I'm sure that wet darkroom printers of all levels will find this an interesting technique to try.

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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The One and Only Book On Lith Printing!!, May 4, 1999

By	Retina (Oakland, CA.) - See all my reviews

More than 1 year ago, I purchased Tim's first book, "The Photographer's Master Printing Course'. I felt I needed to go to the next level in my printing of black and white images. Little did I know how this book would change my printing and darkroom life. There was a small chapter on Lith Printing and this got me started, and, addicted!, to it.

With the publication of Tim's Lith book, it is the one and only book covering this little known, but, simple printing process that can add new firepower to the serious black and white printer's arsenal of techniques. As an avid 'Lithaholic', I am fascinated at the transformation of many of my black and white images into another realm of artistic interpretation with many directions with which to go. Tim lays it all out, in simple, easy to follow directions covering every aspect of this process. No one could have done a better job compiling years of experimentation into a text that will save the printer untold time in arriving at many lovely works of art using a process that I feel will be popularized by this book. It is an instantaneous classic that will be the first of many publications featuring lith printing.

All praise to Tim Rudman!! Thank you Tim.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars great for beginners and advanced lith printers
Very well organized and written, this book is a must for beginners and advanced lith printers alike. Read more

Published on August 15, 2005 by J. Scott

1.0 out of 5 stars Nice to look at, but pass.
I think Tim Rudman is a great photographer and teacher. However, the whole point of this book is pretty thin. Read more

Published on January 30, 2004 by R. Rosener

5.0 out of 5 stars The best
I can't imagine what posessed the last reviewer to complain about the print size of this book. It's the content that matters! Read more

Published on September 14, 2000 by Harry Sullivan

1.0 out of 5 stars Small print makes for my first Amazon return!
I really wanted this book. I have tried to read it! The print is so very very small that it is impossible to read without a magnifying glass. I just can't do it. Read more

Published on July 19, 2000 by G. Moore

› See all 7 customer reviews...

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