THE PROCESS

Solar Plate etching is a photo-printmaking process that uses a steel plate coated with a photo- sensitive polymer to create an intaglio reproduction of a photograph.

The image is first reproduced onto transparent film. I use pictorico film in my inkjet printer from a digital photograph or scanned negative. The film is then exposed onto the light sensitive plate (solarplate) using the Sun or other ultraviolet light source. After exposure the plate is put into a water bath which removes the softer material (darker parts of the image that did not receive much UV light) and leaves a negative on the plate to print from. To get tonal range in my images, I use the double exposure method in which the plate is pre-exposed with a mezzotint screen and then exposed with the film positive.  After the plate is hardened once more in the sun, it is ready to be inked and be printed on dampened paper through an etching press.

I love what this process does to the image, though not as detailed as a photograph or inkjet print, it brings a different mood to the image that can be changed with the colors of the ink used. In this series I use a raw sepia for it’s large tonal range and warm brown color.