Lithography vs. Offset lithograpy

 The following is an explanation of the differences between  stone lithography and  offset lithography.

Lithograph

Offset lithograph

LITHOGRAPHY works because of the  mutual repulsion of oil and water. The image is drawn on the surface of the print plate with a fat or oil-based medium such as a wax crayon, which may be pigmented to make the drawing visible. After the drawing of the image, a solution of gum arabic, weakly acidified with nitric acid is applied to the stone. The function of this solution is to create a  layer of calcium nitrate salt, and gum arabic on all non-image surfaces. The gum solution penetrates into the pores of the stone, completely surrounding the original image with a layer that will not accept the printing ink. Using lithographic turpentine the printer then removes any excess of the greasy drawing material, but a hydrophobic molecular film of it remains tightly bonded to the surface of the stone, rejecting the gum arabic and water, but ready to accept the oily ink.  When printing, the stone is kept wet with water. Naturally the water is attracted to the layer of gum and salt created by the acid wash. Printing ink based on drying oils such as linseed oil and varnish loaded with pigment is then rolled over the surface. The water repels the greasy ink but the hydrophobic areas left by the original drawing material accept it. When the hydrophobic image is loaded with ink, the stone and paper are run through a press which applies even pressure over the surface, transferring the ink to the paper and off the stone.

OFFSET LITHOGRAPHY
High-volume lithography is used presently to produce posters, maps, books, newspapers, and packaging—just about any smooth, mass-produced item with print and graphics on it. Most books, indeed all types of high-volume text, are now printed using offset lithography
For offset lithographyhotographic processes, flexible aluminum, polyester, mylar or paper printing plates are used instead of stone tablets. Modern printing plates have a brushed or roughened texture and are covered with a photosensitive emulsionographic negative of the desired image is placed in contact with the emulsion and the plate is exposed to ultraviolet light. After development, the emulsion shows a reverse of the negative image, which is thus a duplicate of the original (positive) image.

TELEVISION OUT OF THE BOX

At the Paley Center in Los Angeles

The Warner Bros. Exhibit at the Paley Center
opens today, MARCH 7th, 2012                                    

http://www.paleycenter.org/p-television-out-of-the-box

THE JOKER

Here’s another example of an acrylic box display case.
Acrylic box display cases are unlike any picture framing and are a natural way to display sports memoribilia, or personal heirlooms that need to be seen from all sides.  
This is one of many masks from Batman Dark Knight that we produced which were  sent around the country.
If you see one somewhere, please let me know!

The Archives

It has been interesting doing work for the Warner Bros. Archives.

Actually, it is always an honor doing work for the Warner Bros. Archives.

I describe the huge facility as a Home Depot warehouse not stocked with building supplies but with an endless collection of artifacts from almost all Warner Bros.  Productions.   This includes of course film, but also TV, animation, memorabilia of every description.

Have you ever seen an indoor parking lot of Bat Mobiles? 

I was asked to help their amazing staff prepare some animation art as well as some television artifacts for an upcoming exhibit at the Paley Media Center.

From television, does anyone have an idea whose eyeglasses and necktie tie this is?

Tintype

The subject of the tintype shown here is my great-grand mother on my father's side, Emma.

My challenge in framing is that this piece is small and I want a large image to frame. I think

enlarging the image in Photo Shop and making a second cutout in the matting to reveal the original piece will work.  Using special acrylic to reduce the risk of ultraviolet damage is a good idea.

A moulding of Victorian design would be appropriate, I think.

According to Dave Mishkin, photos@maine.com a tintype is a photograph made on a sheet of iron instead of a piece of paper. In 1856 Hamilton Smith patented the process for producing tintypes. Most tintypes were brownish in color and the most common size was about 2 ½ " x 3 ½". Tintypes were popular from1856 until the early 1900's. Tintypes were also called ferrotypes and melainotypes. Many tintypes were put in cases making it more difficult to differentiate them from a daguerreotype. Many tintypes were placed in a paper or cardboard frame while others were used in jewelry or in photo albums. The photographer would frequently clip the corners to make the insertion in the paper or cardboard frame easier. You may find very small tintypes (about postage stamp size) in a photograph album. These were called Gem tintypes. Some schools had photographic albums for their graduating classes and they used the Gem sized tintypes for insertion in the albums. Tintypes were produced in the millions in the United States and are very commonly found today. Just like daguerreotypes, some of the tintypes were cased. Being cased makes it more difficult to distinguish the tintype from a daguerreotype.
After processing, most tintypes were varnished to protect the surface from abrasions and atmospheric conditions. Today you will find that many tintypes that were varnished are experiencing a cracking in the varnish coating. From the time it was introduced to the early 1900's tintypes were the preferred photographic process used by itinerant and street photographers. Tintypes were made mostly for portrait photography because of their relatively low cost and rapid development times. However, the image quality was not quite as good as other photographic methods.

Tintype

Tintype of Herbert Hoover.

Tintype, also melainotype and ferrotype, is a photograph made by creating a direct positive on a sheet of iron metal that is blackened by painting, lacquering or enamelling and is used as a support for a collodion photographic emulsion.

Photographers usually worked outside at fairs, carnivals etc. and as the support of the tintype (there is no actual tin used) is resilient and does not need drying, photographs can be produced only a few minutes after the picture is taken.

An ambrotype uses the same process and methods on a sheet of glass that is mounted in a case with a black backing so the underexposed negative image appears as a positive. Tintypes did not need mounting in a case and were not as delicate as photographs that used glass for the support.