Platinum / Palladium
The most permanent photograph ever made.
Iron salts reduce platinum to its metal state inside paper fibres—producing a print expected to last as long as the paper itself.
Light-sensitive platinum chemistry brushed on paper, exposed to sunlight, then developed in plain water.
- ▸The metal sits inside the paper fibers — no glossy coating.
- ▸Gives an enormous range of soft greys and a matte, painterly look.
- ▸Platinum prints last for hundreds of years without fading.
History
William Willis patented the platinotype in 1873. Photographers like Frederick Evans and Edward Steichen made it synonymous with fine-art photography around 1900. Cost forced revivals, and today it's a specialty alt-process.
Process
- 01
Mix ferric oxalate sensitiser with platinum and palladium salts.
- 02
Coat watercolour paper; dry.
- 03
Contact print under a digital negative in UV.
- 04
Develop in potassium oxalate; the image emerges instantly.
- 05
Clear in EDTA baths to remove iron; wash and dry.
Strengths
- +Extreme tonal range
- +Permanent
- +Beautiful matte surface
Limitations
- −Very expensive metals
- −Requires negatives the size of the print
- −Long exposures
Sources & citations
References for the history and process described above.
- 01Platinum Prints — The Metropolitan Museum of Art — Heilbrunn Timeline
- 02The Platinotype — George Eastman Museum