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Photographic Screen Exposure using the Sun !
This is a guide to how I expose my screens in the sun with positives made from printed pages brushed with cooking oil.
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Things you will need :
a silkscreen / emulsion / scoop coater
design printed or drawn on paper
cooking or olive oil
piece of glass
cardboard
the sun to be shining
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In this guide I am using our pink One Step emulsion - it exposes 4 times faster than the blue Diazo emulsion that we sell and it comes pre sensitized and has a year shelf life. This method works with the blue Diazo emulsion too but just takes longer to expose.
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Step 1
Prepare your screen by degreasing it and then coating it with emulsion and letting it dry (Have a look at my blog on photographic exposure If you haven't already for some tips and guides for screen preparation)
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Step 2
Print out your design on a page (you can use a laser or inkjet printer)
Step 3
Apply oil to your page. You can use olive or cooking oil, both work for me. I apply the oil using a silicone brush only because it's easy to clean afterwards. You can apply the oil to the front or the back of the paper, I like to apply it to the back because it is fun to see the design show through the page as you wipe the oil onto it. Wipe the excess oil from the page with a paper towel or toilet paper to get it less messy !
Step 4
Place your screen on a board so that it can be carried easily. Place the oiled page onto the screen face down and then cover it with glass. The glass helps keep the page in contact with the mesh. Tape the glass to the screen to keep it all from moving while you carry the screen outside.
Step 5
Cover the screen and glass with something like cardboard to block the light.
Step 6
Take the screen outside and check for clouds. When it looks clear, remove the cardboard and let the sun expose your screen.
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I did a step test and I found that 30-40 seconds worked best with the One Step emulsion and my screen with 43T mesh.
Various things affect exposure times like mesh count, mesh colour, type of emulsion and light source. link to my step test page
Step 7
Once you reach the time you want to expose your screen for, cover it up with cardboard and take it inside and wet the screen on both sides with cold water. Leave it for a few minutes before starting to wash out the unexposed emulsion.
Step 8
After washing out the unexposed emulsion, dry your screen - I use a hair dryer. If you are using the pink One Step emulsion you can take it and leave it in the sun for a few minutes to harden the emulsion a little more. No positive is needed, just the screen. This helps make the stencil more resistant.
Things that can go wrong :
If your emulsion isn't completely dry before exposing it will be soft and come off when you wash out the design. If you don't use a scoop coater the emulsion can be too thick and will not dry easily and also can be uneven so parts will be exposed and others will be underexposed.
Underexposure of your screen - this will have your emulsion looking soggy and coming off when washed out.
Overexposure - this results in not being able to clean the design out.
Soft underexposed emulsion
A step test is really the best way to go, you make one screen and find out exactly what works for you. It's always fun to try to get it right on the first go but if you don't, try out a step test. If you're having any problems you are welcome to contact me and I can see if I can help you get it right.
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I enjoyed exposing my screen in the sun. It seemed daunting at first but then I tested it and realised that the sun actually exposes really well. Exposure time is fast and it feels good to be able to use such a natural source of UV light. Using paper positives cuts down on using plastic transparencies too so it's all a pretty eco friendly way to make screens and you don't need to spend a lot of money on equipment. Getting a light for use in Winter might be needed but during Summer why not try exposing your screen using the sun.
I have found that putting a book under the screen (that fits inside the frame) helps get better contact with the glass and the mesh.
And then the fun part, print your design !
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First I print the black
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Then I block out the black part of the screen and print the red
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These were printed with Aqua Art paper and board inks