From Cyanotype to Gum Dichromate: A Journey Through Alternative Photographic Printing

Across four weekly sessions of four hours each, this hands-on course opens the door to alternative photographic printing, a field rich in history and artistic possibility. The journey begins with the celebrated Prussian blue of cyanotype, moves through its duotone variations and the painterly character of gum dichromate, and culminates in the layered depth of gum printed over cyanotype. Throughout, participants develop a command of digital negative preparation, the key to full control over contrast, tonal range, and image quality.
The course is designed for photographers, printmakers, and artists seeking to broaden their analog practice.

Session One: Advanced Cyanotype
The session starts with the fundamentals but quickly moves beyond them. Participants learn to mix chemistry, coat paper, and expose under UV light, then advance to techniques for achieving a deep D-max, preserving delicate highlights, and controlling contrast with precision. Work on digital negatives begins here, from curve adjustments to ink density, so that each negative is tuned to the particular demands of cyanotype. Participants leave with a set of finished prints and a dependable, repeatable workflow.

Session Two: Duotone Cyanotype
Beneath cyanotype's familiar blue lies a hidden palette, and this session brings it to light. Through dual coatings, toning baths of tea, tannin, or sodium carbonate, and split-exposure techniques, prints are transformed into warm browns, sepia, and luminous purples. Participants refine their digital negative skills further, adjusting for the shifts in contrast and color response that toning introduces, and complete a small edition of duotone images marked by subtle, atmospheric tones.

Session Three: The Gum Dichromate Process
Here the work moves closer to painting than to photography. Watercolor pigment, gum arabic, and potassium dichromate combine to produce soft prints that carry the trace and movement of the brush. Participants practice coating, exposing, and developing single-layer gum prints, with particular attention to registering digital negatives, managing pigment load, refining brush technique, and timing development. The session reveals the beauty and unpredictability of hand-coated emulsions, where every print becomes a singular work.

Session Four: Gum Over Cyanotype (Combination Printing)
The final intensive session unites both processes in a single, multi-layered image of remarkable luminosity and depth. A cyanotype base is printed first, then a gum layer is registered and printed over it, adding color, texture, and dimension. The session covers registration methods, strategies for building multiple layers, and solutions to common problems such as layer shifting and incomplete development. Participants conclude the course with a finished multi-layered print that embodies a distinctive dialogue between two historic processes.

Why Choose This Course?

Explores four alternative photographic printing processes.

Combines historical techniques with digital-negative preparation.

Develops greater control over colour, contrast and tonal range.

Encourages experimentation with hand-coated and layered prints.

Supports photographers, printmakers and artists seeking to expand their analogue practice.

Learning Outcomes
Prepare digital negatives for alternative photographic printing.
Produce advanced and duotone cyanotype prints.
Create single-layer gum dichromate prints.
Combine gum dichromate and cyanotype in a multi-layered image.
Control exposure, registration, pigment and development across different processes.
Develop a reliable workflow for continued independent practice.