Negative Film & Photopolymer Plate

Taty….. I’ve made a lot of PP plates through the years, and YES you can make them at home after you’ve learned it’s tricks. There is a very good book out there called “Printmaking In The Sun” which is all about making PP plates without having to buy a lot of expensive materials.

As far as the Termal Negative film goes, I have no idea. I’ve never used it. I still use old-style chemical film…. which is semi-obsolete, and requires a darkroom. It works beautifully, but it’s not easy to learn to do well.

BUT all of that being said, I encourage you to learn platemaking. In my view, platemaking is at least 50% of the true art of printing. I’d recommend that you learn it one step at a time: First learn to print using store-bought plates. THEN learn make little plates using using hand-washed PP plates and negatives made for you by others. Then after that, I’d learn to make negatives using whatever technology is available to you. The book mentioned above discusses all of that.

Now…. will your first plates be as good as those made by the various vendors? No… not even close. Will they be cheaper? Not at fisrt because you’ll waste materials. BUT if you study and work at it, eventually you’ll be able to make really good plates…… and you’ll be glad you learned how.

Winking has a good point , there is nothing worse than setting the press ,inking up and pulling your first copy off the machine and theres a low or poorly exposed element on the plate and you cant get another for two days.

Good response and wise counsel Winker.
Newbies, students and apprentices take note.
Succinctly written and without personal bias and emotion.
We can make our own gummie bear rollers, make our own paper, and make our own ink. These might be fun to try. Why not make our own plates? It is something each person who is curious should try.
Enjoy the journey. Explore and experiment.
Get some ink on your shirt.

Thank you winking cat press for your recommendations. It will definitely be a journey for me.

Any photopolymer plate making companies out there you someone can recommend? Thank you!

Taty…. good luck on your journey. I started mine many years ago, and I’m still learning new things every day. My own journey has sort of gone full circle…. starting off with simple tools, then going on to more advanced machinery. Now, I’ve rediscovered the beauty of simplicity. It’s been a life-long process…… as it can be for you if you find a niche you really love.

As far as PP plates go, there are several vendors who frequent this forum, and as far as I know they are all excellent. ( I know Boxcar and Gerald both make great plates for folks. ) Just be sure to get your plates from someone who specializes in letterpress plates….. they tend to be a world of knowlege, and will often lend assistance if you run into problems.

Taty

Just a note, my clientele for processing photopolymer plates is regionally based, primarily Southern California, and is restricted to folks that I know or who somehow slipped in through the cracks. Somewhat specialized. It’s a one person show. Boxcar Press is your best bet by far. They have 90+ employees! and love newbies.

http://www.boxcarpress.com/

Gerald
http://BielerPressxi.blogspot.com