How to make cyanotype
Learn how to create beautiful cyanotype prints
What is cyanotype?
Cyanotype is an ancient monochrome photographic process, invented in England in 1842 by the English astronomer Sir John Herschel, although it was the British botanist Anna Atkins who immediately put it into practice.
With this procedure an image of Prussian blue color is obtained thanks to the photosensitive reaction produced by the chemicals used.
In 1880 cyanotypes were very popular and were made, in addition to paper, on other supports such as fabrics, ceramics, leather and wood. Although they were mainly used to make copies of blueprints.
Anna Atkins algae cyanotype.
Materials needed
I’m going to explain step by step how to make cyanotypes, but first I will give you a brief summary of the tools and materials for cyanotype. Here you can find my cyanotype kit, ready to start to make cyanotypes.
You will need:
Watercolor paper, the thicker the better (I recommend 200gr or more).
Brush or paintbrush.
Elements to make our composition: leaves, plants, feathers, etc.
Photosensitive cyanotype emulsion (I will explain it in depth later).
Container with cold water to wash the cyanotype.
Glass to place over our cyanotype and prevent the elements from moving.
Anna Atkins algaes cyanotype.
How to make cyanotype
The first thing we have to do is to create the photosensitive cyanotype emulsion. For this we need two chemical compounds, ferric ammoniacal citrate and potassium ferrocyanide red. Each chemical is diluted in water independently creating two different solutions:
10gr of red potassium ferrocyanide in 100ml of distilled water.
25gr of ferric ammonium citrate in 100ml of distilled water.
Be very careful! it is very important that the liquids are not exposed to sunlight, because they will spoil. The liquid can only be exposed to sunlight once it has been applied on the paper and we have everything ready to make our cyanotype. Let the liquids stand for about 24 hours so that the chemicals dilute well.
Be very careful! it is very important that the liquids are not exposed to sunlight, because they will spoil. The liquid can only be exposed to sunlight once it has been applied on the paper and we have everything ready to make our cyanotype. Let the liquids stand for about 24 hours so that the chemicals dilute well.
Now we are going to create the emulsion, that is to say, to mix the liquid A with the B, the resulting liquid is the one that is used to paint our paper and to expose to the sun.
With a plastic syringe we take the quantity we want of liquid A and with a different syringe, we take the same quantity of liquid B. Different syringes must be used so as not to contaminate the liquids.
We empty the two syringes in a separate container, and we mix them. We already have ready the emulsion with which we will paint our papers and we will create the cyanotypes.
Preparing the cyanotype paper
It is necessary to use a paper of a certain thickness, since this technique needs to be washed at the end of the process. You can use watercolor paper of about 200gr or more, the thicker the paper, the less it will deform when washed.
We have our paper ready and the cyanotype emulsion. With a brush we cover the surface of the paper with the liquid and let it dry.
At no time can our emulsion be exposed to sunlight.
We have our cyanotype paper ready, now it's time to create our cyanotype print.
There are two ways to create them, the first, simpler, is to collect leaves, flowers, plants, feathers, etc. and place them on our paper, expose it to the sun and wait for the magic to happen!
Another way is by using stencils. A stencils is the printing of an inverted black and white photograph on a transparent plastic sheet. The black ink blocks the light, just as if we put an object in front of it.
In my shop you can buy many different stencils sets, take a look!
Sun exposure
We have the paper with the emulsion dry and ready. We have collected leaves, plants, petals, feathers, etc., or we have our own stencils.
Now what we have to do is to place our paper on a solid surface, a cardboard for example, place our elements on the emulsion and place a glass on top and fix it with tweezers or something that allows it not to move.
When we have it ready, we must expose it to direct sunlight, as shown in the bellow image.
The time they have to be exposed will depend on the intensity of the sun. About 10 minutes in summer will be enough for everything to turn out well, but in winter, more minutes may be needed, approximately twice as many. You will have to do small tests to see how long to expose your cyanotypes to the sun.
When the minutes have passed, the yellow emulsion will darken and change color until it finally becomes a dark gray tone.
When the minutes are over, it is very important to keep your cyanotype and not to let the sunlight shine on it again.
Developing process
Once you have the emulsion ready, you have to wash it one or more times. Fill a container, a sink or the place of your choice with cold tap water. It is recommended that you wear gloves.
When we introduce our cyanotype in the water, we will see how the excess of chemicals come off the paper.
The parts that have been exposed to the sun, remain adhered to the paper and little by little they are colored of the characteristic Prussian blue of this technique. The parts that have been covered by our elements, or by the black ink of our stencils, will disappear leaving our paper in sight.
In the following photos I show you a cyanotype of mine, the stencil, and how the final result looks like.
Also, additionally, you can add to the water in which you wash the cyanotype, a little hydrogen peroxide, this will make the blue darker. It is a matter of testing and see what finish you like best.
