This from a website that sells albumen prints:

"Each print is then retouched, and hand-waxed
with bees wax and oil of lavender."

I wonder if this treatment would enhance the surface of Pt/Pd prints?

Here's the website:

http://www.collodion.org/Lincoln.html

Years ago I used to improve the appearance of matte silver gelatine prints by the application of very dilute lithographers varnish. The varnish was thinned 1 part varnish to 5-8 parts of rectified turpentine. A small amount was applied to the print with a cotton ball and immediately any excess was removed by buffing with a clean lint free cloth. The application can be repeated. This technique should also work very well with Pd/Pt prints. Can't remember what book on printing had this tip. I believe lithographer's varnish is considered archival.

Waxing prints is an old process. I use to do it, as did many others, to help hide the retouching on prints, particularly where there were areas which had black flecks lifted out, and/or the spotting colors were more dull than the rest of the print surface.
I still have a bar of Dorland's Print Wax but have not used it in years. Wax puts a nice sheen on the image, but I would never do it to a platinum print as I think it would destroy the feel of the print. It probably would cause the print to appear slightly sharper.

I've used Reniassance Wax on many platinum prints and gum-over platinum prints. It's a subtle but nice effect. It does not at all destroy the feel of the print.

Kerik -
where do you get Renaissance Wax?

Anyone here ever tone polaroids? I put some polaroids in sepiatoner and it works! :)
looks kind of strange though and I was afraid the pol's were gonna melt..

but they didn't ..

anyone if this is gonna have an adverse effect on the photo?

cheers!

ONno

Anyone here ever tone polaroids? I put some polaroids in sepiatoner and it works! :)
looks kind of strange though and I was afraid the pol's were gonna melt..

but they didn't ..

anyone if this is gonna have an adverse effect on the photo?

cheers!

ONno

I've done it with selenium toner at least a year ago and they're still good.

...

Bruce,

Yes I have done the bees wax/lavender oil with a plantinum print and as Kerik says it has a very nice effect on the print. And it smells great afterwards too! It takes a certain amount of fiddling with the heat to get a consistency that goes on well but we aren't talking rocket science here afterall I'm doing it.

Monty

i think you can get this wax from Light Impressions
Kerik -
where do you get Renaissance Wax?

Another option is to coat the print with polyurethane... A good product for this purpose is clear Hydrocoat PolyShield (glossy and/or satin). I use the satin version with (1:1) or without (1:0) diluting it with water. Undiluted, the print becomes glossy - almost like a s/g print - and you get around log 1 - 1.3 (immense!) Dmax increase... Diluted, it's not glossy to the point of ruining the original feel, but again you get some Dmax increase (which is good). The coating gives considerable surface protection to the print too...

Hope this helps,
Loris.

This from a website that sells albumen prints:

"Each print is then retouched, and hand-waxed
with bees wax and oil of lavender."

I wonder if this treatment would enhance the surface of Pt/Pd prints?

Here's the website:

http://www.collodion.org/Lincoln.html