Perfect Time of the Year to Make Sun-Prints!

This technique is so much fun that I'm posting it again; it first appeared about 3 years ago.   

 July is just the right time to make sun-prints!

The sun-print paper that I chose -- the only one I could find that would fit my 9"X 12" stencils -- was Super Sunprint Kit by Lawrence Hall of Science.  Detailed instructions should be enclosed with this paper.

My first step was to paint opaque paint over the stencils to be used.  

The four shots below show two of my stencils -- Boxed Vines and Queen Anne's Lace -- painted with opaque green acrylic.  (Any opaque color will work.)

The three photos above show the sun-prints being made -- the top layer is a transparent sheet of Plexiglas (placed there in an effort to hold everything in place); the next layer is the paint-coated stencil; the bottom layer (not visible in the above photo) is the sun-print paper.

Below is a sun-print created with my 9"X12" stencil Queen Anne's Lace--

I'd love to say that the faint double-image and the right-side tone-shift were planned, to create an artsy effect, but the truth is they were not.  These prints were all made on a sunny but windy day and I was just re-learning how to do them, having been originally taught years ago by my friend Mary Ann Russo.  No, I hadn't read the directions that had come with the paper!  I'd relied on memory instead -- so there were a few hiccups ... 

When making this batch, I had forgotten that the stencil and sun-print paper should be kept in the dark until it is ready to be placed into direct sunlight.  So I got the accidental double-exposure above by placing the stencil over the paper twice, in two different areas, while allowing sunlight to reach it both times.

However!  I plan to go for the artsy multiple-exposure look, next time -- and do so on purpose!  I'm going to create multiple exposures on each sheet of sun-print paper -- I'll keep moving the stencil across the paper to create a series of exposures.  Each exposure takes only a few minutes, on a day with bright overhead sun. 

After the last exposure, the paper is to be placed in a tub of water and swished around, then laid flat to dry.  I dried mine in a shaded area.  After that water-rinse, they should not continue to change with light exposure, but I chose a shaded area just to be on the safe side.

Below are a few more of my first set of sun-prints as they were spread out to dry:

Above:  two prints created with my 9"X 12" Boxed Vines stencil.

Above:  created with my 9"X12" Mimosa stencil.

Note:  I think it's possible to make sun-prints with stencils that have not been pre-coated with opaque paint.  But the resulting images will have less contrast between the exposed areas and the unexposed areas.  One fun thing to try would be to spatter or streak opaque paint across a stencil and then use it to make a sun-print.  This would result in an exposure that has a hit-and-miss, artsy look. Try it!

Thanks for visiting today!

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