Another Pre-Press Blast from the Past

[IntegrityShirts]

Are there any videos out there that explain what you old codgers are mumbling on about?  I honestly can't picture what the heck you're talking about without some sort of video or pictures. I was going to google/youtube it, but drew a blank with what to type into the search box. I really am interested!

[Frog]

Integrity, I'm out walking the dog right now so I can't draw you any diagrams but maybe I can start you off with an over simplified explanation.
Imagine the rolr of 35mm film as a negative, containing each letter, upper and lower case, as an open area.

That film is put inside the machine, on two rollers, as the film is advanced, only the chosen letter shows through a  window, below the small exposure light.

Besides the film, the machine also holds photographic paper below the film.

So now, you have a selected letter, a flash of light and an exposure is made.

Now, when all of the text is done this way, the paper is removed, developed, and dried. Then, cut and pasted into the artwork..

Can you say "tedious"? (at least by today's standards)


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[T Shirt Farmer]

Old  School

Pen and ink key line art, set text on stripe printer, develope, cut and paste onto line art,  shot a film positive in stat camera, tray develop in darkroom, hang dry
Tape down keyline film to light table, place a sheet of blank film over key line, paste reg marks, apply solid ruby or sheets of preprinted tints sheets ranging from 10% up to 90% in 10% increments. Cut out a over sized section from tint sheet lay over the desired are if image then cut to final image keyline with exacto blade continue for every area stacking newfims as required for additional print colors.

A 3 color typical T image would take any where from 3 to6 hours if it had tints or mixed colors etc.... we now do this in 30 minutes or less

[Frog]

Okay, back in the computer room and whipped out this (hopefully) understandable diagram showing the basic principle of the strip printer

*

[IntegrityShirts]

ahhhhhh I see now. So you use that developed strip and tape it to the rest of your artwork (rubylith) and expose? I think I get it. Also watched some rubylith videos, that's just ridiculous. People are still using that stuff and cutting out by hand. For fun I can only assume, not money. Thanks Frog!

[Frog]

ahhhhhh I see now. So you use that developed strip and tape it to the rest of your artwork (rubylith) and expose? I think I get it. Also watched some rubylith videos, that's just ridiculous. People are still using that stuff and cutting out by hand. For fun I can only assume, not money. Thanks Frog!

Hold your horses whippersnapper, don't rush, LOL!
This is paper, cut and pasted to add to other paper components of the art, which was then shot in a camera to produce films.

Rubylith (and rub-off halftone dots and gradients) was generally applied to transparent sheets (or line drawing photo positives) and then shot to final film in a contact frame.

[IntegrityShirts]

Oh good grief

[Frog]

It's not that much unlike the old days when Leonardo might take a week or more to paint the Mona Lisa, while now, she'd just snap a selfie!

[Sbrem]

Are there any videos out there that explain what you old codgers are mumbling on about?  I honestly can't picture what the heck you're talking about without some sort of video or pictures. I was going to google/youtube it, but drew a blank with what to type into the search box. I really am interested!

Sorry, this would be pre-video, unless it was Super 8, LOL

Steve

Oh right, no light bar in the darkroom.