I cant wait to try one out. Im always a bit put off by sheet film as im not yet comfortable with dark slides...too much to go wrong for an imbecile like me....this on the other hand, just got to get the film in the right way round. Hoping i can manage that.
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Using a paper negative is one of the easiest and most rewarding ways to take a photo. Ever!
It's cheaper than film, but the beauty of paper negatives is you can load them under a safelight so you can see what goes on. You don';t have to worry about loading them wrong side out because you can see which side of the paper is the emulsion side.
I don't pre flash any of my paper because I'm lazy and just don't want to fiddle with it. Besides, I've read that if you pre-flash, (others can yay or nay on this) you need to expose the sheet fairly soon afterwards, otherwise it just goes back to its previous state of not being excited.
Most of the time I load a paper negative, it is loaded for a while before I use it. I'm not organized enough (nor want to be) to keep track of what's been flashed or not, so I just don't do it. I mostly use Harman direct positive paper now and am happy not flashing it.
I'm also using home-brew caffenol exclusively as a developer now and love it. It imparts a nice stain as well as develops the paper so it's a multipurpose effort using coffee.
I rate all of my paper at 3. However, I mostly wing it when I make an exposure and "be" the emulsion. I've done this long enough that I have a pretty good sense of how long is enough for the pinhole cameras I use in the light around here which is very bright most of the time.
Take the plunge Damion, others too.
It's not scary, or treacherous and there's no mean slimy monsters at the end. Just get some paper and shoot it. Plus, the paper lends a little bit of its own texture to the final print, so it's a unique way of making a photo.
